Annika Wahlsten

807

9-13-14

Reading Response

“The Lovely Bones” by Alice Sebold, is the heart wrenching tale of Susie Salmon. Susie was a young girl who was raped and murdered in 1973 when she was fourteen. Susie watches over her family from the afterlife. She witnesses the livings reaction to her death and watches her killer cover his tracks. This thriller deals with everything from grief and the afterlife to a suspenseful murder mystery narrated by the victim.

     “The Lovely Bones” really portrayed how a family mourns a loss. For example the Lindsey Susie's sister,  sits in her dead sister's room and cries. This shows how when someone dies their possessions become so precious because its the last connection to the person they lost. Also after days of Susie being missing  and no body showing up her parents know shes dead and desperately want her body to be found. This really shows how Susie’s parents need confirmation of her death even if it's gruesome. This book depicted grief in such an accurate and heartbreaking way it was difficult to put down.

This book affected me personally because I can relate to the idea of a death changing everything about your life. For someone who hasn't lost anyone “The Lovely Bones” provides perspective and empathy for those who have lost loved ones, yet it never ceases to stop being a page turning suspense novel.