Like so many, I feel a real affinity for the poetry of Sylvia Plath. She’s my favorite poet as Shirley Jackson is my favorite prose writer and Remedios Varo is my favorite artist.
For my MFA explication I wrote about the Plath poem “Fever 103.” I still love that poem which so well captures that feeling of having a high fever without really talking about fever or being ill.
For my PhD dissertation, each chapter was focused on one female poet and one type of identity. For my Plath chapter I wrote about performing gender.
Later, when I began to write more poetry, I could feel the influence of Plath’s poetry on me.
Most inspirational for me was how candid and direct her poetry sounds. And under the surface, I suppose, was her search for who her father was and how he connected to her. These features really guided me in writing Scrap: Salvaging a Family. But they also helped in creating this collage for Raw Lit, Issue 9. The Making of a Daddy which relies upon the imagery from two poems Plath wrote about her father: “Daddy” and “The Colossus.”
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“Spare, precise, and quietly devastating, this is the kind of memoir that stays in the body long after the reading is done.”
That’s what the editorial review at The Book Review calls my memoir.
The Book Revue – 5 Star Review
Here’s another favorite paragraph:
“Her prose has the economy of a poet who knows exactly which word is doing the work and which ones can be cut. She has a remarkable ability to locate enormous emotion inside small, specific objects and moments, a trait that is genuinely rare and that gives the book its distinctive texture.”
It’s a good skill to have, being able to cut to the chase with words.
Like a whittler!
Exactly. A word whittler.
I just read the editorial review and concur wholeheartedly! Congratulations!!
Liz, thank you so much!!!
You’re welcome, Luanne!
Congratulations, Luanne!
Thank you, Merril! 🙂
You’re welcome, Luanne!
That review definitely hits the nail on the head as far as I am concerned.
I remember reading “Daddy” in college and how well it resonated for me. I need to go back now and re-read it.
There are a lot of things to debate about that poem.
Aw thanks re the review!
I just finished reading Scrap last night, and this review encapsulates so much of how it impacted me. More to come when I mull over my thoughts some more.
OOh, ok! By the way, I am almost done with my review of your new book Louisa. And what a connection between the subjects of our books! Different continents, time periods, but . . . .
I probably should have emailed you about my review of Louisa. I thought if I tagged you in the post you would get it so you could respond to any comments if you wish. So sorry! https://writersite.org/2026/06/29/review-of-louisa-a-powerful-historical-novel-about-being-born-a-woman/
That collage is so powerful! Congrats on the wonderful review of Scrap 🩷
Thank you so much, Marie! I love working on collages and can’t find enough time! And thanks for the review. So pleased to see the insights that readers have!
It must be a wonderful creative outlet 🩷
It is!!!