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Susie is 14 years old when she is raped, murdered, and dismembered by her neighbor, George Harvey. After her death, Susie witnesses the world moving on without her from heaven and laments being robbed of the opportunity to grow up. To metaphorically grow up and reach “wide wide Heaven,” Susie must release the tethers to life that restrain her: a lack of acceptance that she was robbed of being allowed to grow up, and her fear of intimacy.
Susie recalls wanting to be a photographer. That dream was denied when she was killed, so her lens becomes her perspective from heaven, and she reveals her family’s story through snapshots. Early after her death, Susie recalls an image of her mother, Abigail, that she had captured with the camera she received for her birthday. Sitting alone and unaware that she was being observed, Abigail looks utterly unlike Susie’s mother. Susie realizes her mother has different dimensions, and though Abigail’s affair with Len hurts Susie for her father’s sake, she equally wants her mother to find happiness and sanctuary in herself. Abigail’s journey parallels Susie’s in that it’s only when Abigail returns from California, where she had fled to in order to evade her grief, that she realizes grief is inevitable and will persist no matter where she is. Both Abigail and Susie learn to accept where they are, in life and in death.
In addition to accepting her situation, Susie must also overcome her fears. At the time of her murder, Susie’s only kiss had been with a classmate named Ray Singh. Susie closely watches the romances of those around her and observes Lindsey’s budding and maturing love with Samuel closely. Even as she supports Lindsey, Susie aches for her own experience. She also sees Ray experiment with kissing fellow classmate Ruth Connors. Because Ruth can sense the dead, she and Susie share a special bond. Later, Ruth becomes a conduit for Susie to experience physical love with Ray. This allows Susie to release her fear of sex and to know love and security in the confines of that most intimate connection.
By passing through these barriers, Susie gains access to “wide wide Heaven,” where she finds contentment and complete understanding. Though her murderer, Harvey, is never caught, there’s poetic justice in his death, which helps Susie come to terms with the feelings of injustice caused by her murder.
