“In The Five People You Meet in Heaven, Mitch Albom gives us an astoundingly original story that will change everything you’ve ever thought about the afterlife — and the meaning of our lives here on earth. With a timeless tale, appealing to all, this is a book that readers of fine fiction, and those who loved Tuesdays with Morrie, will treasure.” – Description provided by Amazon.
After finishing ‘The Five People You Meet in Heaven’,, I am left wanting a deeper connection with the main character of Eddie. He is a developed character, and we truly understand who he is as a person and what his purpose and role in life was here on earth. I am left wanting more and I do think that if this book had been longer and told at a more medium pace we could have got that. This was the author’s debut work in the fiction category. It was published over 20 years ago and he has since come out with other books, but the fast pace is something that sticks through every book that I’ve read by the author, which is only a couple.
The use of senses was done in such a great way. It makes each experience with each of the five people unique and memorable in their own way. The atmosphere very much immerses you into the story. The writing style is thought-provoking therefore reflective and I cannot ask for anything else in that department, but as I keep saying, it is very fast and that often scares me when I think about the sticking power of this book. Am I absorbing all the info that I can get out of the book? There is so much wisdom in these pages that I’m scared it’s not going to stick because it went by so quickly. I did read this in the physical format and that is what I would recommend.
The tone does come across as preachy. It’s very all the nose and the author isn’t leaving a lot of room for you to come up with your own thoughts and ideas. Therefore it feels like the author doesn’t trust the reader. I was left feeling like I should have gotten more out of the story. I have that feeling because I didn’t get to think for myself. I had everything put on a plate in front of me. Overall with the themes of what is heaven? What comes next? What do we get out of life on earth? What is our purpose? I do think all of that was done in such a unique way that I would’ve never come up with personally and I’ve never seen anybody else do it in such a way. It made me feel so seen with some of my own thoughts with my own spiritual journey. This is a book that really anybody of any religion can read and still get something out of and I think that’s very moving and important that it doesn’t discriminate in that way because most if not all religions do have some kind of take on the afterlife and what comes next.
Some of the main plot points were predictable, but I still felt satisfied by the end of the story. Speaking of the end, the last 20 pages felt like a horror movie and I had no idea what was going to come next. However, the logic in this book is done so perfectly. It’s like an aha moment when you really have it all wrapped together and get an understanding of the character and his life. This was a good book, but I am worried about these sticking powers, but I do think this is one that you should revisit every so often and your life and maybe you’ll get something different out of it each time.
3.5 out of 5 stars.
Izzy Reads 