Rating: 
Summary: Unexpected enjoyment
Review: I approached this book with caution since I expected to find it too harrowing. The summary reviews outlined the violence to the main character and I was concerned that the author would dwell on this too much.
In the end, I read it in two sessions. As others have noted, I was moved to tears and laughter on several occasions. The storyline moved at a fast pace and was well narrated by the teen character.
I also liked the fact that it wasn't all neatly tied up at the end. I'll be interested if Hollywood changes this when it makes it to the big screen. (And there's no doubt in my mind that it will).
Heartily recommended. I rate it as a favorite on par with Cold Mountain by Charles Frazier and I look forward to future work by Ms. Sebold.
Rating:
Summary: I couldn't put it down
Review: I was a little put off in the beginning due to the subject of a child being murdered, but I'm glad I kept reading. Sebold has a delightful style and creates rich characters.
Rating:
Summary: how much loss is bearable
Review: This book is beautiful. So many passages are filled with longing for home and family. ... . This seems to me to be a book for people who have suffered some kind of loss: a confirmation that everyone undergoes loss and change, some more unbearable than others. This book seems an exploration of how much loss is bearable. What is really hopeful about the book is that in it death brings loss and unalterable changes, but it does not mean the complete snuffing out of everything. ...
Rating:
Summary: how much loss is bearable
Review: This book is beautiful. So many passages are filled with longing for home and family. Susie wants to grow up and have children of her own, but she knows and we know that this is never going to happen. In her heaven though she wishes for and receives dogs, all kinds of dogs. She also has friends in heaven, although they are limited consolation, since they are other people who have also been killed, and they are not her own family. This seems to me to be a book for people who have suffered some kind of loss: a confirmation that everyone undergoes loss and change, some more unbearable than others. This book seems an exploration of how much loss is bearable. What is really hopeful about the book is that in it death brings loss and unalterable changes, but it does not mean the complete snuffing out of everything. Susie goes on after death, she just doesn't go on with her human life.
Rating:
Summary: Heavenly Prose
Review: 14 year old Susie Salmon is raped and murdered by a neighbor. She tells her story from heaven as Susie watches over her family, her friends and her killer. We really begin to understand the grief and loss for each member of the Salmon household. Some of their lives unravel. Some build strength from their sorrow. All eventually find acceptance -- including Susie. Author Alice Sebold is a beautiful writer. Susie finds that heaven is individually designed. Sebold demonstrates a creative gift that easily rivals J. K. Rowling in describing Susie's imaginative heavenly wishes. The dilemna for the young girl is the limits of a 14 year old imagination. She must explore and observe the earth to broaden her heaven. The story underlines the beauty of the search over the destination. 'Lovely Bones' projects many levels -- a mystery/thriller, a romance, and a moving story about courageous relationships. The characters are clear and memorable. In a year of excellent books 'Lovely Bones' stands out. Many are calling it a classic. Perhaps, but for me it is a personal treasure -- a peace of heaven in the literary clouds.
Rating:
Summary: Wow!!!
Review: This was a truly great read! I usually like a quick read, and I wouldn't classify this as such; but it was still wonderful! It was not what I had expected (nor did it end that way) but it was still a great ending...comfortable is how I would describe the ending. I won't usually re-read books, but this is definitely one I will re-read in the future.
I've already lent it to a friend and have another waiting in the wings for it to be available.
I would definitely recommend reading it! Take the plunge and buy it now...don't wait for the paperback...
Rating: 
Summary: What a disappointment
Review: After all the publicity and hype, this book is my most disappointing read in a long time. Sure, there are moments of powerful reflection, especially on the relationship between children and their parents. But the prose here is pedestrian at best and the characters are hardly developed in interesting ways at all. And there is no real ending to this book. Readers looking for interesting and compelling novels would do much better by reading recent novels authored by Geraldine Brooks, Julia Glass, and Kate Jennings, all of which deserve the acclaim, attention, and publicity that this book has received by the mainstream book publishing/advertising industry.
Rating:
Summary: GREAT SUMMER READ
Review: This is a great book that grabs you by the collar from the first page. The author does a magnificent job of writing in a 14 year old's voice. Everything she says sounds exactly like you would expect an actual 14 year old to sound. The book is haunting, but somehow funny and endearing. I loved this book and highly recommend it.
Rating:
Summary: A bold, compelling novel
Review: After reading some of the negative reviews on this site, I began The Lovely Bones tentatively, not knowing whether or not it would equal its critical hype. I needn't have worried. This is a luminous read -- at once a coming-of-age saga and a story about the wrenching consequences of tragic death and the healing power of time and change.
This is a novel that kept me reading and has stayed with me ever since I read the last pages.
Rating:
Summary: amazing
Review: I could not put this book down. Sebold's got a fresh writing style, an innovative plot, great characters, and a penchant for the wonderfully small details of life. You'll laugh and cry on the same page. I also recommend Sebold's memoir/biography-"Lucky". It's another great book from an amazing writer.
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