The Lovely Bones

"My murderer didn't understand how much a father could love his child."

Every time I see the trailer for The Lovely Bones, the above line makes me choke up a bit.

I read The Lovely Bones when it first came out in 2002. I know - especially from reading some reviews online - that it is one of those love it or hate it books, but I truly loved it.

I don't know if I'll see it in the theater (I'm lucky if I see two movies in the theater per year) but I'm looking forward to this movie, especially since Peter Jackson directed it.

I was impressed with the interview I read in Entertainment Weekly, where Jackson said he chose to NOT depict the horrific rape and dismemberment of Susie Salmon in the film.

The way I see it, a book leaves the reader with both the expanse and limits of his/her imagination. No one needs to see on film what was described in the book. While not upset with Alice Sebold for what she wrote on paper, again I say, no one needs to see that depicted. In fact, as I read in the EW article, many of the crew walked out during test shots of the horrific scene before it was cut.

Not a big fan of Saoirse Ronan, but I LOVE Rachel Weisz and Mark Wahlberg. Let's hope it doesn't turn out to be a stinker.

I highly recommend reading both The Lovely Bones and Lucky, which recounts the true story of Alice Sebold's rape and the aftermath of said rape whilst she attended Syracuse University.

Lucky is powerful, raw and poignant - almost like the author decided to come clean after successfully publishing a fictional tale much like what she herself survived.