the five people you meet in heaven

Book by Mitch Albom

Review by Christine Antonios

Albom's book is an interesting read and could have even some of the toughest critics crying by the end. The story begins with the death of the main character and follows his journey in heaven where he meets five people of the past. These five people teach him lessons that help explain his life. It is a moving life story told in an unusual way. In the end, we do not know everything about Eddie's (the main character) life, but we know the important events and emotions that made up his past. We learn bits and pieces and the frequent encounters with new characters keep us interested in Eddie's past as well as his future.

The five people that Eddie meets get more and more interesting although the themes of the book are fairly predictable and un-unique. Eddie has daddy issues and lost the love of his life too early. He feels like his life was meaningless and he has wasted it on a job he never liked. Early on, the reader realizes that these issues will be solved before the book is over but that does not leave the book predictable. Although I was never invested enough in the character to try and guess the outcome, there were a couple of noteworthy twists that keep the book alive. Certain truths are revealed about Eddie's time in the war and about Eddie's father that give the character a full life and are revealed in interesting ways. It was also interesting to see the progression of the lessons learned. The novel presents them as if the next lesson is more important than the previous, beginning with the importance of life itself and leading to sacrifice, love, etc.

As one reads the book, however, there is little left for the reader or the character to figure out on their own. Each lesson is fully explained by these five people and (perhaps this is a benefit in heaven) but Eddie is never left to internalize the lesson and gradually change his mind about his life. Although each lesson is interesting, thorough and presented well, the reader does not have much to interpret. In the end, the most moving part is as Eddie remembers his wife's death and last two people Eddie meets in heaven make it a worthy tearjerker.