Review: The Five People You Meet In Heaven By Mitch Albom

From the author of the phenomenal #1 New York Times bestseller Tuesdays with Morrie, a novel that explores the unexpected connections of our lives, and the idea that heaven is more than a place; it's an answer.

Eddie is a wounded war veteran, an old man who has lived, in his mind, an uninspired life. His job is fixing rides at a seaside amusement park. On his 83rd birthday, a tragic accident kills him as he tries to save a little girl from a falling cart. He awakes in the afterlife, where he learns that heaven is not a destination. It's a place where your life is explained to you by five people, some of whom you knew, others who may have been strangers. One by one, from childhood to soldier to old age, Eddie's five people revisit their connections to him on earth, illuminating the mysteries of his "meaningless" life, and revealing the haunting secret behind the eternal question: "Why was I here?"
(Provided By GoodReads)

Would you want your life explained? After you lived, would you die happily without a question?
Eddie has died. Tragically or heroically? At 83, Eddie does not believe in anything anymore, bitter and crippled with the memories of his past, he believes his life was a waste. When it's his turn in heaven, there are five people that he meets that help explain why certain things in his life happened. The story takes you, and Eddie, on a journey of discovery and life appreciation.

I picked up this book a while ago (more like years ago) and didn't read-read it till this week. It is quite straightforward, nothing too complicated to understand which makes it so easy to read and enjoy!  Eddie's character the entire time in my head, reminded me a lot of Carl Fredricksen from the Disney Pixar movie 'UP'. Now, for those who have watched the movie you understand how devoted Carl was to his wife and that love never breaks, no matter the distance or worlds between them. Eddie is the same way with his wife and it adds such depth to this story! Not only does the story explore the relationship between Eddie and his wife but his parents to. The struggles of growing up with a loving parent and a really hardass one is shown perfectly, in my opinion, because nothing is held back. Not even when the story takes you to the time when Eddie's war-friend was shot directly in the ear by enemy soldiers.

It was a heart breaking novel! Not in the tragic love story way, but the 'move-you-in-life-changing' way. The book shows the darkest moments of comradeship, parenting, and self-discovery. Eddie gets a chance to learn about his own life and see moments that have changed his life forever from a different point of view. In the end, he finds solace within himself and is finally set free from the blackness that's been tearing him apart. No matter who you are, or what type of person you are, there is something EVERYONE can learn in this book, moments where you find yourself reflecting on the moves you've taken so far in life!

I give this book

Mitch Albom, you write beautiful books ;)

Have you read The Five People You Meet In Heaven before? Let me know your thoughts on the book down below in the comments. Maybe we can have a tête-à-tête about this dear book =) ?

As Always,

HAPPY READING

-Sherry Lay