Table of ContentsSusie's Story: Watching from the SkyRecommended? Yes! Final Thoughts I like letting books choose me, instead of me choosing them. So when Alice Sebold's The Lovely Bones came out in 2002 and people couldn't keep quiet, I tried to ignore everyone who said, "You absolutely have to read this book!" About a year later, I bought a copy at my family's used bookstore. I took the hardcover book home without a dust jacket, but I still didn't feel like the book was ready to read. A week ago, I walked past my bookshelf, ready to read something new, and this blue book seemed to be calling my name. It was time to get it back. And once I started Susie Salmon's story, I couldn't put this book down. Say no to plagiarism. Get a tailor-made essay on “Why Violent Video Games Should Not Be Banned”? Get the original essay Susie's Story: Watching from the Sky Susie begins telling her story from the sky and keeps no secrets from her readers. Instead, she tells her heartbreaking story and has her life before her death, the details of her murder, and what happens to her devastated family after her murder unfold before the reader's eyes. Alongside Susie, the reader floats with her between the life she left on earth and her new life in her own paradise. At fourteen, Susie was far from ready to leave her life behind. After her murder, she constantly worries about her father, her mother, her sister, her brother and even her dog from the sky. She can't abandon them, so she monitors them daily. But Susie isn't just worried about her family. She worries if her killer will attack someone else. She desperately wants to try to help her family and Detective Len find the neighbor who murdered her. Susie also misses Ray, a boy who had a crush on her. And then there's Ruth, a strange girl who Susie didn't really know when she was alive but briefly connected with when her soul collided with Ruth after she died. In turn, Ruth clings to Susie's death, and the two share a strange bond until Susie and Ruth finally find peace.Recommended? Yes ! I have only scratched the surface of this novel. There is so much more to discover. Alice Sebold does a wonderful job not only developing Susie, but all the other characters as well. Because Susie can read the minds of everyone she looks at on earth, the reader can play inside the minds of her murderer, Lindsey (her younger sister), her mother, her father, and the list goes on. Flashbacks also play an important role in character development. Not only is the reader drawn into the pain of Susie's death and its aftermath, but Susie also mixes in some stories about the good times she had on earth with her family and the beginning of her high school romance with Ray. These happy stories made the story very bittersweet. Susie's slice of heaven is also an amazing part of this novel. While everything else is uncovered in the novel, what happens in Susie's paradise is what moves the plot forward and makes the story unpredictable. I never knew what would happen next. The best part is that the reader experiences Susie's unpredictable afterlife with her as she makes new discoveries about how her own personal paradise works. I applaud Sebold's ability to abandon the "Hallmark" heaven and come up with new ideas about what might happen in the afterlife. This book is truly unlike any other book I have.