Rating: 
Summary: One hit wonder?
Review: The only disappointing thing about The Virgin Suicides is that more than ten years after the novel, Jeffrey Eugenides hasn't produced anything yet. Other than that, the story of the five Lisbon sisters is a compelling read. The steady tone of Eugenides's writing makes the novel one that can't be put down, and must be experienced in one sitting. Once the reader is drawn in, there is no escape. Here's a novel where reading it once isn't enough.
Rating: 
Summary: Poorly crafted
Review: Although Mr. Eugenides tries to carefully craft the characters of the Lisbon sisters, he leaves much to be desired in crafting the characters of Mr. and Mrs. Lisbon. Very little is said to or about the couple who have lost five daughters. Our book club (about 16 members) read this and the majority feel this book was not a good read. A few people really liked the book, but more felt that the book was a very slow read. Many of the tangents that Mr. Eugenides went off on did little to contribute to the story line.
Rating:
Summary: Very Very good
Review: I read "The Virgin Suicides" At first I thought it was gonna be a bad book. But as I read it more and more I got attached to it. I brought the book everywhere I went. It is a very very very good book, and it is phenominally written.
Rating:
Summary: Death to life
Review: A restrictive mother with a wimpish father as parents, has lead to the suicide of one Lisbons daughter, and a year later, the remaining four daughters end their life in a macabre fashion. The one-year time span is told through the recollections of a group of boys who were obsessed with the Lisbons daughters and through their interviews of the people who were part of Lisbons daughters life during the one year in question.The narratives seek answers for the suicides as it has an indelible impact on boys' life. This is often elusive, with the mist clearing only briefly to insatiate the appetite. There is no answer to life question: only an acceptance of the inevitable. The selfish take God's decision as one's own to make and break as one's will dictate. The Virgin Suicide is book with a sense of the elusiveness and depth of life. It has effectively presented a difficult subject with the innocent of adolescents and the reflection of the later years.
Rating:
Summary: Define Obsession
Review: Define Obsession. A worryingly-touching novel depicting the struggles of five young girls attempting to grow in the most restrictive of capacities. The story of the suicides is told through the inquisitive eyes of one of the girls many besotted victims. Eugenides' image of obsession and yearning is the feature point of his novel and its jigsaw-like narration allows it to retain a wonderful sense of ambiguity. Eugenides major triumph is his ability to shock. In a novel which reveals its conclusion within the first two lines, it is amazing how it is able to create a false sense of hope from the reader. 'The Virgin Suicides' is beautifully eloquent and Eugenides' vivid imagery makes it a very engaging read. This skill is evident in his superb ability to produce a sense of awkwardness that almost makes the reader feel bad for prying. Even though Eugenides' is dealing with a difficult subject like suicide he still creates a dark and humourous account which actually lightens with every read. 'The Virgin Suicides' by Jeffrey Eugenides, which has now been adapted by Sofia Coppola to a feature-length film is coincidentally his first novel as is Sofia Coppola's directorial debut. The film takes a more light-hearted view of the situation whereas the book delivers the story with a more morbid and frightening truth. There are parts however where the novel loses its gripping edge. But it Eugenides is quick to pull it back on track and into the realms of surrealism. 'The Virgin Suicides' is a remarkable novel and Eugenides' melancholic tone throughout makes it so powerful and evocative.
Rating:
Summary: Magnificent
Review: I found The Virgin Suicides brilliant! The story of the Lisbon girls was mesmerizing. All throughout the novel I wondered what it was really about: It was not just about the girl's suicides, or about the love-sick, curious boys who watched them. It was more a portrait of their life. The reader does not find out why exactly the girl's attempt their suicides, so if you must have closure this is not the book to read. I did not find it "depressing", "tedious", or "weird", although a less cultured or intellectual person might find it so. I believe that the novel was entitled The Virgin Suicides, even though one was not a virgin, because the girls embodied exquisite, pure femininity. They reminded me of vestal virgins, sacrificing to their Goddess. Although I am a woman, I did not find their portrayal unrealistic (as one reviewer found it). The point of the novel was not realism at all. It wasn't a portrait of the average suburban adolescent; you know from the first page that the girls and their lives are anything but ordinary. I would recommend this book to any curious and sophisticated mind; those who cannot comprehend the depth of the novel I caution against reading it.
Rating:
Summary: amazing
Review: I continue to be pulled into this story, each and every time I read it. There is no exact explination throughout the story, however you are lead into the life of these young girls, and the boys who are in love with them. It is quite possibly one of the best novels that I have ever read. I reccomend it to anyone...it is absolutly amazing.
Rating:
Summary: Amazing.
Review: I have tried to explain to people many times what it is, exactly, that draws me to this book. I have never been able to fully express it in words. But The Virgin Suicides is, and I believe it always will be, my favorite book. I read it for the first time in June, 2000, and I have re-read it so many times since then that I lost count somewhere around September. And I have never gotten sick of it. This book goes wherever I go--it is always in my backpack at school and it is also in my suitcase when I go away. Everytime I read it, I find new sentences or paragraphs or words that enchant me. At this point, my copy of the book is completely dog-eared and held together by scotchtape. There is at least one highlighted line on each page. The Virgin Suicides is an amazing book, period. The story is inventive and new and completely the opposite of a lot of the trite, cliched stuff you find everywhere now. And the way Jeffrey Eugenides writes never fails to leave me awestruck and sure that there is no way that the lines in this book could be written anymore perfectly. He takes the most mundane elements of every day life and makes them seem beautiful. He draws you into this imaginary suburbia 70's world of the Lisbon girls and their admirers, and makes it all seem so familiar. I can not praise this book highly enough, although I know not everyone will enjoy it. My father finally agreed to read it, but stopped in the middle of the first chapter, saying it was too "weird." I think that this is what makes this book so magical. It's Paul Baldino creeping through the sewer systems; it's a stack of plastic bracelets taped to Cecelia's wrist to hide her bandages; it's Lux "sucking the marrow" from Trip Fontaine's bones; it's the way the Lisbon house is referred to as smelling of "stale popcorn"; it is, of course, an uneaten sandwich sitting on a staircase for six months; it's a "carnal angel" making love on her roof in the middle of the winter--Lux, the "succubus of those binocular nights"; it's a coming out party with the theme of asphyxiation, where green icecream is served and the guests wear gas masks; it's old Mrs. Karafilis watching Train to Istanbul every year to see her homeland for three seconds, then throwing herself down the stairs and "for the first time in seven years, suffering no pain." It is all these things, and more. I didn't even have to consult the book for these quotes, because this book is so embedded into my soul that I know them all by heart. Saying simply, "I love this book," does not even begin to explain how deeply I can always immerse myself in the story. I disagree with the reviewer who said that the people who would enjoy this book are men who like to read Maxim. Well, I am a 17 year old girl who definitely does not read Maxim, and this book resonates with something within me that I can not describe.
Rating:
Summary: A wierd book that is pretty depressing
Review: >>A weird book that I find hugely difficult to describe any further than the title. Except that one of them is not a virgin.<< Exactly my sentiments! Would not recommend this book unless you want to be depressed and bored to death by a bunch of boy teens who have nothing better to do than spy on some girls.
Rating:
Summary: Hypnotic
Review: I've always loved the atmosphere of Suburbia. Coming from Holland you don't really have them here. Also I love bizarre stories of romance and death. This book has both those qualities. We have here a strange and haunting tale of 5 beautiful sisters. Each as mysterious as the next. These seemingly perfect girls are the object of the desires and dreams of all the boys in the neighborhood. So it comes as a great shock to them when one of them tries to commit suicide. From there on we take a leap into the future as the now adult boys try tell to the reader their memories and their theories of what exactly happened. And in the end you're left with the same questions as the boys as they can't figure out why things happened as they happened. Witty, yet haunting, this book sucks you in as you experience the loneliness of the girls and the desperation of the boys that love them. Highly reccomended
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