Johnny Panic and the Bible of Dreams

 

This is a collection of Sylvia Plath's short stories. It was just ok. I liked the short story "Johnny Panic and the Bible of Dreams" which is loosely based on her mental hospital experience. "That Widow Mangada" about an annoying landlord was cute. But Sylvia Plath's real achievements were in poetry and The Bell Jar. I got the impression from the biography Red Comet that these were stories that she didn't put her whole heart into. They were just stories that were written with magazines like Mademoiselle specifically in mind.  It shows potential but this isn't the first thing a Sylvia Plath newbie should read. 

Myths, Legends, and Sacred Stories

 

This was a pretty cool book covering the mythology of many cultures. It included stories of people I don't know much about like the Maori culture. It explains the stories behind many epic poems too which I thought was cool like The Mahabharata, Beowulf, and Ramayana. It was full of illustrations and chocked with a lot of information. I felt like I learned a lot. Definitely recommended.

Ted Hughes Selected Poems

 

I had a conversation with my older sister about the poet Ted Hughes and she said that no one talks about his poetry nowadays. He is mostly known for his association with Sylvia Plath. I was curious so I got this from the library. It was all right. The poems were mostly about nature. There were a lot of analysis of his poems on the internet until his book "Season Songs" so actually he is still remembered. I liked the poem "The Casualty" about a bunch of people who gawk and who do nothing when they see a plane crash. It's interesting how human nature acts like in situations like that. Also I like "Cat and Mouse" where God is the cat and the mouse. It was an interesting visual. "The Thought-Fox", his most famous poem about the writing process, was pretty good too. The poetry in the beginning of the book is best. Ted Hughes isn't my favorite but I'm glad I gave him a try.

The Goblin's Market and Other Poems

 

The trashy poem "The Goblin's Market" was mistakenly labelled as children's literature at the time. Christina Rossetti even went against it. Even today the poem still gets that label. I was mistaken and thought this fantastic poem was all that Christina Rossetti really wrote. This book she wrote in 1862 blew my mind. There are poems about women being tore between virtue and sex but there are just as many religious poems. Religion played a large part in Christina Rossetti's life. I'm going to read a biography of her soon. I'm fascinated to find out more about this woman. I think she's just as good as other favorites of mine like Anne Sexton and Emily Dickinson. I didn't know it until 2021 but poetry can be fun.