The Lovely Bones by Alice Sebold
Chapter 3
Written by Katlyn
Edited by Krystal

The odd thing about dying and going to heaven was bumping into living people on the way and for Susie it was Ruth Connors. Susie and Ruth were not close, but as Susie floated away she reached her hand out to the Ruth’s cheek, the last connection to Earth she’d ever have.

On December seventh, Ruth complained to her mother about having a dream where a pale ghost appeared before her. Of course, Mrs. Connors didn’t believe Ruth and so she shut up and wrote her thoughts down in poetry instead. When Susie was discovered missing, Ruth became obsessed with Susie and went through yearbooks, collecting anything to do with Susie. Susie became wary of Ruth and avoided watching her until one day when Ruth ran into Clarissa and Brian Nelson kissing in the hall; later Clarissa’s locker was burgled by Ruth, who took a bunch of photos of Susie, a scrapbook, and a stash of Brian’s marijuana. That evening Ruth got high in her family’s tool shed.

Read the rest of this chapter summary HERE.

Memorable Quotes:

Susie: The odd thing about Earth was what we saw when we looked down. Besides the initial view that you might expect, the old ants-from-the-skyscraper phenomenon, there were souls leaving bodies all over the world. (Page 40)

Susie: When I streaked by her, my hand leapt out to touch her, touch the last face, feel the last connection to Earth in this not-so-standard-issue teenage girl. (Page 41)

Susie: “I can’t help thinking of my mother,” I said.
Franny took my left hand in both of hers and smiled.
I wanted to kiss her lightly on the cheek or have her hold me, but instead I watched her walk off in front of me, saw her blue dress trail away. I knew that she was not my mother; I could not play pretend. (Page 46)

Susie: “Ocean Eyes,” my father called her when he wanted one of her chocolate-covered cherries, which she kept hidden in the liquor cabinet as her private treat. And now I understood the name. I had thought it was because they were blue, but now I saw it was because they were bottomless in a way that I found frightening. (Page 48)

Susie: She had seen the photos right after. My mother looking tired but smiling. My mother and Holiday standing in front of the dogwood tree as the sun shot through her robe and gown. But I had wanted to be the only one in the house that knew my mother was also someone else – someone mysterious and unknown to us.” (Page 50)

Jack Salmon: “You are so special to me, little man,” my father said, clinging to him.
Susie: Buckley drew back and stared at my father’s creased face, the fine bright spots of tears at the corners of his eyes. He nodded seriously and kissed my father’s cheek. Something so divine that no one up in heaven could have made it up; the care a child took with an adult. (Page 53)

Susie: My father draped the sheets around Buckley’s shoulders and remembered how I would fall out of the hall four-poster bed and onto the rug, never waking up. (Page 53)

Susie: I watched my brother and my father. The truth was very different from what we learned in school. The truth was that the line between the living and the dead could be, it seemed, murky and blurred. (Page 54)

Questions for discussion:

What do you think about the way Ruth reacted to Susie touching her? Do you think that was a normal reaction or a testament to how different Ruth is from others?

Now that Susie has accidently communicated with her father, do you think she’s going to try and do it again with him or others?

Do you think that Susie’s little brother Buckley understands anything that is going on?

Read and discuss more HERE.

The Lovely Bones by Alice Sebold
Chapter 2
Written by Katlyn
Edited by Krystal

When Susie first entered heaven she thought everyone saw the same thing she did. In her heaven the buildings all looked like they were built in the 1960’s and had orange and turquoise blocks, just like Fairfax High. She recalled when her father drive past Fairfax High so she could imagine herself there. She would rule Fairfax a queen, but still be nice. Her dreams on Earth were simple ones.

After a few days in Heaven, Susie began to realize that the other people only appeared in the part of her heaven they shared and she soon met Holly, her roommate. They became friends immediately and created their own heavens together with the help of Franny. They created a duplex and ways to entertain them, but Susie couldn’t have the one thing she wanted, Mr. Harvey dead and her alive. She thought that if she watched Earth and willed it hard enough, she might change the lives of those she cared about.

Her father was the one who accepted the call on December ninth from Len Fenerman learning of Susie’s elbow. Of course, nothing was certain. At least that’s what he told Abigail. For three nights her parents didn’t go near each other as they broke down together. Then one night Abigail burst into tears and Susie’s father held her close as they fell asleep. Susie turned her eyes to the cornfield.

Read the rest of this chapter summary HERE.

Memorable Quotes:

Susie: Following the seventh, eighth and ninth grades of middle school, high school would have been a fresh start. (Page 17)

Susie: I had to forget that I too had made lists in the margins of my notebook when Phoebe walked by: Winniebagos, Hoo-has, Johnny Yellows. (Page 18)

Susie: We had been givem in our heavens, our simplest dreams. There were no teachers in the school. We never had to go inside except for art class for me and jazz band for Holly. The boys did not pinch our backsides or tell us we smelled; our textbooks were Seventeen and Glamour and Vogue. (Page 19)

Franny: “Walk the paths,” Franny said, “and you’ll find what you need.”
Susie: So that’s when Holly and I set out. Our heaven had an ice cream shop where, when you asked for peppermint stick ice cream, no one ever said, “It’s seasonal”; it had a newspaper where our pictures appeared a lot and made us look important; it had real men in it and beautiful women too, because Holly and I were devoted to fashion magazines. (Page 21)

Jack Salmon: “So you can’t be certain that she’s dead?” he asked.
Len Fenerman: “Nothing is ever certain,” Len Fenerman said.
Jack Salmon: That was the line my father said to my mother: “Nothing is ever certain.” (Page 22)

Lindsey: “Dad, I want you to tell me what it was. Which body part, and then I’m going to need to throw up.” (Page 24)

Lindsey: Inside, my sister’s heart closed like a fist. “I’d say it would be pretty hard to play soccer on the soccer field when it’s approximately twenty feet from where my sister was supposedly murdered.”
Susie: Score! (Page 36)

Questions for discussion:

How do you think Susie’s family is going to cope with the loss of their daughter and how do you think she can help them?

How do you feel about the way Lindsey is dealing with her grief? Do you think she is going to break down or stay solid as a rock?

Is there anything else in this chapter you’d like to discuss with the book club?

Read and discuss more HERE.

The Lovely Bones by Alice Sebold
Chapter 1
Written by Katlyn
Edited by Krystal

Susie Salmon was only fourteen when she died on December 6, 1973. Her murderer was a man by the name of Mr. Harvey, a neighbor who’s flowers Susie’s mother loved and father had talked to about fertilizer. Susie had taken a shortcut through the cornfields from her junior high when Mr. Harvey startled her. He’d built something nearby that he wanted to show her and calls her by her name. Looking back on it Susie assumed that her father must have told Mr. Harvey one of those embarrassing stories about how she had tried to pee on her younger sister after she’d been born. As it turned out, her father had not told him her name, for some days later he would give his condolences to Susie’s mother and ask what her name was.

Mr. Harvey said it would only take a minute, so Susie followed him through the field into his ‘hiding place’ nearby. Her curiosity got the better of her and he watched as she explored the place. Susie made note of her surroundings and how strange it was he had a mirror and shaving supplies down there, but her father simply said men like that were “a character.” Of course, by the time a dog brought home her elbow attached to a cornhusk it was clear that Mr. Harvey was no character.

Read the rest of this chapter summary HERE.

Memorable Quotes:

Susie: My name was Salmon, like the fish; first name Susie. I was fourteen when I was murdered on December 6, 1973. (Page 5)

Susie: I chose it both because it expressed my contempt for my structured surroundings a la the classroom and because, not being some dopy quote from a rock group, I thought it marked me as a literary. (Page 5)

Susie: “I’m sort of cold, Mr. Harvey,” I said, “and my mom likes me home before dark.”
Mr. Harvey: “It’s after dark, Susie,” he said.
Susie: I wish now that I had known this was weird. I had never told him my name. (Page 7)

Mr. Salmon: “Spunk!” my father would say. “Let me tell you about spunk,” and he would launch immediately into his Susie-peed-on-Lindsey story. (Page

Franny: “Like taking candy from a baby,” Franny said. (Page 10)

Susie: But I guess I figured that a man who had a perfectly good split-level and then built an underground room only half a mile away had to be kind of loo-loo. My father had a nice way of describing people like him: “The man’s a character, that’s all.” (Page 11)

Susie: Clarissa called his large eyes, with their half-closed lids, “freak-a-delic,” but he was nice and smart and helped me cheat on my algebra exam while pretending he hadn’t. He kissed me by my locker the day before we turned in out photos for the yearbook. When the yearbook came out at the end of the summer, I saw that under his picture he had answered the standard “My heart belongs to” with “Susie Salmon.” I guess he had had plans. (Page 14)

Mr. Harvey: “Tell me you love me,” he said.
Susie: Gently, I did.
The end came anyway.

Questions for discussion:

How strange is it to not only start a book with the protagonist’s murder, but also know who the killer is?

Why do you think Susie chooses to think about her family during her rape?

What type of setting or mood do you feel the author is evoking in this chapter?

Is there anything else you’d like to discuss with the book club?

Read and discuss more HERE.

Sixteen-year old Cassie Renfield has seen the mark since forever: a glow around certain people as if a candle were held behind their back.

The one time she pointed it out taught her not to do it again, so Cassie has kept quiet, considering its rare appearances odd, but insignificant. Until the day she watches a man die. Mining her memories, Cassie realizes she can see a person’s imminent death. Not how or where, only when: today.

Cassie searches her past, her philosophy lessons, even her new boyfriend for answers, always careful to hide her secret. How does the mark work? Why her?

Most importantly, if you know today is someone’s last, should you tell?

Source: Jen Nadol’s website

A little bit about Jen: I grew up in Reading, Pennsylvania, hometown of Taylor Swift, John Updike and A.S. King.

THE MARK is my first novel.

OBS: How did you come up with the story for The Mark?
Jen: I had written another book which, in hindsight, was terrible. I was ready to shelve it and try again, but didn’t have anything specific in mind to write about. I was mentally sifting through possibilities, looking for something interesting, and the idea just came: what if you knew it was someone’s day to die? Right away, I could see some of the conflicts and scenes that would play out. It sounded like something I’d read so I decided to give it a go.

OBS: Do you have any advice for those who want to become writers?
Jen: Write a lot. Even when you don’t really feel like it. Even if you think what you’re writing is lousy. I think good writers have a little talent, but a lot more practice, patience and discipline. This is an art that can definitely be learned and something that I think you get exponentially better at the more you do it.

OBS: Who are your literary influences?
Jen: Definitely Stephen King. I loved his books growing up and still re-read my favorites regularly. Most of his books are very much “real world”, but with a paranormal element thrown in, just the kind of stories I write. There are probably a thousand other writers who’ve taught me something in their books, but he’s one I can really single out.

OBS: How did you develop your characters? Did you base your characters attributes on people you know?
Jen: I don’t. People ask this a lot, but my characters truly are fictional. I wouldn’t even say they’re composites of people I know or have known. When I’m thinking about the role a particular character will play in the story, I start to get a mental picture of them and a feel for the way they act. It’s kind of an ephemeral process, I guess. They form from who I need them to be for the story to go where I want it to go.

OBS: Who was the toughest character to write? Who was the most fun?
Jen: Lucas was probably the toughest because he went through a number of changes as the story got edited. I loved writing Cassie since we really get inside her head, but Petra was probably the most fun and the easiest.

OBS: What inspired you to leave the “corporate world” and become a full-time writer?
Jen: I actually left to stay home with my first son when he was born. I’d had a job of some sort since I was fourteen, so having that “working” part of my identity just disappear was kind of a shock. I decided to really try to write, something I’d always “meant” to do. It ended up the perfect outlet and, even if I’d never gotten published, I know I would have been glad that I gave it a shot.

OBS: Do you have a specific process for writing? Outlines, free writing, etc.?
Jen: There are usually a few key scenes that come to me early on when I’m starting a book so I write those first. It’s almost always the beginning and the end, then two or three important things in the middle. When I write them initially, they might not even be a complete scene, just some key dialogue – internal or with another character – or description. What’s important is starting to get the voice and feel of the story on paper. It’s kind of a random process. As more things come to me – a line of dialogue, an important story element or scene – I’ll write them or, if I’m pressed for time, jot a quick sentence or two describing what has to happen. When I’ve collected enough that I understand the story arc and main characters and subplots, then I start working on it chronologically, from page one, until I’ve got a first draft. All of this takes about a year. Then, the edits begin…

OBS: Do you have plans to writing a sequel to The Mark?
Jen: Yes, there’s a completed sequel that Bloomsbury’s just acquired. We’re starting edits now and I think it will probably come out in 2011.

OBS: What kind of research went into The Mark?
Jen: I read a lot of philosophy. Way more than made it into the book. For the medical stuff, I consulted with my mom who’s a nurse and a friend who’s a psychologist. And I did some reading about some other things that it’d be a spoiler to elaborate on.

OBS:Did you have any musical or literary influences while writing The Mark?
Jen: Nothing musical, but I did have an a-ha moment reading Lisa McMann’s: WAKE (her ears have GOT to be ringing, I’ve told this to so many people). It was in the middle of my final round of edits and my editor had asked me to try to “tighten up” the writing a bit more. I thought I understood what she meant…and then I read WAKE. It was a huge eye-opener. Lisa McMann’s writing is so clean and tight – I finally understood exactly what my editor was getting at.

OBS: What would you do with Cassie’s power?
Jen: Probably exactly what she does.

OBS: What would you do if today was your last day?
Jen: I’d write a letter to each of the people who are important to me. Then, I’d spend every last second of it with my kids.

OBS: What is one thing you would like your fans to know about you and your book?
Jen: I’ve always been a huge book-lover, but having a book out there has put me in touch with so many amazing people – bloggers, writers, librarians, publishing folk, book sellers. I’m thankful to be part of a community of people so enthusiastic about books and reading and thrilled to have a book to pitch into the pot for enjoyment (hopefully!), discussion, debate…whatever!

Thanks Jen for the awesome interview and telling us more about your book. I absolutely love the concept and the tag line on your book cover made me want to read it immediately. Want to chat with Jen? Check out the links below.

Check out Jen’s website here:
jennadolbooks.com

And even more on her Facebook here:
www.facebook.com/jennadol

You can also Twitter with Jen about The Mark here:
twitter.com/jennadol

Also don’t forget her blog here:
www.jennadolbooks.com/blog/

Percy Jackson & the Olympians: The Lightning Thief by Rick Riordan
Chapter 2: Three Old Ladies Knit the Socks of Death
Written by Krystal

Percy was used to unusual things happening to him, but the prolonged period of Mrs. Dodds nonexistence was beginning to wear on him. He almost began to believe that Mrs. Kerr had indeed been their pre-algebra teacher since Christmas. He hadn’t had much time to think about what had happened during the day, but at night Mrs. Dodds haunted his nightmares. The strange weather had continued and made Percy cranky, causing him to get into more fights with Nancy. When his grades began to suffer and Percy snapped, the headmaster sent a letter to Mrs. Jackson informing that he would not be welcome back next year. Of course Percy was happy to be going home, but he’d miss Grover and Latin class, and as exams approached it was the only class he cared about anymore.

Read the rest of the summary HERE.

Memorable Quotes:

Percy: Every so often would spring a Mrs. Dodds reference on somebody, just to see if I could trip them up, but they would stare at me like I was psycho. (Page 16)

Mr. Brunner: “Will have to be resolved without him, Grover. Let him enjoy his ignorance while he still can.” (Page 19)

Percy: The only person I dreaded saying good-bye to was Grover, but as it turned out, I didn’t have to. He’d booked a ticket to Manhattan on the same Greyhound as I had, so there we were, together again, heading into the city. (Page 23)

Percy: There were no customers, just three old ladies sitting in rocking chairs in the shade of a maple tree, knitting the biggest pair of socks I’d ever seen. (Page 25)

Grover: “Tell me they’re not looking at you. They are, aren’t they?”
Percy: “Yeah. Weird, huh? You think those socks would fit me?”
Grover: “Not funny, Percy. Not funny at all.” (Page 26)

Questions for discussion:

Why do you think Grover panicked the minute he saw the three old women and what does the snipping of the yarn represent?

Read and discuss more HERE.

Today we bring you the book that inspired the Robin Williams visually beautiful film, What Dreams May Come. If you liked the movie then you’ll love this book, which has everything and more. A true tale of soul mates and life after death, this book is a definite read.

Brought by OBS staff member Katlyn

Summary
This book is a manuscript written to Robert, brother of our main character Chris. Chris died in an automobile accident leaving his wife and four children behind to mourn his death. This manuscript is a retelling from Chris to a psychic about his experiences of life after death.

At first Chris is very confused and follows his family around until he realizes that he is dead and then journeys to a placed called Summerland, “heaven”, where he meets Albert, his guardian angel. Albert explains Summerland and the capabilities of the mind in this new place. As Chris is exploring Summerland, his wife Ann is never out of his mind, he is constantly wondering when he will see his soulmate again.

Although bad dreams not normally present in Summerland, Chris realizes Annie’s unwillingness to live without him when she ultimately ends her life too soon. Albert explains that Ann will stay the next twenty-four years in another “level” below Summerland which can only be described as the dark depths of Hell. This will not do though, and Chris travel’s to the pits of hell to try and save the woman he loves.

Review
This amazing book takes you on a journey that is so unexpected and exciting. Life after death can be one of the scariest concepts to wrap your head around because no one knows. It is inevitable yet we spend most of our lives fighting it.

It was interesting to read about many theories all put into one cohesive book that makes it so possible its very eerie. Through much research, Richard Matheson takes you on his journey of discovering what everyone wants to know, what happens after we die?

Richard also delves into the explanation of soul mates which is another greatly explored subject in the book. The main character, Chris (recently deceased) and wife Ann are determined by the higher powers to actually be “soul mates”. This makes matters complicated when Ann can no longer live in a world where her other half does not exist. Chris never waivers in his determination to be with Ann again which makes this a heartbreaking tale of love lost. But after the journey has ended, it leaves great hope that life does go on, just not as you think it may.

Also be sure to check out the review for the movie adaptation of this novel here.