Ariel: The Restored Edition: A Facsimile of Plath's Manuscript, Reinstating Her Original Selection and Arrangement

“Made up of poems that are so original in their style and so startlingly accomplished in their confessional voice that they helped change the direction of contemporary poetry, Ariel is a masterpiece.”  — New York Observer

Sylvia Plath's famous collection, as she intended it.

When Sylvia Plath died, she not only left behind a prolific life but also her unpublished literary masterpiece, Ariel. When her husband, Ted Hughes, first brought this collection to the public, it garnered worldwide acclaim, but it wasn't the draft Sylvia had wanted her readers to see. This facsimile edition restores, for the first time, Plath's original manuscript—including handwritten notes—and her own selection and arrangement of poems. This edition also includes in facsimile the complete working drafts of her poem "Ariel," which provide a rare glimpse into the creative process of a beloved writer. This publication introduces a truer version of Plath's works, and will alter her legacy forever.

Upon the publication of her posthumous volume of poetry, Ariel, in the mid-1960s, Sylvia Plath became a household name. Readers may be surprised to learn that the draft of Ariel left behind by Sylvia Plath when she died in 1963 is different from the volume of poetry eventually published to worldwide acclaim.

This facsimile edition restores, for the first time, the selection and arrangement of the poems as Sylvia Plath left them at the point of her death. In addition to the facsimile pages of Sylvia Plath’s manuscript, this edition also includes in facsimile the complete working drafts of the title poem, "Ariel," in order to offer a sense of Plath's creative process, as well as notes the author made for the BBC about some of the manuscript's poems.

In her insightful foreword to this volume, Frieda Hughes, Sylvia Plath's daughter, explains the reasons for the differences between the previously published edition of Ariel as edited by her father, Ted Hughes, and her mother's original version published here. With this publication, Sylvia Plath's legacy and vision will be re-evaluated in the light of her original working draft.

“[Frieda] Hughes’ thoughts on her mother’s life and writing offer a calm, tender account of a life that has too often been fodder for sensationalist coverage.” - Lisa Ko, author of The Leavers

“One of the most devastatingly moving and universally beloved books of poetry published in the 20th century.” - Time magazine

“These are powerful poems, not outtakes and B sides, and if they expose Plath’s personal pain, they also enrich our sense of her state of mind at the height of her powers.” - Time magazine

“Ariel: The Restored Edition finally puts the focus back where it belongs — on Plath’s poetry.” - Village Voice

“...a poetic landmark of the decade....a coruscating book, painfully self-revelatory, brimming with a fierce, raw energy.” - The Economist

“To women who wrote, this work was galvanizing. Sylvia . . . had a fully evolved voice.” - New York Review of Books

“...the publication of this ‘other’ Ariel will no doubt sustain the Hughes/Plath controversy for years to come, but we can be grateful for the insights provided by this restored edition.” - Library Journal

“It’s hard to read the original manuscript without trying to understand what Hughes was thinking when he left out certain poems and included others. She loved him. He hurt her. All of us who love her work are caught like children in that crossfire forever.” - Los Angeles Times

“Frieda Hughes has had the courage to bring her mother back, not as a symbol, but as a poet. Her poems are here and will have the last word. They remain remarkable.” - New York Review of Books

“Illuminating.” - New York Review of Books

“Sometimes it takes a long time for a book to reach its readers in the form the writer intended. . . . Ariel: The Restored Edition does the job, and then some.” - Seattle Times

“...one of the most important books of poetry of the 20th century...” - Slate

“It’s like a belated gift from Plath to the ‘peanut-crunching crowd’ that follows her every mood, every thought, even many years after her death.” - Buffalo News

“Made up of poems that are so original in their style and so startlingly accomplished in their confessional voice that they helped change the direction of contemporary poetry, Ariel is a masterpiece.” - New York Observer