Sylvia Plath's story both in real life and in this work of "fiction"--is undeniably sad. I instantly fell in love with the mood of this book. Sylvia's style as an author is undeniable.
I am tempted to compare the main character of this story (which is, in fact, a not-so-"fictionalized" an autobiographical account of Sylvia's entry into young adulthood)to J.D. Salinger's Holden Caulfield (of The Catcher in the Rye, for those not familiar). However, that might be a bit oversimplistic. When you consider the social climate and its implications for women in the era of this book, you may find it all the more compelling that the main character behaves as she does. I won't give too much away, but I will say that Plath does a remarkable job of creating a character for whom her readers will likely experience many conflicting impressions and feelings.
It makes sense that Sylvia Plath's writing is so beautiful, given that she's a poet. In her only novel, we enter into the first-person narrative of Esther, a young college woman, who recounts the months before and during her mental break-down. She spirals, overwhelmed with life's choices, knowing she is loosing it and therefore keeping open a window of sanity and choice. Difficult in parts, yet a redemptive story written in gorgeous prose.