the+lovely+bones+2

= = =The Lovely Bones=



Week 1
A- Jess B- Jenny C- Jenny D- Aly

Discussion Questions
1. Do you think they will find out who actually murdered Susie? We think that Susie's father will be the one to discover who murdered his daughter. He has been devoted to finding out who the murderer was. 2. What would you do if you were put in the same situation as Susie? We would probably have done the same thing as Susie because it is hard to get out of a situation like the one she was put into. Mr. Harvey made it difficult for Susie to escape and she had finally given up. 3. Why do you think Ruth never said anything about her dream when the news about Susie's death came out? After she told her mom, her mom thought she was being crazy and she didn't want to tell anyone else because no one would believe her and she would feel the same way. 4. Why do you think Susie's father laughed when he saw her face in the broken glass? He doesn't know how to express his feelings and didn't know how to deal with it. He thought he was becoming crazy for seeing her face in the shattered glass and didn't know whether to laugh or to cry. 5. What did Mr. Harvey do and say when they were building the tent that lead Susie's father to believe that Mr. Harvey had something to do with her death? Mr. Harvey wouldnt look him in the eye and said he couldn't help with the investigation. Mr. Harvey told him to go home and said Susie's name and he didnt have a regular job or kids. He also never came to block parties and socialized with the rest of the neighbors. He told the detective his wife was Leah, but the father had heard from others that his wife's name was Sophie.

Topic of the week: Character Questions
1. What makes them interesting? Susie Salmon is an extremely interesting character because she was murdered and is telling the story from heaven. She watches her family and the people she knows while in heaven and it makes her so different from any other character. She wants the best for her family and it bothers her that no one knows who murdered her besides herself. 2. What is their story or background? Susie was murdered on December 6, 1973. She was a normal teenager and was walking home from school and decided to take a shortcut through a cornfield. She was met by one of her neighbors, Mr. Harvey greeted her saying he wanted to show her something. Susie knew it seemed strange because she never talked to Mr. Harvey before and he knew her name. She went in this underground place that he built and Susie tried multiple times to leave. Mr. Harvey refused to let her and she was raped and murdered by Mr. Harvey. She narrates the story and watches her family from heaven. 3. Why are you drawn to them? Susie is obviously not like any other character because although she is dead, she is still telling the story and is the main character. Susie's life in heaven is very interesting because she gets to watch over her family and see what is going on with them. She still can't get over the fact that she is dead and will never talk to her family and friends again and that is why she constantly checks on her family from heaven. 4. Conversely, are there any characters that you just cannot stand? Why not? Mr. Harvey because he is the murderer of Susie. No one suspects that he was the one who murdered Susie besides her father who gets a strange vibe that Mr. Harvey was the one who did it. Mr. Harvey is obviously a horrible person and he talks to Mr. Salmon pretending that he was so sorry that Susie died when he was the one who killed her.

Summary
The first book club went extremely well. Jess brought in munchkins and apple juice boxes and after we enjoyed them, we began discussing the first fifth of The Lovely Bones. We talked about the main character Susie, and we all agreed that it is so interesting that Susie watches over her family from heaven and is a big part in the story even though she is dead. We also talked about Mr. Harvey and how he obviously has murdered people before because he seemed like he knew what he was doing. He knew that it was going to rain a couple days after he killed Susie, so that would wash away any evidence. He also knew exactly what to do with all the other evidence. A big part of our discussion was talking about what we would do if we were in the same situation as Susie was. We all agreed that we would probably do the same thing as Susie because it is extremely difficult to get out of a situation like that. Like Susie, we would all try to get out but it's very scary and devastating all at once.

During our book talk we discussed about many other weird occurrences that happened after Susie died. Susie's father saw his daughter's face in the broken glass bottles after she died. We talked about why he laughed when he saw her face and we think that it was because he didn't know how he should react because he was so distraught and saddened. Also, Ruth, a girl at Susie's school had a dream where she saw someone's face and that someone was Susie. She told her mom and her mom didn't believe her and we all agreed that Ruth probably didn't tell anyone because she didn't want anyone else thinking she was crazy and that she was making it up. Our book discussion was very productive and we all cannot wait to see what happens next in the book.

D- Jess
1. Why does Lindsey faint when she sees George Harvey? Lindsey faints when she sees George Harvey because Jack Salmon, her father, tells her that he believes he is a suspect. Perhaps it was a warning from Susie that he really did kill her or Lindsey was just overwhelmed by everything that was going on. 2. Why is there a memorial service so late? We think the memorial service was so late because the police wanted to make a complete investigation before agreeing she was actually murdered not just missing. 3. Where did lindsey go for the summer? Why did she go away? Lindsey went to summer camp for gifted students. One of the reasons she went away was to get away from everything that happened with Susie but everyone still associates Lindsey with the death of her sister. She wants to get away with her new boyfriend too. They spend most of the summer together. 4. Why is Lindsey so upset about the camp? What's wrong with it? Lindsey is upset about camp because the project is called "The Perfect Murder". It seems that she can't escape everything that happened to Susie even if she tried. 5. Is Jack Salmon allowing himself to be swallowed up by his grief? Should he let go on Mr. Harvey? We think it is normal for a father to act like this if his child passed away. Very concerned. Though this, he can't control his feelings sometimes like the bottle incident when he broke all of his ships in a bottle that him and Susie made. He shouldn't give up on Mr. Harvey if he really feels like he was a suspect. The police should respect this and search Mr. Harvey better.
 * Discussion Questions**


 * __Topic: Language__** (Section 2 out of 5 of your text)

Assignment: 1.Is it easy to read? Yes it is. Though it is confusing sometimes with knowing what is a flashback, present time, or Susie in heaven. 2. Conversational? Yes because it is a teenager explaining it. It leaves you with suspense. 3. "Classic"? It's not classical we don't think though it is a great book and recommend! 4. Does it use a lot of words you don't understand? No, the language is pretty simple and has well written descriptions. 5. What grade level do you think the book is written at, and why? The grade level should be high school. This is because is has heavy concepts such as rape, murder, sex, and family affairs.

This week, Jenny brought in Oreos (but not double stuffed, because she knows I'm trying to eat healthy) and we discussed more of the novel. Although Jess was not here, we were able to use her questions to discuss the book. Most of the discussion revolved around Lindsey and her reasons for going away for the summer. We decided that she wanted to go away for the summer to escape from reality and everything that had happened to her. She didn't want to be known for being the dead girl's sister and she just needed an escape from all that happened to her and her family.
 * Summary:**

Overall, the second book club meeting went extremely well as it usually does. We got to discuss the reading and predict what we think will happen next. We are all enjoying this book and cannot wait to continue reading. We are sure that the next book club meeting will go just as smoothly and entertaining as the previous. This is a great novel that keeps us entertained and has great details and interesting characters that we are excited to learn more about.

D- Jenny

 * Discussion Questions**

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The police are giving up on the investigation because they're giving up hope and haven't found any evidence to prove who did it. They have no proof that Mr. Harvey committed the crime, and they cannot find any clues that link Mr. Harvey towards the murder.=====

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Mr. Salmon thought that it was Mr. Harvey in the cornfield because it was very dark and he was going crazy because it was his only way to cope with the pain of losing his daughter. His life now revolves around finding out who murdered Susie and feels like if he drops the case, he will feel guilty. Mr. Salmon wants to seek revenge towards whoever murdered Susie, and he will go to any extent to find out who did it.=====

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5. Why do you think Buckley and his father's relationship starts to become better? Buckley and his father's relationship is better because Buckley wasn't old enough to be affected by his sister's death. So, by his father becoming close with Buckley, he still has a part of Susie with him and that relationship. Buckley makes Mr. Salmon forget about the grief of Susie's death and it brings a happiness back to him.=====

D **iscuss the mood or tone of your book. What is the overriding emotion of this book? What examples back up your claim?
 * Topic of the week: Mood or Tone

The mood of __The Lovely Bones__ is dark and secretive.The book obviously revolves around death and the author gives descriptions that make the story sound gloomy and dark. The book is sad because it is about a family just trying to deal with the death of Susie and they all do it in different ways. The main characters, the Salmon family are still coping from the death of their family member Susie, and makes the emotion of the book upsetting. Some examples are that Mr. Salmon's life revolves around finding out who murdered his daughter, and Mrs. Salmon is doing the opposite by drifting away from the family to forget about the pain she has from losing her daughter. The way Mr. Harvey, Susie's murderer is described makes him sound secretive and mysterious. Susie, who narrates the story from heaven is the only one who knows that Mr. Harvey murdered her. The author talked about Mr. Harvey's past and how he has killed and raped many other women and also has killed animals in the neighborhood. The police have given up on the investigation and but Mr. Salmon and Lindsay are positive Mr. Harvey was the one who committed the crime and are determined to prove it. The book overall puts a dark, gloomy picture in my mind because of the way everything is described. The fact that one of the main characters is dead and is looking over her family from heaven puts a whole twist on the book.

The book club went well this week. We ate goldfish and drank corn-syrup loaded Hi-C. We soon got down to business. We mostly talked about how Susie's death effects the entire family. First off, her father, Mr. Salmon, who seems to be obsessive over figuring out who murdered Susie. He feels if he lets go, he will forget about Susie and never be close to her. Then there is Mrs. Salmon, who is the opposite and is trying her best to drift from the family because she can't take the pain. Finally, there are the siblings, Lindsey and Buckley who are both confused about the situation and still in shock. So far this book is great, but scary as well! We can't wait to finish the book and go to see the movie at the mall. And then go buy shoes after.
 * Summary**

Week 4
B- Aly C- Jenny D- Aly
 * A- Jess

****Discussion Questions** 1. Do you think that their relationship helped Lindsay get through Susie's murder? Yes, it gave her something else to think about and focus on. She was able to focus on herself rather than her sister's death. It gave Lindsay a friend to lean on while everyone else only saw her as the "dead girl's sister"

2. Do you think that Sam and Lindsay were meant to be from the beginning? If Sam was just being sympathetic the day he brought flowers to her house, he wouldn't have stuck around for as long as he did. He clearly likes her and their relationship grew as time went on. Sam came into Lindsay's life at the perfect time.

3. What was the reason for Abigail to leave her family & home life? She wanted to completely remove herself from anything having to do with Susie. The whole incident caused Abigail to be traumatized and she wanted to completely forget everything that happened. She thought removing herself from her family would help her move on.

4. What do you think will happen to Susie at the end of the book? She will move on to her big heaven and leave her heaven which she watched her family from because she realizes that she needs to move on and let them move on as well.

5. Why do you think that Grandma Lynn came to stay at their house and help them out?

We think she came to help them out because she realized that they were struggling and now that Abigail left she knew that the family was hurt and she wanted to bring back some of their happiness. She also knew that they went through so much pain the past years, that she wanted to be there for her loved ones.

We started off our fourth book club meeting by enjoying the brownies made by Jess. Then, we began our discussion by answering Aly's questions and talking about what we had read in the book this week. We all agreed that Lindsay's relationship with Sam really did help her get through the devastating murder of her sister Susie. Sam was always there for Lindsay and treated her like a regular person. Lindsay was able to focus on Sam who eventually became her boyfriend and that allowed her to let go of her sadness. We also talked about how Abigail left the family and went to go live somewhere else. We thought that she was still so hurt from Susie's death and she just couldn't be around people that reminded her of her daughter. Grandma Lynn came to stay with the family after Abigail left because she finally realized that she needed to change and help around the house now that the mother of the household was gone.
 * Summary

We also talked about how the book jumped really fast because all of a sudden the characters were all grown up. Lindsay and Sam went from being young teenagers to becoming adults and graduating from college. Also, Buckley went from being a little four year old to a thirteen year old boy. It was a sudden change, but the transition was easy to understand. We talked about how Sam proposed to Lindsay and that they were only twenty one but they knew that it was the right decision. We made a prediction about what we think will happen to Susie at the end of the book. We all agreed that Susie will move to a different heaven and finally realize that she cannot watch over her family forever. Susie will know that she needs to move on and actually accept the fact that she is no longer living.

**Topic of the week: Themes/Images Susie and her father always made ships in a bottle and it was a past time they shared just between the two of them. Susie's father smashed the ships in the bottles as a representation of a piece of their relationship breaking apart. Susie was further and further away from him and he broke down. When he saw her face in the bottle, he couldn't handle it and smashed them. It was a release of his pain and he knew that if he continued to make the ships and look at the ships, he would be reminded of what he and his daughter shared.

D- Jess
1)Susie describes "a shifting" on Earth and in heaven when she sees her grandfather. What does this section mean/symbolize? This represents Susie leaving her life on earth more and more and would have peace in the real heaven soon. Susie sees her grandfather after she goes into Ruth's body and had sexual intercourse with Ray for the first time. It could be that that part of her was missing and now its complete. 2)Why did Abigail finally come back? She came back once her husband had a heart attack. In being back, she realized she couldn't leave her family and still loved them. Nothing was getting better because everything about Susie's death was still on her mind. Her temporary get away calmed her, but she knew everything was better when her family was around. 3) Is the way Mr. Harvey died too much of a coincidence? We think that it is too much of a coincidence. This is because Lindsey's project over the summer for "perfect murder" was death by icicle and that is how Mr. Harvey died. It's a way the author tried to tie in everything together. 4) Does his death give him the justice he deserved or should he have been caught by the police? We think he should have been caught by this police. This is because the family would know what truly happened with Susie. The father and sister would know they are right about the suspect all along. Another thing the author never talked about in the book was hell. Would Mr. Harvey go to heaven even though he sinned? We all believe that he would and learn what horrible person he was on earth. 5) Is the reason Susie stops watching her family because her killer dies? Its one of the main reasons. She realizes after time that she had to let go but mainly because she is relieved because of his death. Also her family, neighborhood, and friends are moving on as well. 6) What is the significance of "lovely bones"? Lovely bones are all of the people and the connections made because of Susie's death. The world did go on with out her and would form a body with bones. This represented her life. 7) Was the ending what you expected? Better than expectations? Why? We were all thrown off by the ending and Mr. Harvey's death. We expected the murder case to be completed and Susie's killer to be caught. or something bigger would happen. This would just be the usual though so we were glad that we were surprised at the end.
 * Discussion Questions:**

We would all recommend this book to other peers. Although it is frightening at parts, it is a cliff hanger and very interesting. The topic of this book has been touched upon in others all though there is so much to this book. Every point has been pointed out effectively. For example of a few topics are murder, rape, heaven, relationships, family, tragedies, and how death effects people in different ways. We think that this book would be a good book for the curriculum, perhaps for summer reading. The author's other book "Lucky" was a summer book and many liked it. **
 * Final reflections: