Bringing up the Bones

Rating:
Summary: Excellent 'recovery' story
Review: Bridget Edelstein has just lost a lifelong friend - Benji - to a fatal car accident. For the previous 9 months they had been boyfriend / girlfriend, if reluctantly on Benji's behalf. A few days before he died, Benji wrote a 'Dear Jane' letter. It was all over. And now Benji has gone and died, so that is all it will ever be. Over.

Zeises tells a story of grief, rage and getting on with life after a great loss very well. Her characters, including the lead character, are completely human, warts and all, acting and reacting from an emotional base. Bridget's confusion, anger, grief and love are expressed very well, as indeed are her perceptions of the motivations of others, as they touch her own life. There is a great deal of room for the reader to bring their own experiences into their perception of the situation between Bridget and Benji, Bridget and new boyfriend Jasper, Bridget and Benji's family and where they are in the process of overcoming such a loss. Again, the reader can bring in their own psychological analysis of other characters motivations if you can remove Bridget's perceptions from them, viewed as they are through her eyes.

Serious issues are dealt with in this book, and realistically. Bridget is by no means perfect, and neither are any other characters - perhaps with the exception of Jasper! I liked this as a truly human story, and one that should touch the hearts of every reader, even as you might want shout at Bridget at some of the thoughts she has and decisions she takes.

Rating:
Summary: Amazing
Review: I absolutely loved this book, from the first page to the last. When I bought this book, I was expectingfor it to be a heart-wrenching story of loss, only to read it and discover it to be more about the empowerment of finding yourself. I would reccomend this book to anyone who is questioning who they are, as well as anyone who has lost a loved one.

Rating:
Summary: interesting
Review: i liked this book from the very begining.
this story is about 18 year old bridget edelson who is taking a year off before college to try and recover from the death of her ex-boyfriend benji.rather than accepting the family and friends she turns to jasper. and even though she meets him at a party and has sex with him that night doesnt mean he isnt a wonderful guy willing to nurse her soul. and when she gets over benjis deathshe learns that to love another with all your being even if the other person doesnt love you as much still doesnt mean you havnt loved.
overall i loved this book and i recomend it to all teens.

Rating:
Summary: Tells of a teen who was abandoned then adopted as a child
Review: Look for Lara Zeises' Bringing Up The Bones as a compelling story for older teens: it tells of a teen who was abandoned then adopted as a child, and who remembers nothing of her former life - until her adopted mother's death and a new friend fill in many gaps. Cultural roots issues come to life in this realistic story of acceptance.