Heaven In Annie Sebold's The Lovely Bones

I can’t say I’m a very religious person. So when I read the blurb of the novel and saw that it was told from the perspective of the deceased, murdered, and dismembered Susie Salmon, viewing life from heaven, I didn’t go into it with high hopes. But there’s something both magical and perplexing about if there really is a heaven and what it is like. I soon realised that heaven in this book is not meant to be treated as a religious element of the plot, but merely a literary device. Sebold’s depicts a calm and comforting place, a community where deceased residents can enjoy the luxuries from the alive world, from a place labelled as heaven. Much to my surprise, I loved the concept of heaven in the novel. For me, heaven provided sweet bits of comfort …show more content…
There’s something chilling about, ‘’I knew the floor plan of Mr. Harvey’s by heart. I had made a warm spot on the floor of the garage until I cooled,’’ and imagining Susie in her disconnected state, literally at the hands on her murderer. It is the way I think the author has linked a child’s innocence, with something so sincere, but has still kept the sympathetic character traits and cuteness to it. The way she intensely watches her family as they struggle to cope with a new world that she is no longer physically apart of, is something that I thought was hauntingly beautiful. Although I don’t generally believe in heaven in my personal life, it definitely made me think about whether my loved ones that have passed away are looking over me, and if they ever experience the same emotional tenderness that I as the reader felt as I read through Susie’s eyes. It is a topic and an experience that I think many people can relate to; in the way that often we lose people in our lives too early. Sebold’s depiction of heaven can just bring that last bit of hope that we haven’t fully lost our loved ones