Your Story, My Story

A Novel

By: Connie Palmen, Eileen J. Stevens - translator, Anna Asbury - translator

Narrated by: Guy Mott

From the award-winning author of The Friendship comes a shattering, brilliantly inventive novel based on the volatile true love story of literary icons Sylvia Plath and Ted Hughes.

In 1963 Sylvia Plath took her own life in her London flat. Her death was the culmination of a brief, brilliant life lived in the shadow of clinical depression—a condition exacerbated by her tempestuous relationship with mercurial poet Ted Hughes. The ensuing years saw Plath rise to martyr status while Hughes was cast as the cause of her suicide, his infidelity at the heart of her demise.

For decades, Hughes never bore witness to the truth of their marriage—one buried beneath a mudslide of apocryphal stories, gossip, sensationalism, and myth. Until now.

In this mesmerizing fictional work, Connie Palmen tells his side of the story, previously untold, delivered in Ted Hughes’s own uncompromising voice. A brutal and lyrical confessional, Your Story, My Story paints an indelible picture of their seven-year relationship—the soaring highs and profound lows of star-crossed soul mates bedeviled by their personal demons. It will forever change the way we think about these two literary icons.

©2015 Connie Palmen (P)2020 Brilliance Publishing, Inc., all rights reserved. Translation © 2021 by Eileen J. Stevens and Anna Asbury

Critic reviews

“Like witnessing Ted Hughes, the poet himself, rising from the dead and disclosing his version of his legendary marriage to American poet Sylvia Plath."—AudioFile magazine

“Enthralling…Palmen’s prose is beautiful and neither condemns nor exculpates Hughes. Palmen took on a tall order with this one, and does an admirable job of delivering.”—Publishers Weekly

“Brilliantly gives voice to Ted Hughes…Palmen brings incredible emotion and life to these two renowned poets and embodies Hughes fully. This confessional will challenge readers to see Ted Hughes and his story in a different light.”—Booklist

Not my cup of tea

Great historical biography if you’re interested in risqué intimate details of a lovers torrid history. I was not happy as I got further into chapter two of the explicit details of ones sexual tidbits of promiscuity and moral discord and the detail display of their life in the off put immoral ideals. If you like torrid details of intimacy this is the book for you. It was well written. Historical interest only in a romance story of ill repute characters and interest. It’s a top read, if you like details you’ll find this true history fascinating in a blend of all kinds of moral, intimate battles of love in a hidden bedroom kind of manner. Too deeply intimate for my liking. Blushed is an understatement as I read the first two chapters allowed with my hubby. Even after some funny points he was put off by so much burlesque formed details.

This left a bad taste in my mouth.

While written well, the topic was very disturbing. The main character seemed controlling, even enacting hypnosis on his wife to change what he thought was not appropriate behavior or responses. Undestandanly, it is very difficult to live with a manic depressive, however constantly going between whining how difficult that life is while also trying to stifle and control the person, ultimately cheating on her when he knew what the outcome would be just makes it know that he also has mental issues which this book fails to delve into. It is a work of fiction but firmly based on true events and I found it to be very off putting and difficult to listen to. I am glad it is over. be sure to listen to the last part and you will see how he also caused a similar response in his lover, leaving her for yet another, with carnage in his wake.