a wonderful, heartwarming read! (The Five People You Meet in Heaven - Mitch Albom)

Member Name: sun-is-shining

Product:	The Five People You Meet in Heaven - Mitch Albom
Date:	27/05/09 (24 review reads)
Rating:

Advantages: original story, believable characters, a book to read in one go

Disadvantages: maybe not suitable for younger children

I know that there are already quite a view reviews about 'the five people you meet in heaven' but I really have to share my love for this book and my respect for the writer with you.

Mitch Albom manages to create a story full of heart, passion, love and hope. Thinking about it's more about hope than anything else. The characters and their stories are believable - who of us doesn't sometimes feel that work is just day after day after day the same, or that we can't relate enough with our parents and who hasn't lost something/someone he loved?

The meaning of our own life is the one thing we'll never fully understand - how great would it be if you could have explained all these little mysteries by people that affected your life?

That is exactly what happens in 'The five people you meet in heaven'. I try my best to tell you about the story without spoiling it too much.

The stories starts with the somewhat violent and curious death of the main character Eddie - he maintained the rides on Ruby's Pier for all his life and dies saving a young girl who was stuck under a faulty ride. Eddie dies without knowing whether he saved her or not.

What normally would be the end of the story is her merely the beginning. Eddie finds himself in heaven - but not heaven as he imagined it! I'm not going to reveal too much but this is basically what happens:

He meets 5 people - 5 people that either knowingly or not knowingly influenced his life or whose life was influenced by Eddie. Each of them teaches him an important lesson on the way to understand his life. Some of these lessons are painful, others bring relief and some even bring joy.


This is a book that deeply moved me and I have to admit that I cried while reading for the first time - as well as for the second time. The style of writing is beautiful, easy to understand for everyone. The story is comprehensible and all the introduced characters are believable - one just has to feel with Eddie as he travels through his life and begins to understand WHAT actually happened and what the meaning of these things were.

Some people think that it could be longer but in my opinion it's perfect. The story is conclusive, there are no gaps and everything is just spot on. A writer that can create such a hearth warming story on just 100 pages just earns respect!

One 'negative' thing: It could be a bit upsetting for younger children as it deals with violent death and war memories.

Summary: I read this book in one go and wanted to start reading it again immediately afterwards.