Sylvia Plath's diaries

Sylvia Plath (1932 in Boston – 1963 in London) was an American writer and poet, known primarily for works such as her exceptional novel The Bell Jar, in which she drew upon her own experience with psychiatric treatment, and her now-iconic poetry collection Ariel, brilliantly translated in 1984 by poet Jan Zábrana, which is one of the most famous Anglo-American poetry books of the 20th century.

Her life was affected by the early death of her father, a loss she struggled to come to terms with throughout her life. At the same time, she battled depression and her own inner demons, which she imprinted on her artistic work and personal diaries. We are now bringing you a selection from them in this new edition. We offer readers the opportunity to embark on an adventurous and fascinating journey into the corners of the author's vulnerable and unstable personality.

These entries, which she kept until her death, express her desire for wholeness in life and art, and capture the turmoil of her sensitive soul. In them, she strives for the most honest possible view of herself. Their pages bear witness to alternating periods of complex self-destruction and regeneration. The diaries were prepared for publication by the author's husband, the English poet Ted Hughes, with whom Plath had a very complicated relationship. He also influenced their final form.

The voice that speaks to us from these pages is, in the best passages, as genuine and captivating as the voice of Plath the poet. She was posthumously awarded the Pulitzer Prize for her life's work.