The Lovely Bones Review (ecm1980)

Pros

Very well written.

Emotional

Powerful

Draws you into the characters quickly.

You are able to relate to almost everyone in the story.

Creative ideas about what Heaven could be like and what you can do there.

Cons

When the book ends, you don't want it to.

Full Review

The Lovely Bones By Alice Sebold is a wonderfully dramatic and powerful story. The main character is Susie Salmon. At the age of 12 she is brutally raped and killed by a man in her neighborhood. While Susie is in heaven (which is not at all what she expected) she watches her friends and family dealing with her death and their grief in ways that pain her in heaven.

She watches her Mother drift farther and farther away from the family, emotionally and physically. Her Father, who is out for justice and revenge, but doesn't really know how to go about it. Her sister Lindsey was a strange mixture of her parents. Wanting to be alone, yet also feeling the need to seek answers, just like her Father. Then there is Susie's little brother. Too small to really understand what is going on, too young for her parents to really know what to say to him. Susie's death will have just as big as an affect on him as everyone else.

While floating up to heaven (if that is what you can call it) Susie's soul passes through a girl she went to school with and in that instant this girl, Ruth, feels her presence. From that point on Ruth and Susie's almost boyfriend Ray spend their lives with Susie always in their thoughts. Ruth feels different inside, like she has some strange connection to the dead girl that she never really knew. All the while Ray lives with the constant wonder of what could have been had his almost girlfriend Susie not been murdered.

And then the killer...Harvey. What becomes of him? Is he forgotten by Susie? No. She watches him sometimes, observing...but unable to do anything. Will he ever be caught, will justice ever be done? To find the answer to this and many other questions you simply have to read this every exciting and emotional story.

In Closing

The only thing left to say about this book is that you have to go buy it. The emotions are so raw and the people are so real. You are missing out if you skip over this one.