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Search - Lucky
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Book Description:
Enormously visceral, emotionally gripping, and imbued with the belief that justice is possible even after the most horrific of crimes, Alice Sebold's compelling memoir of her rape at the age of eighteen is a story that takes hold of you and won't let go.
Sebold fulfills a promise that she made to herself in the very tunnel where she was raped: someday she would write a book about her experience. With Lucky she delivers on that promise with mordant wit and an eye for life's absurdities, as she describes what she was like both as a young girl before the rape and how that rape changed but did not sink the woman she later became.
It is Alice's indomitable spirit that we come to know in these pages. The same young woman who sets her sights on becoming an Ethel Merman-style diva one day (despite her braces, bad complexion, and extra weight) encounters what is still thought of today as the crime from which no woman can ever really recover. In an account that is at once heartrending and hilarious, we see Alice's spirit prevail as she struggles to have a normal college experience in the aftermath of this harrowing, life-changing event.
No less gripping is the almost unbelievable role that coincidence plays in the unfolding of Sebold's narrative. Her case, placed in the inactive file, is miraculously opened again six months later when she sees her rapist on the street. This begins the long road to what dominates these pages: the struggle for triumph and understanding -- in the courtroom and outside in the world.
Lucky is, quite simply, a real-life thriller. In its literary style and narrative tension we never lose sight of why this life story is worth reading. At the end we are left standing in the wake of devastating violence, and, like the writer, we have come to know what it means to survive.
Sebold fulfills a promise that she made to herself in the very tunnel where she was raped: someday she would write a book about her experience. With Lucky she delivers on that promise with mordant wit and an eye for life's absurdities, as she describes what she was like both as a young girl before the rape and how that rape changed but did not sink the woman she later became.
It is Alice's indomitable spirit that we come to know in these pages. The same young woman who sets her sights on becoming an Ethel Merman-style diva one day (despite her braces, bad complexion, and extra weight) encounters what is still thought of today as the crime from which no woman can ever really recover. In an account that is at once heartrending and hilarious, we see Alice's spirit prevail as she struggles to have a normal college experience in the aftermath of this harrowing, life-changing event.
No less gripping is the almost unbelievable role that coincidence plays in the unfolding of Sebold's narrative. Her case, placed in the inactive file, is miraculously opened again six months later when she sees her rapist on the street. This begins the long road to what dominates these pages: the struggle for triumph and understanding -- in the courtroom and outside in the world.
Lucky is, quite simply, a real-life thriller. In its literary style and narrative tension we never lose sight of why this life story is worth reading. At the end we are left standing in the wake of devastating violence, and, like the writer, we have come to know what it means to survive.
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Other Versions of this Book: Hardcover, Audio Cassette, Audio CD (Unabridged)
Top Member Reviews
A. J. C. (
14 member(s) found this review helpful.
This book was so intense that I had to take breaks from reading it due to the realness of the subject matter. I can't imagine having gone through what Alice went through and then being OK psychologically. As it turned out, Alice wasn't as OK as she thought she was, as evidenced by her later drug use and other behaviors. I read the NPR transcript of her conversation with Terry Gross on 'Fresh Air' at the end of the novel and I liked what she had to say about therapeutic writing, that writing can be therapeutic, but that therapeutic writing shouldn't be published. I think I agree with that statement. I'm sure many memoirs are written as a form of therapy, but in Alice's case, her memoir came to be after she reached a point where she was OK. As she stated, reading her journals about how she felt after the rape after all those years was "mind-blowing" and made her realize that she "did OK." I also liked what she had to say about being able to find compassion for the man that raped her, that just because you can't forgive someone for what they've done to you, doesn't mean you can't find compassion for them.
11 member(s) found this review helpful.
I read The Lovely Bones and it is a favorite of mine. This book is a totally frank account of how the author's rape impacted her life. I think it was a courageous book for her to write and share her story with us.I am going to insist my 19 yr old college freshman read this.
Marci G. (
8 member(s) found this review helpful.
Riveting true account of the author's experience after being raped at 18. Truthful and compelling, it is difficult to imagine how she was able to write it down.
Mina K. from JAMAICA PLAIN, MA wrote on 5/1/2007...
7 member(s) found this review helpful.
Alice Sebold is very brave and courageous to write something so personal. A brilliant book about how she survived rape and the pursuit of justice. I couldn't put it down.
7 member(s) found this review helpful.
An absolutely brilliant account of surviving rape, an indictment of the efficient legal system, and a critical look at the work of advocates that are part of Rape Crisis programs.
6 member(s) found this review helpful.
A sad and harrowing tale of the author's rape and ensuing trial. Very honest and upfront.
Santos G. from SAN DIEGO, CA wrote on 2/11/2007...
6 member(s) found this review helpful.
This is the most powerful book I've ever read. She conveyed the rawness of her ordeal in such an unflinching way, that it sent chills down my spine. She is an AMAZING writer and a courageous woman!!
Maureen C. (
5 member(s) found this review helpful.
A personal tale of the author's personal hell. Written by the author of The Lovely Bones, this book gives the chilling real life story of the author's survival...physically, mentally, and emotionally...of a brutal rape. Difficult to read at times...not because of the quality of Ms. Sebold's writing...it is superb... but because it is shocking in its truth and honesty. I lived in Syracuse, NY during my college years, so many of the places described are very real to me...a little too real for comfort at times.
I hope to read more from Alice Sebold in the future. She is indeed a gifted writer. Perhaps her literary talents have helped her to survive this ordeal. I highly recommend this book!
Joan S. from PITTSBURG, CA wrote on 3/21/2007...
5 member(s) found this review helpful.
emotionally charged yet an ingrossing read. Well worth reading even with the difficulty of the subject matter.
4 member(s) found this review helpful.
Wonderful read! Great honest story of a terriable event in her life that turned into years of trying in understand. I read her novel first and loved it "Lovely Bones". The Memoir was very well writen it allows you to feel with her. Highly recommened!
Rate These Member Reviews
Diane O. from ASHEVILLE, NC wrote on 10/3/2008...Good book on a difficult subject.
Brianna S. (After reading this book I am at a loss for words. It's a very important story to be told and I appreciate it, but the actual writing itself did not impress me.I agree with the other readers that Ms. Seabold is very brave to have written this and I first read the Lovely Bones last year. I enjoyed reading this and read through the last two thirds of the book today and I would definetly recommend it to my peers, but it's not a book I would like to keep on my shelf.
Julie M. from CAPE ELIZ, ME wrote on 2/28/2007...Brand new condition
Gruesome and strangely enchanting...A controlled and meticulous account...THe quiet achievement of Sebold's memoir of her rape as a college freshman is that she handles her subject with the integrity of a journalist and the care of a survivor-Newsday
JENNIFER M. from REGO PARK, NY wrote on 1/6/2007...Very deep, introspective memoir by the author of "The Lovely Bones," detailing the effects and aftermath of her rape when she was just 18 years old. I was highly engaged by this book and think it's amazing that the author was able to detail such an awful event with so much soul.
Excellent book! Told with honesty & courage.
Vanessa T. from ARCADIA, FL wrote on 12/28/2006...An excellent read, the author candidly takes you through her rape and the process which followed. Sebold is honest and is able to communicate the ramifications of this life changing event, even with the appropriate ironic humor.
Sandi B. from GILBERT, AZ wrote on 12/27/2006...A great book...very moving!
The true story of the author's rape. The author also wrote The Lovely Bones. A great read.
Whitney B. (Painfully detailed - emotionally hard to read for the subject matter but well written.