The Lisbon Bunch

By Jennifer Makowsky

Purposefully ending one's life is often seen as a last act of personal desperation. But in Jefferey Eugenides' poignant, bewitching novel, it may actually be a form of salvation. [14 June 2007]

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The Virgin Suicides (1999)

By Todd R. Ramlow

And yet, for its many pleasures, I find myself conflicted in thinking about The Virgin Suicides. [1 January 1995]

The Virgin Suicides (1999)

By Cynthia Fuchs

It's hardly a new idea, to read into adolescent girls' suicide something poetic, passionate, and deeply meaningful. Neither is it a secret that countless girls have admired Sylvia Plath and Anne Sexton, Joni Mitchell and Tracy Chapman, seeing in their wounded and inviolate art reflections of themselves, their own pain and enchantment.