Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #120803 in Books
• Published on: 1979-04-09
• Original language: English
• Binding: Paperback
• 368 pages

Customer Reviews

There's No Need To Panic About Johnny
A collection of short stories by Sylvia Plath, Johnny Panic and the Bible of Dreams is guaranteed to keep you guessing what will happen in each story. Although you do start picking up on the fact that there is a twist to each story, you can never correctly guess each one if it's your first time reading it.
Bearing in mind that I have an interest in the life of Sylvia Plath, the book does give you an insight into the kind of things she may have thought important: the infidelity of a husband, growing old being dominated by a man, the idea of being in a psychiatric hospital.
All in all, an entertaining book with an element of real life to keep you believing.

A book full of hidden treasures
Plath's prose is not just "The Bell Jar". Read this and think again! Obviously, some stories are better than others, but don't take Hughes' section divisions as gospel - "Sweetie Pie and the Gutter Men" is a much more complex story than you would think given its placing in the volume. None of the stories should be underestimated, but some should be read with an awareness of the kind of magazine market she was trying to break into. Having said that, the star of the show is undoubtedly the weird and wonderful "Johnny Panic", a story which pulls like a magnet until the amazing climax. Take time over the stories, and they will reward...

More than just a poet's prose!
'Johnny Panic and the Bible of Dreams' is a wonderful collection of culturally conscious texts. The stories like - Plath's poetry - often show the world (or her world) in its most naked, pure, form. Plath narrates with a compelling, wry detachment, with the story 'Johnny Panic..' being as powerful and as intense as any text I have ever read.
Do not let the usual dismissal of Plath's fiction put you off - 'Johnny Panic and the Bible of Dreams' is an excellent collection that offers unique insights into both Plath's life and her development as an artist.