The Lovely Bones

Rating:
Summary: I wanted to love this book
Review: After seeing such high recommendations (and intriguing low ones), I borrowed this book from a friend. There are some lovely moments of poetic language and imagery, though others come off as forced and awkward. Many characters and situations seemed tacked on and are never fully developed. The characters, even Susie herself, failed to strike an emotional chord--that is, except for the killer. I felt the bile rise in my stomach with every mention of his name. His end left me cold and unsatisfied--I shudder to think what his heaven might be like, yet I am never told if he gets his just deserts in the afterlife. I also found myself annoyed at several errors. There were no 130 prismacolor sets in 1973! Nor are sarees worn with pants! For a truly fascinating account of a teen's journey to healing, read Laurie Halse Anderson's stunning award-winner, Speak. It will capture you to your very core.

Rating:
Summary: terrible book
Review: I had looked forward to reading this book for a while. The first third of it somewhat lived up to my expectations but after that it was terribly disappointing. I felt like the author was trying to sound clever and deep rather than just telling an interesting story in an honest fashion. It was bizzare and not in a good way. I was totally unsatisfied with the characters and what happened to them. There were so many things that I wanted resolved and explained. I realize that life doesn't often give us neat resolutions and explanations, but I just felt like this book needed SOMETHING to redeem it. It was disjointed after the first few chapters, and a better ending would have helped.

Rating:
Summary: OH MY GOD!!
Review: I have never read a book so compelling, so addictive! I picked up this book and could think of nothing else until I was done with it! This book was so amazingly written that I felt as though I was Suzie in this book. Reading it I felt almost as if it was me talking about my life and my family after I had passed. It even inspired me to get a charm bracelet. I recommend this book to anyone that has a soul. I promise, it's as deserving of all the wonderful reviews as you are the air you breathe!

Rating:
Summary: *Tear*
Review: The book takes place in the seventies and is about a 14 year old girl that was murdered. It starts off with her telling her story in heaven. The girl who was murdered narrates the book. . She spends most of her time looking down on her family, and her one true love, on earth. She watches them struggle through the hard times that fallow her death. The writing in the book is filled with so much emotion, that I could not stop thinking about it, even when I wasn't reading it. I mourned for the family, and I wished for her body to be found, it was as if this was happening to my best friend.

Rating:
Summary: Good and bad
Review: To me, no book can be a bad book or not worth reading. If it was "bad", then it would not have been allowed to be published for thousands of people to read and critisize. But, I will say that the Lovely Bones was not the best book I've read. I thought the author had a wild imagination and came up with bizarre things to write about, which is a good thing. On the other hand, for me, the style of writing was not adept. It was too fragmented and choppy, hopping from story to story. In the end though, the lesson to be learned from The Lovely Bones is one to always remember. Even though I was not flabbergasted by the novel, I will always remember it.

Rating:
Summary: Wonderful book!
Review: This is such a good book - leaves you with a lump in your throat and hope in your heart that our dead loved ones never really leave us. Alice Sebold is an amazing writer.

Rating:
Summary: Thought Provoking
Review: I found this book to be extrememly interesting and I recommend it to everyone. This book was writen from a unique viewpoint which I have not seen before in any other book. The plot of the story kept me interested until the final page. The end was the only dissappointing aspect which I felt fell short of the excellence of the rest of the novel. Even with this unsatisfying ending, I still highly recommend this book to all.

Rating:
Summary: Hmmm
Review: Well I started reading this book and I couldn't seem to put it down for awhile because it starts out so well. The idea of being able to watch loved ones after death is almost comforting. It was intersting to see all the reactions to the death, not from one of the survivor's points of view, but actually from the victom. I spent alot of time yelling at the book since the reader knows who the killer is but can't do anything. I however didn't like the characterization. I hated the mother, I swear if that woman actually existed and I ran into her on the street, I'd have a few choice words for her! I found that the only character I really liked was the father. There were other characters I didn't NOT like, but wern't my favorites or anything. Suzie's sister Lindsey is alright, so is her boyfried, but that's about it. I wish their could have been a better ending. The ending was pretty, uh, sexual, and I'm positve the author didn't need to be so descriptive, but whatever. I also would have liked more closure. I was mad when it ended, I was looking for some sort of reunion or something. I'm not quite sure what I was hoping for, but I certainly didn't get it. Another reviewer stated that the end left them slightly nausious, I have to say, I felt the exact same way. I don't think I'd recommend this novel, since it basically builds you up then leaves you with nothing.

Rating:
Summary: All the pieces fit
Review: I had, until now, been a hard-core NON-fiction reader. Something I had read, probably the fact that the book is narrated by a dead girl, in some review months ago caught my attention and I bought this book as a travel and beach book for my spring vacation. I made the perfect choice. This book artfully uses a minimum of words to powerfully create the most poignant moments. I'm a 45 yr. old former Marine and am not used to shedding tears, pausing and pondering while reading. This book weaves a sweet, touching story and offers many thoughtful comments on all of our relationships.

Rating:
Summary: A strong beginning and a weak ending...
Review: The beginning was very promising. A strong story with even stronger characters then a strong fizzle. What happened to George Harvey? For so long he was on the run and then he slips...I felt the author grew tired of the story and just quickly put a closing to it all. I would recommend this book to anyone in a book club. It will give something for everyone to discuss.