The Lovely Bones Themes

The Lovely Bones is a 2002 novel focused on the life, and afterlife, of 14-year-old Susie Salmon. Salmon recounts the story of her brutal rape and murder at the hands of her neighbour, and centres on the mourning process of her grief stricken family. Moreover, the 2013 film The Book Thief, follows the life of orphaned Liesel, living in Nazi Germany. The story is narrated by death, and details Liesel and her family’s resistance against the Nazi regime through the theft of burning books, and the sheltering of a Jewish boy. Throughout the texts, there are a variety of common themes explored, including those of the duality of humanity, death & what happens after we die, and the love between family, friends & romantic partners.