The Bell Jar cover art

The Bell Jar

 Preview
Get this deal Try Premium Plus free
Offer ends 29 January 2026 at 11:59PM GMT.
Prime members: New to Audible? Get 2 free audiobooks during trial.
Just £0.99/mo for your first 3 months of Audible.
1 bestseller or new release per month—yours to keep.
Listen all you want to thousands of included audiobooks, podcasts, and Originals.
Auto-renews at £8.99/mo after 3 months. Cancel monthly.
Pick 1 audiobook a month from our unmatched collection - including bestsellers and new releases.
Listen all you want to thousands of included audiobooks, Originals, celeb exclusives, and podcasts.
Access exclusive sales and deals.
£8.99/month after 30 days. Renews automatically.

The Bell Jar

By: Sylvia Plath
Narrated by: Maggie Gyllenhaal
Get this deal Try Premium Plus free

£8.99/mo after 3 months. Cancel monthly. Offer ends 29 January 2026 at 11:59PM GMT.

£8.99/month after 30 days. Renews automatically. See here for eligibility.

Buy Now for £18.99

Buy Now for £18.99

LIMITED TIME OFFER | £0.99/mo for the first 3 months

Premium Plus auto-renews at £8.99/mo after 3 months. Terms apply.

About this listen

 READ BY THE CRITICALLY ACCLAIMED ACTRESS MAGGIE GYLLENHAAL

'A modern classic.' Guardian

'A near-perfect work of art.' Joyce Carol Oates

I was supposed to be having the time of my life . . .

Working as an intern for a New York fashion magazine in the summer of 1953, Esther Greenwood is on the brink of her future. Yet she is also on the edge of a darkness that makes her world increasingly unreal. Esther's vision of the world shimmers and shifts: day-to-day living in the sultry city, her crazed men-friends, the hot dinner dances . . . The Bell Jar, Sylvia Plath's only novel, is partially based on Plath's own life. It has been celebrated for its darkly funny and razor sharp portrait of 1950s society, and has sold millions of copies worldwide.

ONE OF THE BBC'S '100 NOVELS THAT SHAPED OUR WORLD'

'As clear and readable as it is witty and disturbing.' New York Times Book Review

©2015 Sylvia Plath (P)2015 Faber & Faber Classics Fiction Mental Health Awareness Women's Voices Heartfelt Thought-Provoking Witty Emotionally Gripping Mental Health

Listeners also enjoyed...

 The Virgin Suicides cover art
The Unabridged Journals of Sylvia Plath cover art
The Color Purple cover art
When We Were Orphans cover art
Mrs. Dalloway cover art
Short Stories About Suicide cover art
After Life cover art
A Room of One's Own cover art
Frankenstein cover art
One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest cover art
Slaughterhouse-Five cover art
Anna Karenina cover art
Brave New World cover art
For Whom the Bell Tolls cover art
The Rabbi cover art
Invisible Man cover art
All stars
Most relevant

Where does The Bell Jar rank among all the audiobooks you’ve listened to so far?

One of my top audible listens so far. I have read the book as a teenager and then again at university, so I know it very well. But listening to it brought it back to life again. Maggie Gyllenhaal's performance is wonderful and does justice to Plath's vivid yet lyrical writing.

Any additional comments?

The only complaint I have is that this recording omits the opening paragraphs of The Bell Jar. Perhaps the reflective opening paragraphs were omitted to make the audiobook lively and gripping from the very first words but it is a bit of a shame for those who know this book very well.

Wonderfully performed

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
Fantastic reading by the narrator. I'd give it a full 5 overall, but heard its not entirely complete. So for those familiar with the book, I've taken it into account. Overall however, this is a superb production. Maggie Gyllenhaal fits Plath's voice perfectly. Highly recommend.

Superb

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

What did you like most about The Bell Jar?

The honesty of the writing - my heart went out to this girl. Her depression and treatment was so well described - and while the character is not terribly likeable, I felt a great deal of sympathy for her. The writing is extremely good.

What other book might you compare The Bell Jar to, and why?

Kay Redfield Jamison "An Unquiet Mind & William Styron "Darkness Visible" both brilliant memoirs about depression.

Which scene did you most enjoy?

Is enjoy the right word for any part of this book? - it's so painful.

If you made a film of this book, what would be the tag line be?

A journey through depression.

A Harrowing Classic

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
I loved this, having bought it as a Daily Deal and never heard of it before. The narration by Maggie Gyllenhaal suited the story perfectly, I really enjoyed her voice. It was a touching, intriguing tale of mental health, and I also enjoyed the story of Esther's work experience in New York. I will be recommending this book to friends, and will re-listen in future.

Intriguing story

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
Loved this rendition by Maggie Gyllenhaal and can't believe I hadn't read/listened to it sooner. A great read, found it hard to stop. Would recommend.

I can't believe I hadn't read it sooner

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
See more reviews