"The Lovely Bones" was a change from the usual! I don't want to give away all of the secrets of this book, but the perspective from which it was written really catches your attention. The second line of the story is "I was fourteen when I was murdered on December 6, 1973." This book started strong and maintained a healthy momentum throughout.
If you pick up this book you'll notice poignant characteristics that you can relate to someone in your life. The character development is so detailed. The spry, saucy grandmother, the brainy sister, the attentive father, the silly little brother. The characters were well-crafted and colorful despite their unfortunate situation. I'll say it again: I love good character development.
There were some challenges to reading this story - first, you have to be willing to accept a really alternative view of heaven, eternity, and second chances. Throughout, I found myself saying, "Hm. That's a different way to look at it." I'm still trying to figure out how I felt about everything in this book.
To be honest, I was a little bit disappointed, though that is partially my own fault. I had so many recommendations for this book that I may have had overblown expectations of its impact.
In any case, the book was very well put-together, memorable, triumphant, sad, and heart-wrenching. I would recommend the book just to experience the author's ingenuity.
I first read this book in 2004. I agree, it is very different. I had never heard of the book when I picked it up randomly off of the library shelf, so I wasn't disappointed because over-hype. However, I was shocked by the subject matter and several times had to put it down because I couldn't read through the sadness and tears, only to pick it up again because I had to see what came next.
ReplyDeleteThank you for your comment! Sorry I am almost 2 years in replying, I just don't expect to see many comments on this blog! Keep reading! : )
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