"THE LOVELY BONES" PRESENTATION

Author

• Alice Sebold
• Born on September 6, 1963
• Successful author of multiple books

Main Characters

• Susie Salmon
• 14 year-old who was raped and murdered

Mr. Harvey

• Neighbor of the Salmon's who killed Susie
• Killed many other women as well

Jack Salmon

• Father of Susie
• Knows that Mr. Harvey killed Susie, but cannot convince others due to that fact that there is no physical evidence

Abigail Salmon

• Mother of Susie
• Cheats on Jack with Len Fenerman after the murder
• Leaves family to go to California to be alone

Lindsey Salmon

• Younger sister of Susie
• Dates and eventually becomes engaged to Samuel Heckler

Buckley Salmon

• Younger brother of Susie
• Very young when Susie dies
• Has to become man of the house because his father is not well

RAY SINGH

• Young sweetheart of Susie's
• Becomes friends with Ruth Connors due to the fact that they both miss Susie
• First suspect in Susie's case

Len Fenerman

• Detective for Susie's case
• Falls for Abigail

RUTH CONNoRS

• Was touched by Susie right after she was killed
• This caused Ruth to miss Susie and become fascinated with the dead
• Close friend of Ray's after Susie's death
• Looked upon as weird by most people

Samuel Heckler

• Boyfriend of Lindsey's
• Eventually becomes engaged to her

Summary
Story takes place in Pennsylvania. Susie Salmon is raped and murdered by Mr. Harvey. She goes to her heaven where she watches her family try to cope in their different ways. She also watches her killer who looks for new victims and remembers old victims. Her family and the detective try to catch Mr. Harvey. He dies before being caught.

Summary Continued
Family struggles deeply with loss. Lindsey always known as girl whose sister died. Buckley very young when it happened. He had to become man of the house when older because his father was not well. Parents eventually split up. Abigail cheated on Jack with Len Fenerman.

Controversy
Deserves to be controversial because of first chapter, sex scenes, language, and frightening looks into Mr. Harvey's mind and his past. The first chapter explains the rape and murder in detail.

First Side of Controversy
One side believes that children/young adults should not be allowed to read the book due to its terrifying descriptions. It may lead children to not trusting anyone in the future.

Examples

• "'No one has the right in life to never be frightened.' That includes middle school age children" (Speakman).

EXAMPLES

• A high school in Malibu faced a problem where parents did not want their children to read The Lovely Bones.
• "This book is a very touchy subject. I see this book as a very dangerous book for some children, who are just about to become adults," said Laurel Thorne, a parent of a student at the high school (Malibu Times).

Other Side of Controversy
The other argument says that frightening people into learning the truth in life is good. The world is not a safe place and people need to learn not everything is as it seems.

Examples