The Lovely Bones Character Overview

The main character in the novel The Lovely Bones, a fourteen year old girl named Susie Salmon, affects almost all of the characters by her actions or by her presence both in the other characters’ lives and in proximity.  One example of Susie’s actions that affect other characters, in this case her mom, dad, little sister and little brother, is her poor choice to follow her neighbor into the cornfield to see the fort he supposedly build for all the neighborhood children.  Susie’s actions here cause her to be late for dinner, which nearly sends her parents into panic attacks.  They were so worried about her that they called the police and barely slept until they reported any evidence to them.  When her family found out that she was dead, the news put her whole family into a deep depression and a state of shock.  This state of depression and shock is mostly seen in Susie’s father, who would lock himself in his study every day after Susie’s death.  Her mother was equally depressed, but handled it in a different way; she had an affair with the chief detective who was working on Susie’s murder case then left her husband and living children out of guilt for her actions.  Susie’s little sister, Lindsey, and Susie’s little brother, Buckley, were affected by both Susie’s actions and by their mother’s actions and had to take care of their heartbroken father.  Their mother’s actions also affected Lindsey and Buckley’s grandmother, who moved into their house after their mother left to help take care of them and their father.  That is how the main character’s actions affect other people in The Lovely Bones.