A Crown for Ted and Sylvia
Ebook
Overview
A Crown for Ted and Sylvia is a book of poetry for Sylvia Plath and Ted Hughes fans and for those obsessed by their compelling literary story. It examines questions about the politics of family and shifting perspectives over time, and asks why some families are fated to repeat certain narratives over generations. Finally, those who enjoy traditional forms, such as sonnets, villanelles, and pentinas, will find plenty of them here.
“In a book full of surprises, Kim Bridgford reveals herself to
be a wonderful religious poet. The title crown is a tour de force
marked by some deeply memorable lines, and the series of poems on
biblical themes called ‘What Fresh Hell is This’ is especially
moving, as form and meaning coalesce into something far more than
the sum of their parts. ‘That’s how it is. You are what you most
fear. / You think you know your shining, private name: / You don’t.
It is the language of your secrets.’ In remarkable lines such as
these, Bridgford speaks with candor and depth of mysteries that
need to be revealed.”
—Annie Finch, author of Spells and Among the
Godesses
“‘You never know the truth, but try to guess.’ And guess Kim
Bridgford does in these moving poems chronicling the life and death
of Sylvia Plath. A Crown for Ted and Sylvia simultaneously
explores and expands the mythos of the Hughes-Plath saga,
conjuring the dead and giving them voices, allowing them to speak
for themselves and tell their heartbreaking tale. Formally elegant,
classically severe, Bridgford’s poems move by suggestion and
indirection, implying much more than can be said, not just about
these lost souls but about our own lives. There is a sibylline
quality to this book. The repeating forms the poet favors—haunting
villanelles, playful pentinas, and, of course, the regal
crown—function like charms, strange enchantments hinting at
mysteries that cannot be unraveled. It’s a fact: ‘You never know
the truth, but try to guess.’ These splendid poems bring us closer
to that knowing.”
—Angela Alaimo O’Donnell, author of Lovers’ Almanac and
Still Pilgrim
Product Details
- Title : A Crown for Ted and Sylvia
- Author: Bridgford, Kim
- Publisher: Resource Publications
- Publication Date: 2019
- ISBN: 9781532672903
Kim Bridgford is the director of Poetry by the Sea and the
editor of Mezzo Cammin. The author of thirteen books, she is
the recipient of grants from the NEA, the Connecticut Commission on
the Arts, and the Ucross Foundation. With Russell Goings, she rang
the closing bell of the New York Stock Exchange, in celebration of
his book The Children of Children Keep Coming, for which she
wrote the introduction.