The Lovely Bones

published	2004 by Back Bay Books
first published	2002
binding	Mass Market Paperback
isbn	0316166685 (isbn13: 9780316166683)
pages	384
description	When we first meet Susie Salmon, she is already in heaven. As she looks down from this strange new place, she tells us, in the fresh and spirited voic...more [close] When we first meet Susie Salmon, she is already in heaven. As she looks down from this strange new place, she tells us, in the fresh and spirited voice of a fourteen-year-old girl, a tale that is both haunting and full of hope. In the weeks following her death, Susie watches life on Earth continuing without her-her school friends trading rumors about her disappearance, her family holding out hope that she'll be found, her killer trying to cover his tracks. As months pass without leads, Susie sees her parents' marriage being contorted by loss, her sister hardening herself in an effort to stay strong, and her little brother trying to grasp the meaning of the word gone. And she explores the place called heaven. It looks a lot like her school playground, with the good kind of swing sets. There are counselors to help newcomers adjust and friends to room with. Everything she ever wanted appears as soon as she thinks of it-except the thing she most wants: to be back with the people she loved on Earth. With compassion, longing, and a growing understanding, Susie sees her loved ones pass through grief and begin to mend. Her father embarks on a risky quest to ensnare her killer. Her sister undertakes a feat of remarkable daring. And the boy Susie cared for moves on, only to find himself at the center of a miraculous event. The Lovely Bones is luminous and astonishing, a novel that builds out of grief the most hopeful of stories. In the hands of a brilliant new writer, this story of the worst thing a family can face is transformed into a suspenseful and even funny novel about love, memory, joy, heaven, and healing.
date added	08-30-06 edit book

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Sarah rated it:

09/24/07

Read in September, 2007

recommends it for: enemies

The Lovely Bones has got to be the most baffling, poorly written, jaw-droppingly bad book that I have ever set my eyes on. It is truly a black, black tragedy that the words in this book were placed in that particular order, published, and distributed. How could this have ever possibly been popular? Is it for the same reason that the song “My Humps” hit number one? I mean, I don’t technically believe in burning books, but this novel really got me thinking. About burning it.

If it serve...more The Lovely Bones has got to be the most baffling, poorly written, jaw-droppingly bad book that I have ever set my eyes on. It is truly a black, black tragedy that the words in this book were placed in that particular order, published, and distributed. How could this have ever possibly been popular? Is it for the same reason that the song “My Humps” hit number one? I mean, I don’t technically believe in burning books, but this novel really got me thinking. About burning it.

If it serves any use at all, it might be a perfect guide on how not to write a book. Here are some of my gripes, problems and issues that we can hopefully use to prevent something like this from ever happening again to us, our children, or our children’s children:

It is filled with some of the worst sentence-level writing that I have ever encountered. From bad description to horrible grammar to utterly confusing metaphors, Sebold covered it all. A tell-tale way to spot a weak writer? They can’t stop weirdly describing people’s eyes. Don’t believe me? Try this sentence: “Her eyes were like flint and flower petals.” Or this one: “The tears came like a small relentless army approaching the front lines of her eyes. She asked for coffee and toast in a restaurant and buttered it with her tears.” Really? She buttered the coffee and toast with her tears? Or this one, this time about someone’s heart: “Her heart, like a recipe, was reduced.” What the hell?

And here’s my favorite eye description in the book: “Her pupils dilated, pulsing in and out like small, ferocious olives.” That’s right. Ferocious olives. I’ve read MadLibs that make more sense than that.

It seems to lack a plot. You know, that thing that books are supposed to have. I’ll never forget my first workshop with Brady Udall, in which he threw my story onto the table and said, “This isn’t a story, Sarah, it’s a situation.” And as much as I despaired when I got home, he was right. Sebold has the same problem: her book is a really long situation. A girl dies and watches her family from heaven. Okay. That’s nice. But what do the characters want? What drives the story forward? Nothing. The characters get older and keep bumping into each other. Things change, and things often do, but there is no forward movement and certainly no building of suspense.

Since there’s no plot, the ending is just a bunch of weird stuff happening. I read the last thirty pages on the train this morning, and couldn’t stop a few outbursts: “Oh, no she didn’t!” I’d say, talking to Alice Sebold and her crazy ways. She is just plain bold when it comes to doing whatever she feels like, and she feels like doing the weirdest stuff ever. It’s not that I don’t want to write spoilers here, it’s that I can’t even explain to you what happened at the end of the book. And I bet she can’t either. I’m not exaggerating.

Her characters never have interesting or complex thoughts. Not even the serial killer or the mother whose daughter was murdered. It seems that Sebold’s characters do one of two things: they laugh (which means they are happy) or cry (to butter their toast, somehow, when they are sad). As you might guess, there is a lot of laughing and crying in this book. When a character is confused, they laugh and cry at the same time. This also happens often.

I feel a little better after venting. But I’m still deeply sad and angry. I feel like my own writing might have been permanently damaged by reading this book… like a couple of… ferocious… olives?

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TheDane rated it:

06/28/07

bookshelves: bookclub-read

Read in January, 2007

recommends it for: no one, really

One book, two rapes. How's that for a bargain. I almost said three rapes, but then I remembered that I was a consenting adult and did indeed willingly part with my ten bucks or whatever, and so my wallet wasn't really raped. Though after finishing the book, it kinda feels like it was.

The book in question is Alice Sebold's The Lovely Bones. I'm not giving anything away by saying it's a book about a girl (the narrator) who was murdere...more One book, two rapes. How's that for a bargain. I almost said three rapes, but then I remembered that I was a consenting adult and did indeed willingly part with my ten bucks or whatever, and so my wallet wasn't really raped. Though after finishing the book, it kinda feels like it was.

The book in question is Alice Sebold's The Lovely Bones. I'm not giving anything away by saying it's a book about a girl (the narrator) who was murdered. That's revealed in the book's second sentence. It's also not a big deal to let you know she was raped and murdered by a neighbour, George Harvey. That all is related pretty early on. What isn't revealed until maybe the last fifty pages is that the girl herself, Susie Salmon, becomes a rapist.

Ideologically, I'm not certain which one is worse. I could be persuaded.

But the way the book presents the two incidents is markedly different. One is revealed in low lights and has a horror edge to it. It's seen unilaterally as an evil, wicked deed. The other is the book's highlight, the moment at which the author breathes a sigh of relief and says that everything else made right. I suppose it makes sense; the narrator probably wouldn't see her actions for what they were. But in the end, both George and Susie deal with their childhood victimizations in that manner typical to the criminal genre these days.

Both George and Susie had horrible things happen in their formative years that leave long-lasting scars. The only difference is that George Harvey lived and Susie Salmon died. Not that it makes much difference. Susie is as alive a character as George for the purposes of the story. They both want what they want and care little for the well-being of the women who get in their way. The difference is that George Harvey is portrayed as the villain he is, while little Susie Salmon is treated as a hero.

Those who have read the book may not have even noticed Susie's completely abandonment of moral sense or care for the woman she violates. After all, she doesn't exactly couch things in those terms. So here it is, laid out for you.

When Susie was alive, there was a boy who liked her, Ray. In the years after her death, Ray grows up to be, in the narrator's view, an attractive young man. She watches him and loves him. Somehow, events conspire to allow Susie to possess the body of Ruth, a friend of Ray's. Susie uses the opportunity to seduce Ray and they make love several times in the course of a few hours. And then Susie has to go back to heaven. Leaving Ruth, a victim of Susie's power over her body.

Imagine that you're Ruth. You wake up. Naked. Probably a little tender. Used. In the back of some bike shop. With a man in the shower. That's what I call horror. Not only was she not conscious or aware for any of the immediately preceding events, but the guy who's been really her only friend in the world is now naked and telling her that he screwed her brains out while she was unconscious. And even if he doesn't tell her that, there's a very short rail of evidence and it all points to that conclusion. And now. She could be pregnant. She could be diseased.

Yep. The crowning act of love on the part of the tale's heroine is little more than a petty, rapacious act of power over the helpless woman who got in her way. Good job Susie Salmon. You and George Harvey should get along nicely.

p.s. even though I called it a spoiler, I think that Alice Sebold spoiled the book. Not me....less

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Kt rated it:

01/23/08

Read in July, 2003

recommends it for: People who subscribe to Readers' Digest without any sense of irony

Haaaaaated it. I am one of those OCD literary nerds who takes on a war bunker mentality with books that I've started and dislike: "I will see this through to the end."
For "The Lovely Bones," I made an exception.
Somewhere, sometime, someone told Sebold she could write. That person should be made to apologize to me, in person, and to all other poor souls who were duped into buying this shlock.
The literary press also needs to break out the cattails for a serious bout of flo...more Haaaaaated it. I am one of those OCD literary nerds who takes on a war bunker mentality with books that I've started and dislike: "I will see this through to the end."
For "The Lovely Bones," I made an exception.
Somewhere, sometime, someone told Sebold she could write. That person should be made to apologize to me, in person, and to all other poor souls who were duped into buying this shlock.
The literary press also needs to break out the cattails for a serious bout of flogging. Lev Grossman of Time Magazine is at the top of my flogging docket; he called this book "a beautiful, sensitive, melancholy novel" and repeated that claim a year later in a review for a book called "The Dogs of Babel" (a book just as terrible as The Lovely Bones). I can only assume that Mr. Grossman confined his reading to the zeros on the check accompanying the publisher's blurb or else has some sort of vitamin deficiency that causes his brain to process ham-handed tripe as "beautiful" art.
It was Mr. Grossman's review along with the alluring premise of the novel (a young girl posthumously tries to make sense of the events that led to her death) that led me to order "The Lovely Bones" and "The Dogs of Babel," which at the time were only available in hardcover. Financial reasons made this an extremely uncommon practice for me, and my experience reading both of those novels ensured that I would never do so again.
To further illustrate how absolutely wretched this novel is, I'm going to provide a paragraph of background. The "substance" of the novel will be criticized in the subsequent body of this review.
During the summer of 2003, I was occupying space as an intern at a company that accepted me at the last minute and had nothing for me to do. The company was white-collar and behemoth in office space. HR sent me to an deserted floor to file documents that took up, at most, 2 hours of my 8-hour day. Even in this vacuum of monotony, I could not finish this book. I chose to watch paint chip away, and pick up dust bunnies with recycled paper (I didn't have a broom) rather than finish this book.
So with that said, I suppose I should actually mention something specific about the book I hated. My caveat here is that I am unwilling to punish myself by picking through a copy of the book for textual examples. I'm going by memory and online synopses alone.
The narrator and victim is "Susie Salmon." Let me stop there. SUSIE SALMON. That really should have clued me in, but I was too eager to see how the author would represent the afterlife, to catch a glimpse of this beautiful pain of looking a life that goes on without you.
Unfortunately, Sebold managed to bleach out anything remotely interesting out of the plot in spectacular fashion. Heaven is a school, you see, not that Susie spends much time there or learns anything. Her rapist and murderer is a creepy loser while somehow being the dullest of all of Sebold's numerous dull characters. The "reason" for his murderous tendencies could be guessed by anyone who's ever even heard of a pop psychology book.
You'd think her family would at least be interesting in grief, but Sebold reduces them to one note drones.
Everything in The Lovely Bones is a gimmick, played cheaply for sentiment and with no other reward. I'd compare to a Hallmark movie, but Hallmark movies do not adopt the pretension that Sebold belabors with terrible pseudo-post-modernist metaphors.
All of this would be bad enough, but what made me throw this book "aside with great force" is the offensive, and unjustifiable resolution to Susie's laments that she did not get to live. This unfairness, although poorly developed, was at least a cause of sympathy until Susie decides to forcibly correct it at the expense of others. In the hands of someone else, this last turn could've been bleak insight into motivations of the cycle of victimization but Sebold conveys not one iota of ambivalence.
Much of my hatred of this novel results from its inexplicable popularity and commendation from people who have a responsibility to promote reading. I shudder to think who else picked up this novel convinced it was the best that the contemporary literary world had to offer. It is not my intention to slam those who enjoyed this book. If you did, I am glad to hear it. I love books, and I want others to love books. I simply fear that someone who is tempted out of a long vacation from reading might pick up a novel like this and give up the cause for lost....less

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Ted rated it:

07/28/07

bookshelves: garbagestbooksever

recommends it for: my worst enemy

Two-dimensional stereotyped characters
-Mother – living with the regret of losing her independence to the demands of childrearing. The tragic loss of a daughter accelerates her departure from those heavy burdens and into the arms of the detective working the case.
-Father – obsessed to the point that he neglects the living members of his family destroying his relationship with his wife. Only in her absence is he able to fall in love with her “all over again”.
-Detective – his ‘so...more Two-dimensional stereotyped characters
-Mother – living with the regret of losing her independence to the demands of childrearing. The tragic loss of a daughter accelerates her departure from those heavy burdens and into the arms of the detective working the case.
-Father – obsessed to the point that he neglects the living members of his family destroying his relationship with his wife. Only in her absence is he able to fall in love with her “all over again”.
-Detective – his ‘sob-story’ past (wife committed suicide) explains his devotion to make sense of senseless death by solving cases of murdered women. This leads him into the arms of the latest victim’s mother (who, incidentally, reminds him of his dead wife - eww).
-Mrs. Singh – the exotic, wise, independent, and strong foreigner who calmly dispenses cool sage-like personal advice to near-strangers.
-George Harvey – the ‘odd-but-harmless neighbor’ otherwise know as the psychotic pedophile/murderer who builds dollhouses in his spare time. Queue soundtrack with mangled version of a nursery rhyme transposed to a minor key ungainly lobbed from a detuned piano. Snippets from his mildly troubling childhood are revealed…explaining nothing.
-Grandma Lynn – the often drunk but all-knowing grandmother with a ‘wacky’ liberal perspective on life.
-I could go on…the youngest sibling who sees the ghost of Susie as his imaginary friend, the sister who struggles to become her own person from under the shadow of her dead sister, her boyfriend as the complete antithesis to the evil Mr. Harvey, her boyfriend’s older brother as the macho gear-head with a heart of gold.

The Narrative
There is only the occasional passage where the narrator’s voice sounds like that a teenage girl from the mid-seventies (“Lindsay had a boy in the kitchen!” – oh the giddiness of it all!). Small blessings. Cliché after cliché. If you haven’t already gotten a sense of the hackneyed construction of this book please re-read the first page of this rant. Only a sportscaster from some small-town cable station would stand a fighting chance of besting Sebold in a contest of cliché slinging.

The Ending
Worthy of Hallmark. Every loose end is tied up with nobody owning up to the consequences of their actions (with the exception of Mr. Harvey, because he’s bad, you see). The family is reunited, the murderer is murdered, the daughter marries her high school sweetheart and has a child of her own (thus proving that life does go on…sniff), and lastly, the teenaged ghost of murdered Susie Salmon transcends her personal minor heaven (a staging ground for spirits who persistently cling to the living world) by ‘falling’ back to earth, inhabiting the now 20-something body of a lesbian acquaintance in order to trespass into another person’s home and have sex with the now 20-something boy she had a crush on shortly before her murder. The moral? Only after wilfully experiencing the delightful carnal pleasures of the flesh can one, even the spirit of a murdered teenaged girl, let go of those lost earthly pleasures and move on to a higher and presumably more enlightened plane of existence where you are free to smite those that have wronged you. Touching, really.

The Lovely Bones reviews
-Why do they always say “brutal” murder or “brutal” rape? Is that opposed to the “wonderful” murders and “superb” rapes in other novels?
-Did any of these reviewers even read the book?! They just seem to be reading each other’s reviews, praising the unique first person narrative of a protagonist in heaven and how it deals with such a horrifying topic. The fist person perspective does not offer anything new and the only thing horrifying here is that people consume mind-numbing garbage like this at an alarming rate.
-There’s nothing new here. What was the point? Aside from, paranormal sex is a wonderfully liberating experience for both the possessive-spiri...less

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Chelsey rated it:

01/16/08

Read in December, 2007

recommends it for: anyone that likes mysteries

The fictional story of the Lovely Bones was really sad, but intriguing at the same time.The book was about a girl named Susie,she was 14 years old and had a wonderful loving family who cared deeply about each other.She was loved by many.One day as Susie was walking across the field from school she was stopped by a man who would destroy her life and the lives of everyone that loved her.He not only ruined her life forever,but her family and friends will never be the same.What he did was so disg...more The fictional story of the Lovely Bones was really sad, but intriguing at the same time.The book was about a girl named Susie,she was 14 years old and had a wonderful loving family who cared deeply about each other.She was loved by many.One day as Susie was walking across the field from school she was stopped by a man who would destroy her life and the lives of everyone that loved her.He not only ruined her life forever,but her family and friends will never be the same.What he did was so disgusting and unforgivable.For goodness sakes he murdered a young,innocent girl who had many great things to accomplish in her life ahead.
What this man,Mr.Harvey did,was he built an underground room.He would sit down there in his room and mastermind plans to murder young women.What he did to Suzie was he stopped her in the field and asked her if she wanted to see his room.Of course her being as naïve as she was she accepted his offer and went down there not knowing her own fate.Down in that room he raped her then murdered her,put her in a garbage bag and dragged her to his house.He left her body in the bag for many weeks while her blood seeped through the bag onto his garage floor.He later put the body into a safe and took it to the junk yard.At first nobody knew who murdered this young girl.The only evidence was a hat that she had on,and the only bone of hers forgotten in the field,her elbow.
After Susie’s death her family began to separate from each other.Her parents lost their love for one another.Her younger sister who was 12 at the time began to push away from her family and became very quiet and alone.Her little brother Bucky being 4 years old did not really understand what happened,but as he grew up he began to branch out from his family and be much more to himself.He was not the same little boy he once was.Their mom left her family for the detective.This did not help the family at all.
Throughout the duration of the novel there was a continuous theme.The theme was that you have to be strong and move on.You can never give up,you have to keep pushing on even in the roughest times.Throughout the story there was one profound tone.That tone was very melancholy.The whole story was sad and very hard to imagine things like that really happen in real life.There was a lot of internal conflict within the characters in this book.Susie’s father was very emotionally drained.He had a very strong suspicion that Mr.Harvey was the killer.Even when nobody believed him he never stopped believing that.Susie’s mother was giving up on her family.She was burned out,sad,and lost.Lindsay began to think that she was all alone in this crazy world and nobody loved her.Bucky isn’t the outgoing little boy he once was.He used to be a wild and an exciting boy.After her death he sat in his box in the backyard and talked to himself.In this novel the Lovely Bones there was a lot of foreshadowing.Like in the beginning Alice Sebold mentions how Mr.Harvey is planning on building this underground room.She explains how he is a bit strange and how nobody in the neighborhood really trusts him and they don’t know much about him.This got my mind running,thinking that he may be a sexual predator and preys on children.Also she mentions the eye connection between Susie’s mother and Len,the detective. This made me see that there was an instant relationship building up.As a result their mother left her family for this man.
The story the Lovely Bones was one that I really liked. I liked how the author gave insights to what Susie was feeling,and witnessing while she watched everyone she left behind on Earth. She gave the perspective from Susie from Heaven. What I really didn’t like about the novel is how she skipped back and forth from different perspectives of the characters so quickly without finishing their thoughts or elaborating on their opinions. I would most definitely recommend this book to anyone who likes mysteries.
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Claire rated it:

04/14/08

Read in January, 2007

recommends it for: nobody

This book has single handedly shown me that I spend too much time skimming and not enough time really reading and thinking about the books I have been reading. I have two kids and so I'm busy and I often find myself reading when I am stealing time or tired. But that is not even an excuse for this book. When i read the book I thought it was pretty good. Not great, but not bad. I liked the concept and the fact that the girl was the narrator. I like a murder mystery, so I liked the suspense o...more This book has single handedly shown me that I spend too much time skimming and not enough time really reading and thinking about the books I have been reading. I have two kids and so I'm busy and I often find myself reading when I am stealing time or tired. But that is not even an excuse for this book. When i read the book I thought it was pretty good. Not great, but not bad. I liked the concept and the fact that the girl was the narrator. I like a murder mystery, so I liked the suspense of waiting to see if the guy would get caught, etc. So when all was said and done and I finished the book, I thought - yeah, okay. Not bad, but not great. Then I went online here and read the other reviews, particularly one by TheDane (http://www.goodreads.com/user/... and I went - HEY!! That's right! I mean, the writing alone is something I should have picked up one had I really been paying attention. Pupils pulsing like olives?? Buttering toast with tears?? Umm... I really must have been distracted or skimming like crazy because that is ridiculous. And the real meaning of the final scene went WAY over my head, which I am somewhat ashamed to admit. When I read it, I really was like, yeah yeah, oh that's sweet she got one night with her boyfriend which she had been cheated of and all. But when you slow down and really think of this, the enormity of that is overwhelming. A young girl who dies after being RAPED. A girl who's first sexual experience was RAPE by an older man. A girl who actually barely knew this boy in her life. This girl can only let go of life after having sex. With that boy. That she really didn't know that well. That alone is enough to send of some big alarms. But then you add that she was allowed to go back to earth - to have sex??? Not see her family, not comfort her father and brother and sister? Not point out the killer?? Nope, heaven lets her go back, then of all times, not earlier when she wanted it more, or could have done more both for justice and her family? So the admission to heaven is teen sex? Really? The way to overcome deep grief and gain acceptance and peace is.. again, teen sex? Wow. I missed out as a teen because that was NOT my experience. Okay, now louder warning bells should have been going off. But the final issue - she takes over the body of a "friend". Without the girl's knowledge or permission. The "friend" who is a lesbian. And uses her body to have sex with a boy. Just taking over her body is a violation. Taking over her body and using that time to have sex is another violation. And to have sex with a boy, knowing that is the antithesis of everything this "friend" would have wanted or agreed to is yet another violation. What the hell??? And none of that gets brought up or mentioned. No, it is a feel good ending. yeah! I mean, I have some pretty close friends - some I have known for at least triple the time these two girls have "known" each other - and if I somehow managed to just steal their bodies and have sex with a woman?? Well, it would be good for me that I was already dead. That is a betrayal in the worst sense on so many levels it is shocking. And what of the possible consequences? Pregnancy? STDs? Never mind the "lesser" consequences of emotional damage, damage to their friendship, the trust issues, etc etc etc????? After thinking about it more and more, I was truly embarrassed to have not seen these dark and disturbing connotations, made all the worse for the fact that the author serves this up as the feel good ending - not noticing the irony at all of having the main character who was raped and violated in turn rape and violate a friend, while denouncing the first act as a heinous crime and lauding the second act as happy ending? So in short, I have learned my lesson and I am now making more of an effort to truly read and then think about what I am reading!!!...less

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Katie rated it:

04/27/08

bookshelves: school

Read in April, 2008

This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers. To view it, click here.

In the novel, The Lovely Bones, by Alice Sebold, a young girl, named Susie Salmon, is raped and murdered. This fictitious work was inspired by Sebold’s own horrific rape experience. Throughout the book, the author explores the themes of loss of innocence, letting go, loss/grief, familial ties, and isolation. This reader found the book to be both poignant and distressing.
The protagonist, Susie Salmon, is a fourteen year old girl who is lured into a cave dug into the ground by George Harvey, ...more In the novel, The Lovely Bones, by Alice Sebold, a young girl, named Susie Salmon, is raped and murdered. This fictitious work was inspired by Sebold’s own horrific rape experience. Throughout the book, the author explores the themes of loss of innocence, letting go, loss/grief, familial ties, and isolation. This reader found the book to be both poignant and distressing.
The protagonist, Susie Salmon, is a fourteen year old girl who is lured into a cave dug into the ground by George Harvey, a man who lives in her neighborhood. While down there, Harvey traps her and then brutally attacks, rapes, and kills her. She then goes to Heaven where she is stuck watching the lives of others still on Earth as they grow and develop. Susie’s sister, Lindsey, is eleven when Susie dies. After her death, Lindsey tries to contain all of her emotions and hide her vulnerability. Susie, forced to watch this from above, is saddened that no one on earth knows how to comfort her little sister. Buckley, Susie’s little brother, serves as a replacement for his dead sister, and eventually becomes resentful of his parents. Abigail, Susie’s mother, deals with the grief by running away from all things that remind her of Susie. Unlike her mother, however, Susie’s father, Jack, obsesses about Susie’s death; he keeps all things that remind him of Susie near, and uses her brother, Buckley, as a means of recreating Susie. When Jack finally realizes that Harvey was responsible for the death of his daughter, he unsuccessfully adopts the tasks of a vigilante. Justice is eventually served.
The beginning of the book is upsetting. Although the rape scene isn’t graphic, its existence is distressing. The situational change, switching between Susie being attacked and her family acting normally, adds to the reader’s sense of disgust. Later in the book, viewing the family as they try to regain their former selves, the poignancy of the situation is magnified. The book was an enjoyable read, until the penultimate chapter. Previous to this chapter, a reader with religious views could easily have accepted the events of the novel as reality. At this point, however, the plot begins to resemble that of a science-fiction novel. It redeems itself later when it switches back to its original genre, and the ending is just as emotionally moving as the rest of the book.
Throughout the book, Sebold raises many issues that she obviously feels strongly about. Rape is a major issue in the novel. Sebold, having experienced the brutality of rape, uses this novel as a means to spread awareness. Sebold also indirectly comments on grief, showing how each member of Susie’s family copes. Her disdain for their methods is evident and that same contempt is evoked in the reader. Jack’s role, as a quasi-vigilante, is also frowned upon. His lack of success is what demonstrates Sebold’s negative opinion on his actions. She may, in actuality, not dissent Jack’s actions, but rather believe in karma that would reciprocate negative actions to those deserving in the end.
The novel, The Lovely Bones, is thematically similar to John Grisham’s A Time to Kill. In both of these books, the father of a raped girl seeks justice for crimes against his daughter. In A Time to Kill, the father of the young, raped girl, shoots the men responsible and spends the rest of the novel in prison. Unlike Sebold, Grisham supports the father’s actions and reveres him in the novel.

In The Lovely Bones, Sebold explores the themes of grief and death, while telling the tale of rape and of a family in crisis, from the perspective of a girl stuck in Heaven. The New Yorker calls it “A stunning Triumph.” The New York Times says it’s "Deeply affecting… A keenly observed portrait of familial love and how it endures and changes over time." Sebold’s powerful novel is one that deeply affects its readers and teaches lessons on grief.
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Carolynn rated it:

09/21/07

I worked at Borders for more than a year and I worked the boring ass registers, usually at night whic was always slow. I leaned there with my chin in my hand staring at the shelves actually wishing that I could help customers in their purchases. It's purely insane, but I think that's what happens anytime you place someone in any kind of confinement. The thing is that if I wasn't a register girl, I would have constant actual contact with the books themselves.

All lunacy aside, o...more I worked at Borders for more than a year and I worked the boring ass registers, usually at night whic was always slow. I leaned there with my chin in my hand staring at the shelves actually wishing that I could help customers in their purchases. It's purely insane, but I think that's what happens anytime you place someone in any kind of confinement. The thing is that if I wasn't a register girl, I would have constant actual contact with the books themselves.

All lunacy aside, one book that I stared at the entire time was this one, cuz it was literally on the number one shelf in the front of the store for a good two years or so. It sounded interesting and got good critical reviews despite its sucess with the bookish Oprah-watching housewife types. So, I REALLY didn't wanna jump on the bandwagon and read it. But at the same time I would open it and try. But I just didn't get into it.

Last week or so, I was reading a friend's blog and she talked about reading the book and how it was so affecting that she found herself driving to work in complete tears. From then on an invisible seed had been planted. I went to the library the other day to pay my fines ($2.75! Man.) and suddenly remembered the book.

I read it in three nights. Sebold's voice is entirely unique. Never seen it before ever. I think that being allowed into the vision and point of view of another person is probably one of the awesomest feelings ever. I think that's what it is to be in love, actually. Get in someone's skin, sit in a recliner in a little theatre located behind their eye sockets, and just watch. Not judge, not worry, not affect. Just experience someone who is so not you.

Sebold allows this on two levels. She sets you up in the front row seat right next to Susie the murdered and raped 14 year old while she watches her former world from Heaven. But she also delivers this language that is new, original, totally fresh and yet entirely accessible. At 3am. In bed. From a free city library borrow.

Her characters are completely amazing individuals, but not unreal or impossible. The way she wrote the book, from Suzie's viewpoint, was definitely some work on her part. And she pulls it off. What I really enjoyed is the way she would sneak in these little pieces of info - I call them " 'omg, are you serious?' mystery info nuggets". She would just be writing a scene, and at an unsuspecting moment she'd just add in a little sentence. And ofcourse, since the story revolves around the grief of the family and the Susie's unsolved case, their are moment of utter thrill as the reader joins the characters in their search for understanding, motive and the killer himself. The sentences feel like when you've been looking for something non-urgent for a while, and it's not really a big deal to find it now or later, but when you do find it your like, 'Man, now I can do this, and this and that, cuz I finally found this thing that I've been inactively searching for for a while'. So, the nuggets definitely keep you reading and sometimes they even make you say, 'omg' out loud.

As always, if you read the first few pages and hate it, then don't force the feeling. Just cuz I thought it was a total modern classic, don't mean anything if it really ain't your thing. Either way, truly a great story, even if your mom thinks so too....less

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Chai rated it:

01/16/08

bookshelves: i-own

Read in January, 2008

recommends it for: people wishing to ponder their views on heaven (and good writing)

This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers. To view it, click here.

I was really disappointed with this book. The first half was easy enough to read and then I started getting bored. Sebold was rehashing the same old 'poignant' lines, anything that was an obviously pretty piece of prose, was re-mentioned time and time again.

I thought that the ending was nauseating, falling to earth into a body to have sex with some guy who we didn't really care about, for no reason? Was it supposed to be a tear-jerker moment because I felt like throwing the book against the ...more I was really disappointed with this book. The first half was easy enough to read and then I started getting bored. Sebold was rehashing the same old 'poignant' lines, anything that was an obviously pretty piece of prose, was re-mentioned time and time again.

I thought that the ending was nauseating, falling to earth into a body to have sex with some guy who we didn't really care about, for no reason? Was it supposed to be a tear-jerker moment because I felt like throwing the book against the wall. Perhaps I was just confused because she'd watched her murderer stalk her sister hours (minutes?) beforehand and didn't use the opportunity on earth to nail her murderer. Maybe it was that the first half really did have promise, but then Sebold threw me as a reader, into a supernatural spin (with no substance).

What of the random coincidences, Samuel and Lindsey pulling off the road in the rain, running to the abandoned shack, then running all the way home, only to ... find out at the conclusion that Ruth's dad owns the house/! To me, this feels like loose story-telling. What about Hal, what was the point of Hal's character? To be Grandma's gimp? I felt like there was no point to these side-line stories and cardboard characters.

There wasn't even oomph behind the mother leaving and completely abandoning her family. I think if you're going to include something as dramatic as that in the novel, perhaps touch on it a little more. We don't want to know she's working in a wine factory, we want to know what is going on in her head! Then she wanders back into the finale, has a cup of tea with another random character, her son runs past because he has new drumset ... loose, loose, loose.

I'm not a believer in heaven but am interested in other's perceptions of it. I found Sebold's ideas disappointing. School buildings? A few people dressed up as snowflakes at Christmas time? A very random connection with her Grandfather? To me, this novel could be a great sketched-out version, loose ideas - to be used for an actual story. It needed fleshing out, reworking, editing.

Great idea. Poor execution. And maybe that's what everyone got so carried away with, the idea was grand - so grand that they were blinded by the weakness of the script. Further, we all like to comfort ourselves with the whole heaven theory, don't we? The fact that we mean so much to people that we'll continue having such a huge impact on them. That we get to watch them (a tad voyeuristic, may I say!). That this isn't it. Our one shot at life.

All in all, if people love this book. And it affects them, changes their life, their outlook, makes them feel warm and fuzzy, makes them tearful or full of rapture - that's a good thing. I'm just disappointed that such a top seller couldn't do that for me.
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Ashley rated it:

05/05/08

Read in May, 2008

Alice Sebold
The Lovely Bones
New York: Little Brown & Company, 2002
329 pp. 21.95
0-316-66634-3

Susie Salmon, a young girl murdered at fourteen, sits in her heaven as she watches her family grieve, suffer and fall apart without her. Susie follows the lives of her family and friends as they struggle to cope with the aftermath of her death. In watching her family on Earth, Susie’s journey to understanding the life she was robbed of becomes the central idea in the extraordinary nov...more Alice Sebold
The Lovely Bones
New York: Little Brown & Company, 2002
329 pp. 21.95
0-316-66634-3

Susie Salmon, a young girl murdered at fourteen, sits in her heaven as she watches her family grieve, suffer and fall apart without her. Susie follows the lives of her family and friends as they struggle to cope with the aftermath of her death. In watching her family on Earth, Susie’s journey to understanding the life she was robbed of becomes the central idea in the extraordinary novel “The Lovely Bones” by Alice Sebold. “The Lovely Bones” evokes joy and sorrow in its reader, making the whole reading experience worthwhile.
Alice Sebold delivers originality in her novel by creating a heart-warming story told from the fresh point of view of a young girl in heaven. The novel begins with the protagonist, Susie Salmon, already in heaven. Most novels do not start by introducing a central character that is deceased before the story unfolds, but “The Lovely Bones” begins with the main character saying, “My name was Susie Salmon […] I was fourteen when I was murdered […]” (Sebold 1). The most interesting aspect of the novel is the point of view from which the story is told. The point of view also plays a significant role in the novel. Even though the main character, Susie, is dead, she still manages to evolve throughout the novel, therefore being dynamic. As Susie watches her family from heaven, she matures with them and experiences life by observing. The idea that life continues after death is the central theme of the novel. After the protagonist dies, she manages to stay in touch with her family by appearing at certain moments, almost like a ghost. Susie lets her family and friends know that the dead are here “All the time. You can talk to us and think about us” (Sebold 309). A connection between the living and the dead is established throughout the novel, which ties into the central theme. Eventually, through this connection, Susie and her family gain a better understanding of the love, life, and unfortunate circumstances that often tie people together in the world.
Apart from the viewpoint, Sebold’s writing style adds to the fresh appeal of the novel by contributing vivid descriptions of the setting and characters. In the novel, heaven is said to be different for each character. Susie and other deceased people “Had been given, in our heavens, our simplest dreams. There were no teachers in the school. Our textbooks were Seventeen and Glamour and Vogue” (Sebold 18). Sebold depicts heaven as a young child would depict a colorful candy store. Because Susie is only fourteen when she dies, the novel uses language and ideas that most teenagers would use. However, as the novel progresses, Susie’s thoughts and opinions seem to mature, almost like those of her family and friends on Earth. Just as she would have on Earth, Susie learns that life must continue, even when it seems as if it is the end of the world.
“The Lovely Bones” offers a new outlook on life, death and the journey in between. It sheds new light on the importance of family and the magnitude of love by focusing on a road to recovery after tragedy occurs. The novel leaves the reader feeling as if they have gained insight, but it also leaves the reader feeling empty once there are no more pages left to turn. Alice Sebold demonstrates originality by seamlessly connecting the living and the dead in her rightfully acclaimed novel. “The Lovely Bones” gives reason to believe that life does not have to end when death takes hold.
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Sammy rated it:

(review of isbn 0316666343)

03/26/08

bookshelves: the-good

Read in March, 2008

This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers. To view it, click here.

This book could have easily fallen into the "same old, same old" category, but it didn't and that's why it's so good. There are certain things that I'm going to pick apart and point out that could be considered spoilers so this is your warning. Don't continue reading if you don't want to be spoiled. If you continue reading, don't bitch at me that I gave something away because I warned you. If you want to know in brief what I thought (because I know you so desperately value my opini...more This book could have easily fallen into the "same old, same old" category, but it didn't and that's why it's so good. There are certain things that I'm going to pick apart and point out that could be considered spoilers so this is your warning. Don't continue reading if you don't want to be spoiled. If you continue reading, don't bitch at me that I gave something away because I warned you. If you want to know in brief what I thought (because I know you so desperately value my opinion) here it is: beautifully written and unique novel with engaging, fully developed characters. Really, what more could you want in a novel?

Okay, now down to the nitty gritty. At first I thought that this was going to be a sort of mystery novel. We know that Susie is dead, but I bet we're going to have to figure out who killed her and why! Nope. Straight off the bat Susie tells us who, what, when, where, why and how. Then I'm thinking, okay, so what's going to keep this novel going? In any other novel you pick up that has someone murdered you usually keep reading only to find out who, what, when, where, why and how. Now why am I reading this?

Despite being curious about how heaven was going to be portrayed, it was the fact that I held the knowledge of Susie's death that none of the other characters held. It's the feeling of omniscience that kept me reading. So many times, along with Susie, I wanted to scream at characters, tell them to wake up! Tell them that Susie was still there, to not be sad. The novel ends up not being so plot driven as it is character driven. To have book being pushed along by characters is always a risky thing, but Sebold pulls it off beautifully.

It's Susie watching them all that makes it so beautiful. She doesn't age as everyone else does. She watches her sister and can only grow up through her. She can only have experiences such as a serious boyfriend, finishing school, losing her virginity, through her sister. You feel pity for Susie during these moments. You know that she has been robbed, and you feel so angry about that.

The only part that I found strange was when Susie suddenly becomes Ruth and has sex with Ray. It didn't seem to fit with the style of the novel and would have fit better in a fantasy style book or ghost story rather than what Sebold had been giving us the entire time. I wonder if Sebold didn't really know how to end it or she felt bad for Susie and wanted her to have that one moment for herself. As much as you want to give Susie that moment, I think it would have made the novel so much deeper and touching if she never got it. She's dead! She was murdered! Really, she'll never get that moment. How much more would that have meant to the reader? Of course you would be left feeling bad for Susie, but it's reality. The rest of the novel had been steeped in reality, why was this one part written to be not so?

That was the only part that bothered me. Over all though, this novel was touching and an awesome read. I like books with a unique take on old stories... this is one of those. What happens when we know how the murder occured? What happens afterwards? Find out....less

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Jessica rated it:

05/29/07

bookshelves: read-in-2007

Read in January, 2007

"These were the lovely bones that had grown around my absence: the connections – sometimes tenuous, sometimes made at a great cost, but often magnificent – that happened after I was gone."

I hardly ever read books when they are first released. I always seem to be a few years behind, for whatever reason. Sometimes this works to my advantage, as it allows me to avoid a degree of hype that surrounds certain books. I do remember seeing the blue cover of The Lovely Bones on shelves i...more "These were the lovely bones that had grown around my absence: the connections – sometimes tenuous, sometimes made at a great cost, but often magnificent – that happened after I was gone."

I hardly ever read books when they are first released. I always seem to be a few years behind, for whatever reason. Sometimes this works to my advantage, as it allows me to avoid a degree of hype that surrounds certain books. I do remember seeing the blue cover of The Lovely Bones on shelves in every bookstore when it was released a few years ago and seeing mentions on best-sellers lists. But I didn’t take much interest in it because, sometimes, when a book/movie/album gets so many rave reviews, I’ll expect it to blow me through the roof and will end up disappointed when it’s only mildly entertaining or moving (see: The Time Traveler’s Wife).

I prefer to go in with low expectations and let myself be surprised with greatness. Not that I’m a bitter person or anything. Not at all. Ok, I’m working on it.

Anyway, I was visiting my tiny local library for the first time, searching for a book to check out, when I saw the blue spine peaking out from the shelf. Since I had already read the few classics they had in stock, and don’t really go for Harlequin romance, I took Alice Sebold home with me. Much to my surprise, I finished the book in a day’s time.

It wasn’t so much Sebold’s writing style, which is good but not spectacular, or even the tinges of mystery in the plot that captivated me. It was the raw human emotion that she so perfectly conveyed through each character. The characters felt real—both their positive qualities and their shortcomings. The pain, confusion, regret, and maybe even hope that they each felt in their own ways really impacted me.

The Lovely Bones is the story of a young girl who is raped and murdered in her neighborhood. She speaks to the reader from her version of heaven (it can be different for each person), and looks over her family as they unravel after the tragic event. Perhaps it had something to do with my already delicate state (I was home sick while reading) but the book managed to make me cry. More than once. I’m slightly embarrassed to admit that, and the book snob in me would prefer to believe I am “above” sentimental plot devices, but to be honest—the book is just really sad.

I also liked the subtle message of hope that carries through the novel, without reading like a “Chicken Soup” book. The ending isn’t the overly hokey “I will survive” type, and still has a shade of melancholy, but seems to say that even through utter grief and personal devastation, life goes on....less

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Lisa rated it:

03/26/08

bookshelves: books-read-in-the-year--07

Read in February, 2008

recommends it for: anyone. :]

The Lovely Bones
Alice Sebold
Pages 384
2002 by Little, Brown & Company
pp.;$21.95
ISBN 9780316666343

Imagine a young girl in a beautiful place full of sparkling lights, pretty flowers and fluttery butterflies. Now envision a shimmering, transparent barrier around the whole place. A girl is trapped in a perfect world, protected, yet imprisoned. This is Susie's heaven.
"My name is Salmon, like the fish; first name, Susie. I was fourteen when I was raped and murdered ...more The Lovely Bones
Alice Sebold
Pages 384
2002 by Little, Brown & Company
pp.;$21.95
ISBN 9780316666343

Imagine a young girl in a beautiful place full of sparkling lights, pretty flowers and fluttery butterflies. Now envision a shimmering, transparent barrier around the whole place. A girl is trapped in a perfect world, protected, yet imprisoned. This is Susie's heaven.
"My name is Salmon, like the fish; first name, Susie. I was fourteen when I was raped and murdered on December 6, 1973." A young fourteen-year-old girl's death turns her loved one's lives upside down. As her family and friends try desperately to accept this terrible turn of events, her once picture perfect family is beginning to shatter. Now where is dear Susie? Well, poor Susie's up in heaven barricaded from life on earth. Unable to do anything, she unknowingly forms a connection between her and earth. As years pass, Susie's family begin to understand what's truly important: denying her death forever and continue grieving or learn that certain things leave and never come back. A lesson is waiting to be learned at the end of this wonderful story about family. So sit back and relax as you find out how Susie's family will make their way back to reality.
I really liked how Alice Sebold tried to get her message across by using various symbols and a motif to grab the readers' attention. Her words are simple and flow easily, which allowed me to connect to the characters and the story. On the other hand, I disliked the parts when Alice Sebold rambled endlessly about stuff that seemed completely unimportant (the "fluff"). I thought it made me, as a reader, become bored and uninterested in the story. However, her beautiful denouement was creatively written, the "it-put-tears-in-my-eyes" kind of ending. All in all, the author did a wonderful job bringing me back into her story after the rather awkward moments.
I would definitely recommend this book to teenagers because the message of this story pinpoints a huge issue in society. Nowadays, most teenagers have problems with acceptance. Yes, people find it difficult to accept certain aspects of life, but that's ok. Alice Sebold teaches a lesson that unknowingly imprinted itself into my mind: acceptance is a step towards a new journey-finding a new light.
In this fantastic memoir, she touches upon one of the major crimes in the female race: rape. The author offers a glimmer of hope to those who have fallen prey to tragic and traumatic experiences. Her well woven story draws you into the web of two worlds: heaven and earth. When you're done with this book, you'll realize, not everything is as perfect as it seems-especially in a place called Heaven.
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Nicole rated it:

05/05/08

Read in May, 2008

Alice Sebold
The Lovely Bones
New York: Back Bay Books, 2004
330 pp. With readers guide $13.95
0-316-16881-5

What is heaven? Is heaven the place where nothing bad could ever happen and where one is in a complete utopia? As one reads through the words of Alice Sebold in the novel “The Lovely Bones” heaven is described by the 14 year old, Susie Salmon, from Suburban Pennsylvania. After Susie is brutally raped and murdered she watches from heaven telling the story of her family and frien...more Alice Sebold
The Lovely Bones
New York: Back Bay Books, 2004
330 pp. With readers guide $13.95
0-316-16881-5

What is heaven? Is heaven the place where nothing bad could ever happen and where one is in a complete utopia? As one reads through the words of Alice Sebold in the novel “The Lovely Bones” heaven is described by the 14 year old, Susie Salmon, from Suburban Pennsylvania. After Susie is brutally raped and murdered she watches from heaven telling the story of her family and friend’s grief and of her murderer trying to cover the evidence. Suspense, love, and hope are weaved through the novel causing to the reader to come back for more.

Susie’s family is in deep mourning over her death. Susie watches as each family member copes with her absence. Her father, once accepting Susie’s death, spends all his time thinking about how to convince everyone that it was their neighbor, George Harvey, who murdered his daughter. Susie watches from heaven as her mom withdraws from her family and starts to have an affair with another man to help her forget about her murdered daughter. Lindsey, Susie’s younger sister tries to become the woman that Susie could never be. She matures at a fast pace so she can play the role of the eldest child. Buckley, the youngest of the family, hidden from the truth about Susie; everyone avoids telling him she’s dead until they realize they cannot hide it any longer. Once Buckley knows the truth he does not fully comprehend that she is dead, up in heaven Susie watches as Buckley talks to no one imagining Susie is there with him.

About two weeks before Susie’s death she kissed a boy, Ray Singh. Despite being 14 years old they were in love. When she died he was devastated, but he was not the only one who loved her. Ruth, a girl who Susie had almost never talked to, had feelings for her. She had not come out to anyone about her crush on Susie, until she died and met Ray. Both having love for Susie in common, they bonded instantly. “They say together on the shot-putters’ cement platform. Again I was seeing something I never would have seen: the two of them together. […] It became a ritual for the two of them” (81). Ray and Ruth cope with the pain of Susie’s death by comforting each other, each pretending that the other one is Susie.

Told from heaven, the story of a young girl’s murder and the way it affects everyone around her instantly captivates the reader. “The Lovely Bones” is a story unlike any other and is a must read for anyone who is ready for a realm of extreme healing, a little bit of horror, and ultimate love.
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Diana is currently reading it

05/05/08

bookshelves: currently-reading

Alice Sebold
The Lovely Bones
New York: Little, Brown and Company, 2002
374 pp. $7.50
978-0-316-16668-3

“The Lovely Bones” captures and entrances the reader after just one sentence. It pulls the reader into a world filled with both terror and beauty. The setting is so close to home that the reader immediately relates to the situation, yet is still detached. The novel uses a new point of view for its protagonist: Susie Salmon is dead. She watches what happens to her friends and famil...more Alice Sebold
The Lovely Bones
New York: Little, Brown and Company, 2002
374 pp. $7.50
978-0-316-16668-3

“The Lovely Bones” captures and entrances the reader after just one sentence. It pulls the reader into a world filled with both terror and beauty. The setting is so close to home that the reader immediately relates to the situation, yet is still detached. The novel uses a new point of view for its protagonist: Susie Salmon is dead. She watches what happens to her friends and family on Earth from her heaven. She knows what they’re thinking, but she is unable to change their minds or influence them in any way. Alice Sebold shows the reader a new way of looking at the world.
The novel is not a mystery; Susie knows perfectly well who killed her. All she can do is watch what happens on Earth and hope that someone who is still alive can do something about it. In fact, the only chapter Susie is alive for is the first, where her brutal murder is described. That chapter contains such tragedy that one almost wants to put the book down. If the reader keeps going, however, they discover that the book is not one of regrets, it is one of acceptance. Susie watches her family move past her death to a place where they can simply love her despite her absence.
Whenever the book’s setting changes, Sebold describes it in full, but without being flowery. She works the description in with the action. The description is still beautiful, still allows the reader to picture the different places. Because Susie is dead, she can see meaning in tiny details. She understands what the significance of an object is. Susie shows the reader that little details matter, and Sebold’s descriptions make it possible to understand Susie’s point.
Alice Sebold introduces an entirely foreign world in “The Lovely Bones”. She shows the reader the world of the dead. Each person’s heaven allows them to watch what happens on Earth, and it allows them to stay connected to their family and friends. No one knows what heaven really is, or if there is one, so Sebold’s description could be perfectly accurate. Sebold bravely ventures into an undiscovered area, and she manages to bring a satisfying ending out of the horrible tragedy in the beginning of the novel. She brings beauty to the world of a grieving family, and thus provides encouragement for the reader to accept upsetting events in their own life. “The Lovely Bones” is an intense novel, but it is beautiful in the end....less

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Kotchee rated it:

05/05/08