Rating: 
Summary: Creepy, haunting read
Review: I only read this after seeing the film starring Kirsten Dunst, which made my skin crawl, although it was excellent. It's the story of 5 Catholic sisters, growing up in 1970's Michigan. They live in the midst of a wealthy neighborhood, though their bumbling, out-of-touch father is only a math teacher at their parochial high school. Their mother is a strict, religious parent, and treats her girls like she's training them for the convent. All 5 girls are beautiful, blond and objects of desire for the neighborhood boys, and the middle sister, racy Lux, leads them on. Then one night, thirteen-year-old Cecilia, the youngest, commits suicide, and the family is never the same again. The parents will not allow the other four sisters to overcome the death of their sister and live normal teenage lives, and it proves to be the downfall of all the girls. The story is told from the point of view of one of the neighborhood boys, and it is a very interesting, if creepy and depressing, read.
Rating: 
Summary: You either love it, or you hate it
Review: In my case I loved it. I was deeply consumed by this book and was haunted by it for weeks. Jeffrey Eugenides has a truly magical, intriguing way of painting pictures and weaving webs of mystery throughout the novel. His descriptions of mundane, everyday activities give the reader the sense that every little movement, sound, or image depicted in this book leads to some deeper meaning or message about life. One gets the feeling that their is no "right answer" as to what the theme is of this book; it is customized to speak to each person in a different way.One small, seemingly meaningless detail that stood out for me was his mention of fish flies at the beginning, and then at the end of the book. If you have read the book you may remember this little tidbit; if you have not, be sure to look for it. Cecilia Lisbon is fixated with the fish flies in the beginning of the book, while everyone else pays no attention to these creatures. Think about this concept while reading and relate it to the ultimate fate of the Lisbon girls and the neighborhood boys, as well as the connotative meaning of the story. I sense that one must be in the right mindset to truly enjoy this book. If you are just picking it up, do not read it for the literal story line, because it will prove to be far-fetched and slow-moving. Begin reading with the knowledge that this book is to be analyzed, that not everything is meant in literal terms. The Virgin Suicides is not to be missed! Read it, mull it over, analyze it...I guarantee it be unforgettable.
Rating:
Summary: Classic "Coming of Age"
Review: This is a novel that should be ranked among the top books of the "Coming of Age" genre, as it exquisitely captures the essence of youth - timeless summers, anguish in love, the neighborhood "world". It's pages are haunted by an infinite sadness, a foreboding sense. From the demise of the youngest of the five beautiful Lisbon girls, Cecelia, the reader is pulled into a thorough examination of this family's life, trying to know and understand them. This is a book about neighbours observing neighbours, and it's all heresay. This makes the story all the more tragic, because it is a story about five girls wanting to be heard, but no one ever really listening close enough. My only quibble with Eugenides book is that it all starts to become a little redundant. The narrative becomes too detailed about the life of every witness. One could argue that the author does this to "open up" the fictional neighborhood; to air everyone's dirty laundry along with the Lisbon's. But I think that it detracts from the tragedy being written about, and belittles the Lisbon family's pain.
Rating: 
Summary: I guess...
Review: This was an interesting book. It had a good plot and the author described everything so perfectly and precisly. There are a few things that I wondered about the book: In a way it left the reader hanging. I wish that the author would have gone into more detail about the Lisbon girls, so we could figure out a little more about what was going through thier heads. I wished that maybe I could've gotten to know the girls a little better, just so I could relate to them, which might make the story a little more realistic. Maybe it was the authors intent to allow you to let you create your own thoughts about the girls - I don't know. For the most part though, it was a pretty good book. The author is VERY descriptive which I like, and so, I do reccommend it to anyone who enjoys these kind of deep, heart wrenching books...
Rating: 
Summary: A waste of my time.
Review: After the hype over the movie, I did what I usually do, I read the book before considering seeing the movie. It was a waste of eyesight in my opinion. Too much needless detail and not enough story will kill my interest in a book pretty quickly. I kept on reading hoping I would "get it". Still can't even figure out a point to this book and do not understand all the rave reviews.
Rating:
Summary: Refreshing!
Review: Finally, something different! I flew thru this book and was disapointed when I finished it. This book is unique in that it is told by the point of view of the neighborhood boys, not just one person. It allows the reader to get a well-rounded view of the Lisbon girls, and what is happening with them. And the story idea is just amazing... its almost impossible to think of such horrible things and this author tackles suicide and plain old teenage angst beautifully. You'd be missing out if you don't read this.
Rating:
Summary: Worthwhile Read
Review: The Virgin Suicides provided a heartfelt look deep into the obsession with the 5 teenage girls, the Lisbon sisters. The book however, goes so much deeper than that. It looks at love, loneliness, obsession, lust, guilt, family and so much more. The book started off as a real page turner, however by about the mid way point is slowed down a bit and that chapters seemed to never end. Still it is a worthwhile read.
Rating:
Summary: Intriguing writing style and plot . . .
Review: Eugenides writes well (you knew that). The story line has interesting quirks. Despite the fact that the outcome is entirely predictable, I found myself caught up in the perspective of the young boys . . . the mystery of the girls' lives .. . and the larger question about whether we ever know what goes on behind the closed doors of somebody else's life.
Rating:
Summary: A smart, compelling, and interesting novel.
Review: The novel, The Virgin Suicides, kept me enticed through all two hundred and forty nine pages of this well written book. Told through the eyes of the boys who love them most, five sisters living on lockdown in their home go though love, sex, betrayal, and in the end, death. This compelling novel, written by Jeffrey Eugenides, keeps your eyes focused on each page as you gradually see the lives of the girls get worse and worse. Now a film, The Virgin Suicides is ultimetly a novel about youth and innocence being lost through unnecessary captivity. With a heart wrenching ending, The Virgin Suicides is a novel that make you appreciate the small luxuries that you have in life that you most likely take for granted. These two hundred and forty nine pages of paper each left a profound impression on me. With that said I will say, go pick up a copy of The Virgin Suicides and read it because it will keep your mind embedded on the paper the whole time.
Rating:
Summary: Five young girls, the boys who try to unravel the mystery
Review: that surrounds them,a mother obsessed with false piety, and a meek, pussilanimous father, make a heck of a good story and one which the author unravels with an easy, yet intriguing narrative. It is years later, many years since the five adolescent girls commit suicide, that one of the unnamed boys finally tries to get to the bottom of the Libon family's tragedy. Five sisters...so different...so alike; leading an imprisoned life..a tragic life that no one seems to care about; not even after they are all dead. This is a mystery within a mystery, written suberbly and executed with style and flair by the author. Although the obvious mystery is why? why do they all commit suicide, the more compelling mystery is why do the townspeople see this desperation and ignore it? The answer is....there is no answer...we will never know nor understand the futility of these girls' lives. And so, we read it and put it down...we enjoy it, and let it rest on our shelves...we let it go....but, it never lets go of us. And truthfully, it never will. We will see a " brainy Therese, a fastidious Mary, an ascetic Bonnie, a libertine Lux and a pale saintly Cecilia", sometime again in our travels through this life; and we will wonder...and then perhaps have to wonder WHY?, all over again. Well done, Jeffrey Eugenides and More!, More!
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