Mitch Albom’s The Five People you meet in heaven – Book Review
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It was the second book of this year. I wasn't unaware
of the writer Mitch Albom as I already read and was impressed by his book
"Tuesdays with Morrie". I picked up this book to read because I
burrowed a book "The Next Person You Meet in Heaven" by the same
author which appeared to be the sequel of this book.
About the Novel
This book is about a man named Edward, fondly
called, Eddie who worked as a mechanic in Ruby Pier. As a mechanic, he
is responsible for greasing the tracks, checking the levers or breaks, or maintenance-related
activities of the swings. This amusement park is situated at the beach and many
people go there with their kids to enjoy different rides. Unfortunately, Eddie
dies due to a technical failure in a ride while saving a girl.
He then finds himself in heaven. The first person whom
he meets is the "Blue Man", Joseph Corvelzchik
whose body turned blue due to the intake of silver nitrate. On enquiring
further, he reveals that he's the reason for his death on the beach, and makes
him realize that every incident in life is related to another. Before leaving,
he gives the hint that he's going to meet the rest of the four people.
The next person that he meets is the captain
who was his commanding officer in the war of which Eddie was a part. While being kept as a prisoner of war in one
of the forced labor camps in the Philippines, he burned it along with his other
comrades, but Eddie couldn't follow the shadow that he suspected to be of
someone in that camp while the captain shot his leg.
The next person was Ruby whose husband Emile
built the amusement park and named it Ruby Pier. She narrated the
real cause of the death of his father as his husband shared the same hospital
room as that of his father and knowing about his father as an employee of Ruby
Pier saddened her. She asked Eddie to forgive his father.
The fourth person he met was his wife, Marguerite
for whom his love was profound. She said that love is never lost in death but
carried on further to take other forms.
The last person whom he met was the Filipina Girl, Tala
whom she couldn't recover in the labor camp during wartime. She asked her to
scrape off all the scars due to burn which Eddie did by dipping stone in the
water. On asking her if he could save that girl during the accident, she said
that he was able to push her away.
In the end, it's shown that Eddie meets his wife
Marguerite in his heaven, Stardust Band Shell.
My views:
I loved the concept of this novel and can't wait to
read its sequel, “The next person you meet in Heaven". The narrative was
simple and captivating. I was so amused to find every little detail in each
scene. I find it a page-turner and full of philosophies in the form of wise
thoughts. At the end of the book, in the acknowledgment section, I was thrilled
to find that Eddie was the name of the uncle of the author.
I rate this book as 4.5/5 and would recommend it to
the readers.
All Rights
Reserved
Swati
Sarangi
28.04.2024
P.S: This post is a part of #BlogChatterA2Z 2024Challenge for Alphabet ‘M’
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