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Mary Ventura and the Ninth Kingdom

Faber Stories
Series: Faber Stories
3.97 goodreads logo

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( 15,762 ratings, 1,969 reviews)
Book Hero Magic crafted this summary to help describe this book. While it's new and still learning, it may not be perfect - your feedback is welcome! Summary
_Discover Mary Ventura and the Ninth Kingdom, written by Sylvia Plath, a compelling short story that takes readers on an unexpected journey with young Mary Ventura, who boards a mysterious train. As the train heads towards an unknown and ominous destination, Mary grapples with her own sense of foreboding and encounters enigmatic passengers, provoking her to question the ultimate purpose of her journey._
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Format: Paperback / softback
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Book Hero Magic created this recommendation. While it's new and still learning, it may not be perfect - your feedback is welcome! IS THIS YOUR NEXT READ?

You might enjoy this book if you appreciate a fantastical yet thought-provoking journey penned by Sylvia Plath. The narrative, rich in symbolism, follows a young woman's train trip to a mysterious destination, exploring themes of self-discovery and existential questions. Fans of literature with a hint of mystery and allegory will likely find this story captivating.

Book Hero thinking about your next read

A previously unpublished work by Sylvia Plath - a mythic tale of the assertion of female agency.

Faber 90th Stories brings together some of our finest short stories, past, present and future.

Book Hero Magic formatted this description to make it easier to read. While it's new and still learning, it may not be perfect - your feedback is welcome! Description

Lips the colour of blood, the sun an unprecedented orange, train wheels that sound like 'guilt, and guilt, and guilt': these are just some of the things Mary Ventura begins to notice on her journey to the ninth kingdom.

But what is the ninth kingdom? she asks a kind-seeming lady in her carriage. It is the kingdom of the frozen will, comes the reply. There is no going back.

Mary Ventura and the Ninth Kingdom is Sylvia Plath's strange, dark tale of independence over infanticide, written not long after she herself left home. The narrative grapples with mortality in motion.

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Book Hero Magic summarised reviews for this book. While it's new and still learning, it may not be perfect - your feedback is welcome! HOW HAS THIS BEEN REVIEWED?

Mary Ventura and the Ninth Kingdom by Sylvia Plath has been praised for its rich symbolism and haunting atmosphere. Reviewers often highlight its allegorical journey, seen as a reflection on themes of destiny and personal choice. Plath's writing is described as both imaginative and striking, capturing a sense of foreboding and existential contemplation.

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Book Details

INFORMATION

ISBN: 9780571351732

Publisher: Faber & Faber

Format: Paperback / softback

Date Published: 03 January 2019

Country: United Kingdom

Imprint: Faber & Faber

Edition: Main

Audience: General / adult

DIMENSIONS

Spine width: 3.0mm

Width: 111.0mm

Height: 160.0mm

Weight: 38g

Pages: 48

About the Author

Sylvia Plath (1932-63) was born in Boston, Massachusetts, and studied at Smith College. In 1955 she went to Cambridge University on a Fulbright scholarship, where she met and later married Ted Hughes. She published one collection of poems in her lifetime, The Colossus (1960), and a novel, The Bell Jar (1963). Her Collected Poems, which contains her poetry written from 1956 until her death, was published in 1981 and was awarded the Pulitzer Prize for poetry.

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