Book Discussion: The Lovely Bones - Page 5

GODDESS6 · #61 09-10-2007, 03:15 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by trackaghost

I actually finished the book last week. I enjoyed it but I was a little disappointed too. I won't go into that here since most haven't finished it.

I thought she was trying to forget who she was. She had given up her dreams and her whole life had turned into being a mother and looking after her kids. When one of her children is taken from her, she doesn't know who she is anymore. The fact she couldn't protect her child I guess puts into question her role as a mother. Even though the way she dealt with her grief was selfish, I could understand it and have empathy with her, and I think Susie did too.

very well put~ that is how i was thinking too~

trackaghost · #62 09-10-2007, 03:26 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Betsy

Now back to the Book....

1. As for Mr. Harvey -- Did his dad drag his mom behind the car and kill her? The mom hands the necklace through the window to Little George, ~~~~who is in the backseat? (I am listening to a tape and it is hard to rewind and find the right spot for review.)

2. George kept his mom's necklace....among his other *treasures* from his victims. Mom seemed to be a gypsy-like character. Why does the Sebold go into George Harvey's life and background...does she do this to make him more human and make us think that there was some sort of break, which made him abnormal???

3. I kept wondering why all the space on him....the thievery of his mom .... using him as an accomplice...the alienation between mother & son and the dad....the men trying to lure his mom out of the truck and then she puts the truck into gear and runs over him...etc. etc. Is she an evil character or are both his parents evil ~~~ because dad ultimately kills the mom?

4. The book alludes to Buckley being able to see/interact with Susie...yet, Susie, as the narrator, never mentions it. Do you think he really sees her?

(Yes, there are some hoaky parts to the book, but some intriguing parts. I wasn't gonna stick with it, but I am glad I did. I am only up to Chapter 17...and have forgotten a lot of this detail from when I first read it.)

1. My impression was that that George Harvey's dad killed his mother. His mother's necklace was in a way his first memento of a murder.

2. The whole book is about the consequences of death and murder, how one girl dying sets off a chain reaction and affects everybody around her for years to come. It changes everything. The same thing happens to George Harvey, but it affects him in a different way because, even though Susie's family are devastated, they still very much love each other. How George became a killer fits with the themes of the book. Also I think it helps Susie understand her death and eventually move on into her own real version of heaven.

3. I think both parents explain his misogyny. His mother is an awful woman who presses him into doing criminal things and only shows affection when he is going against society. His father is abusive and gets rid of the problem by killing her.
There's actually quite a bit about the relationship between mothers and daughters. There's Abigail and Grandma Lynn, who have a very cold relationship, and that in turn affects how Abigail deals with her own daughters. Even Ray Singh, whose mother is the main parental figure in his life, is quite a cold and hard woman, even though she obviously loves and protects her son.

4. *SPOILER*

Later on in the book Susie says that she did talk to Buckley and he answered back. I'm not sure why those scenes weren't described or why we are made to doubt if Buckley is telling the truth though.

Betsy · #63 09-12-2007, 05:02 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by skcin

BETSY - can you please put a spoiler warning in your recent posts for memebers who haven't read that far ahead yet?

Thanks.

I'll be finishing up chapter 10 tonight (I've been holding back so I don't get too far ahead & I can discuss things and not get mixed up) and will try to post tomorrow.

===============================================

I am sorry.

skcin · #64 09-12-2007, 07:38 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Betsy

===============================================

I am sorry.

No big deal. I figured you didn't know, so I thought I'd mention it.

Betsy · #65 09-20-2007, 01:07 AM

Did everyone lose interest in this book?

Can we say that by Oct 1 .... everyone has it finished? (Mine is due back to the library by then.)

GODDESS6 · #66 09-20-2007, 05:42 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Betsy

Did everyone lose interest in this book?

Can we say that by Oct 1 .... everyone has it finished? (Mine is due back to the library by then.)

i didn't, but it seems everyone else has

~

jannieC · #67 09-20-2007, 08:44 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Betsy

Did everyone lose interest in this book?

Can we say that by Oct 1 .... everyone has it finished? (Mine is due back to the library by then.)

I'm still interested in talking about it- I was just waiting until everyone had finished with it.

trackaghost · #68 09-20-2007, 10:23 AM

I got bored waiting for everyone to finish it. I read a couple of books since this one, so it's not quite so fresh in my mind anymore.

DrummerDeanna · #69 09-20-2007, 10:25 AM

I finished it - was waiting for others to do so as well - I've got a few opinions on the book - but didn't want to jump too far ahead of anyone.

skcin · #70 09-20-2007, 02:40 PM

I've been slacking. Meant to read it some while camping, but HFAW wouldn't leave me the hell alone, so I couldn't. I'll try to have it done by this weekend.

Betsy · #71 09-20-2007, 04:54 PM

I am going to post some thoughts about the book on Monday...but...I will say SPOILER....

I wanna talk about some stuff....and maybe it will jog the memory of those of you who have finished it.

BUT UNTIL THEN....

Anybody got a book to recommend to me? I gotta drive the 12 hours to and from Omaha, Nebraska this weekend....and a good book would keep my thoughts off of hating the semi trucks who take FOREVER to pass another semi.....

jannieC · #72 09-20-2007, 06:27 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Betsy

I am going to post some thoughts about the book on Monday...but...I will say SPOILER....

I wanna talk about some stuff....and maybe it will jog the memory of those of you who have finished it.

BUT UNTIL THEN....

Anybody got a book to recommend to me? I gotta drive the 12 hours to and from Omaha, Nebraska this weekend....and a good book would keep my thoughts off of hating the semi trucks who take FOREVER to pass another semi.....

God, I wish I could read on roadtrips. No way though- nausea. Anyway, here are a couple of books I have read and loved:

A Prayer for Owen Meany
The Time Traveler's Wife
The Prince of Tides

I can't think of any others right now (brainfart).

Betsy · #73 09-21-2007, 11:34 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by jannieC

God, I wish I could read on roadtrips. No way though- nausea. Anyway, here are a couple of books I have read and loved:

A Prayer for Owen Meany
The Time Traveler's Wife
The Prince of Tides

I can't think of any others right now (brainfart).

Thanks for the suggestions....whenever possible I get the books on tape and then if there's another driver, I get the book. (I don't get sick unless it's a windy road.) Nebraska is generally a flat and straight ride.

As for the PRINCE OF TIDES -- whoa -- read that one. Wasn't that the one with Callanwolde ? or something like that word, which kept coming up...THEN we find out what that reference is.... Good book, though.

Did anyone read PEACE LIKE A RIVER? Or have any thoughts on it?

Betsy · #74 09-26-2007, 01:32 PM

**********SPOILER**************
**********SPOILER**************
**********SPOILER**************
**********SPOILER**************

A little nudge to get this thread to a conclusion...

What did you think when the dog died?

Were you surprised?

And do you think the author handled it in a interesting way in how she told us the news?

JazmenFlowers · #75 09-26-2007, 01:49 PM

I'm sorry I've been such a bad host, but I totally lost interest in this book.