Symbols, Imagery, Allegory
The only sound I made after that was a weak tinkling of bells. (1.81)Susie's jingly cap is a homemade symbol of her mother's love and care. Harvey perverts it, using it to gag Susie while he rapes...
Setting
The Lovely Bones is set mostly in an unnamed Pennsylvania suburb (called Norristown in the film version). Alice Sebold grew up in the suburbs, which she refers to as "Nowhere USA" and draws from th...
What's Up With the Title?
The title is oh-so-creepily inviting. It combines, in the spirit of horror and Gothic conventions – love, life, death, and beauty. It also provides us with suspense and mystery – we wan...
What's Up With the Ending?
I could not have what I wanted most. Mr. Harvey dead and me living. Heaven wasn't perfect. (2.39)The ending is about as happy as a book about a murdered girl can get. It features the fulfillment of...