The Lovely Bones Chapter 22 Summary

How It All Goes Down

  • Ruth goes up to heaven, and Susie goes into Ruth's body. While Ray helps is helping Susie up, the people in heaven are throwing flowers at Ruth.
  • Susie tells Ray to kiss her and he does, even though he knows Ruth doesn't seem like herself.
  • She tells him to take her over to Hal's bike shop, which is closed right now. After kissing her again he drives her across the tracks to the shop.
  • At the bike shop, Ray realizes that Susie is in Ruth's body. They make love and fall asleep.
  • Susie wakes at sunset and then wakes Ray.
  • She tells him that the dead are among the living, and that he can talk to her anytime he wants.
  • She tells him to read Ruth's journals.
  • Susie feels that her time in Ruth's body is coming to a close. She tells Ray she probably won't be able to come again.
  • Then she calls home. Buckley answers the phone. She tells him it's her, but he can't hear her.
  • She realizes that she's out of Ruth's body and Ruth is back in it.