Welcome back somebody groovy/midnight voyage,
I agree with your post; but, I was struck by what a great job the book does removing Sharon from the context of her death. Nothing epitomizes this more than the last pictures of Debra and Sharon at the Cielo Drive house during the moon landing in July 1969--a scant two weeks before Sharon's death. The last close-up of Sharon on page 269 is actually cropped from a photo where soon-to-be co-victim Voytek Frykowski has his ear up to her very pregnant belly as if listening for the baby's heartbeat. While breathtakingly poignant, the inclusion of Frykowski would have had the effect of jamming the stereo on "10" whilst in a peaceful, meditative state, bringing the crimes back to center stage. Instead, I totally forgot about the murders and just vicariously enjoyed the exciting life of a sweet, luminous soul.
Here's a link to the original image:
http://www.pinterest.com/pin/513903007450858665/By the way, I really like Michelle's stream-of-consciousness remembrance of her friend.
take care,
jcg