After being brutally murdered, 14-year-old Susie Salmon watches from heaven over her grief-stricken family — and her killer. As she observes their daily lives, she must balance her thirst for revenge with her desire for her family to heal.

Suicidal poet Archy tries to end his life by jumping off a bridge, but awakens to find he has assumed the life of a cockroach and has become a part of a community of creatures living in a newspaper office. He also discovers that he can still write poetry, using a typewriter, and begins to enjoy his new life. Archy develops deep feelings for the lovely but self-destructive cat Mehitabel, but will have to fight to win her from bad-boy tomcat Bill.