This book is lovely. It gives breaks your heart in places, but it puts them all back together again by the end of the book.

Eddie is an octogenarian mechanic at an adventure theme park. He is in charge of all the rides, keeping them up-together and keeping the visitors safe. It is a job he fell into as a young man when his father died. His father had done the job for many years before him. Eddie has always resented the dead-end job he believed he was doing. He had planned to become and engineer and build things, but that all ended when his father fell ill.

One day, a car on the ferris wheel comes lose and falls to the ground. Seeing a young girl lying in its way, Eddie pushes her aside and saves her life, while at the same time, ending his.

But this is the beginning. The book shows us a possibility of what might happen when we die. Mitch Albom suggests there will be five people in between earth and Heaven, all of them waiting specifically for us so they can give us insight into our lives or specific incidents. They help us to understand our lives and show us how much more we were to many others than we imagined. It is kind of a cross between It’s A Wonderful Life and A Christmas Carol.

I won’t give away any spoilers, in case you want to read it. But, I will say that the book visits Eddie’s time in the war, his time at the fairground, his parents and relationship with them, and his wife. Gradually, he comes to understand the important people in his life. He learns that things didn’t always happen as he remembered them, and that there is always another side to every story.

The ending is perfect. The last person he meets before entering Heaven is not someone I would have guessed he would meet, but when he did, I got goosebumps. When the last moment of Eddie’s life becomes clear, I got goosebumps. It’s really well tied up.

This book left me thinking about it for the rest of the day. I considered who I thought might wait to see me when I die. And I don’t know. Because they aren’t always people you would expect. Sometimes, they aren’t even people you knew. They are loosely, but intricately, connected in a way you couldn’t imagine.

I really enjoyed this book. I’ve read a couple of Mitch Albom’s books before, and he never disappoints. He writes with a lot of emotion, and I felt really connected to Eddie. Very enjoyable.

Anyone in need of a feel-good read. Anyone who likes a good story. It is quite mythical in its telling, so anyone who likes that kind of allegory would like this.

Finding out who the five people Eddie met are. I loved seeing Eddie as a younger man, one who was in love and happy.

I've never read 'Tuesdays With Morrie', and I have it on my Kindle. Only, my best friend told me it would have me weeping for weeks, so I've never been brave enough to read it. Now I've read this, I really want to read Morrie.

Contented. Happy. Warm.

I am a big fan of Mitch Albom. As I said, this is his third book that I've read, and I've enjoyed them all. He writes with warmth and emotion. I like that.

It's a good yarn, and it will leave you thinking about who your five people might be.

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Created Jul 26, 2021 at 5:35am • Submit your own review...