The Five People You Meet In Heaven

Rating:
Summary: Put this one out with the trash!
Review: I was so disappointed with this book! I expected something intriguing & poignant...Something, that even if it was not well-written, it was at least going to be meaningful. Well, at page 70 I was still waiting & by page 140 I just wanted to throw the book in the trash & move on to something WORTH READING!
Every "Person in Heaven" is so self-important & yet, there is nothing to their messages. It even started to feel like I was being condescended to, because who doesn't already know that decisions one person makes directly & indirectly affect many other people?? Only the dopey, boring main character, that's who!
I'd be afraid to give this book to anyone I know for fear they'd feel I've insulted their intelligence.
If you absolutley must see what this book is all about, get it from your local library - And if you just want to get the message it's claiming to contain, then watch "It's a Wonderful Life" for the 500th time. That would be far more satisfying.

Rating:
Summary: The Five People You Meet in Heaven
Review: This book is a thought provoking story of an embittered 83 year old war veteran who searches for the meaning of his life in heaven. This is accomplished through compelling interactions in the afterlife with five persons who impacted his life on earth.

The book is slightly reminiscent of the Jimmy Stewart classic film, "It's a wonderful life". Albom's portrayal of Eddie gives the reader a character that we can all connect to and identify with. Eddie's interactions with the five people in heaven teach the larger meanings of life and leave the reader deeply reflective through these profound lessons.

Albom's writing is descriptive from the outset providing the opportunity to become immersed in the story and eras of Eddie's life. It is a fast read. I never put it down from the time I started.

Rating:
Summary: Willing to Jump
Review: Sappy. Simple. Saccharine. These are words Amazon reviewers have used to describe this book. Thus warned, I gave it a shot.

Weighing in under 200 very light pages, this novella is a work of wonder. Albom uses minimalist prose to gain the greatest effect. I've never read his work before, but I was impressed with his ability to capture character and settings in few words. His people are working class, average joes--people we can relate with. I thought the opening scenes and the war narratives were exceptional.

Sure, the themes here have been explored before. No, Albom doesn't offer any particularly new revelations. He doesn't even try to appeal to any one religious faith. But he does succeed in reminding us of the value of life and the interconnectedness of fate and relationships and God's plan. As the title suggests, the book will require a leap of faith and credibility. If you're willing to make that jump, if you're willing to open your heart to this simple, yet profound tale, you'll be won over by the magical quality of "The Five People You Meet in Heaven."

Rating:
Summary: I was tricked
Review: I liked the idea of meeting 5 people in heaven that had meaning in your life. And the first few pages do get you interested. BUT I read it with my mouth open wondering why anyone would praise this book. Mr. Albom made heaven sound like a place where people hang around waiting to dump guilt on the new guy. I found the war stories ugly and the entire book depressing. So glad that its not my version of heaven!!

Rating:
Summary: I can't wiat for my "Five People I Meet in Heaven"
Review: I thought this was an exceptionly enjoyable book. Light and easy reading yet really give you something to think about and ponder on. I found it to be uplifting!! I guess it really is a small world after all... you will know what I mean when you read this book.

Rating:
Summary: Great Morals, Makes you think about your life.....
Review: This was a well thought-of book. It really makes you reflect on life, purposes, and it's meanings. It was worth reading, but the only reason why I gave it a three was because I HAVE read better. But I definatly recommend it- it's really worth your time!

Rating:
Summary: It's really not the best...
Review: I was excited to read this book b/c it's been given so much praise, but I was so disappointed. It's a semi-sweet book which, from start to finish, was superficial. Superficial is fine if a book is entertaining as it goes on, but this was just sort of a dull story in my opinion. I can appreciate Albom's idea of this man's journey to heaven, but his version pretty cliche and trite. I was excited to read this, but was really let down...sad.

Rating:
Summary: A Brilliant and Powerful Book
Review: Mitch's first effort at fiction is a masterpiece.

I just finished the book, and once I got started, I could not put it down! My wife is also reading the book and we are finding it has created a lot of meaningful conversation in our marriage. :) The book is an easy read, it is marvelously descriptive and paints the picture Albom intended with unconditional positive regard for the human condition and the good that is present in all of us. I hope Mitch wins many awards for this book. Like Mitch, I am currently writing fiction for the first time. Writing is tough and big successes are to be applauded. If my effort at fiction is half as good, it will be a huge personal and professional success.

Jeffrey McAndrew
author of "Our Brown Eyed Boy"

Rating:
Summary: Unique and Pointless
Review: This book is not this reader's genre of book, but it was recommended to me and left within my reach. The first few pages and I admit I was hooked. It is almost a single sitting book. The style was very interesting and it being a short book, it moves right along towards the ending. Except the ending appears, the book is over, and you are left scratching your head saying what was the point of the story.

Rating:
Summary: Good heavens!
Review: The good intention of "The Five People You Meet in Heaven" is to show that ordinary people are capable of extraordinary things. Unfortunately, the novel doesn't make an entirely convincing case.

The novel--Mitch Albom's follow-up to his acclaimed "Tuesdays with Morrie"--introduces us to Eddie, an 83-year-old amusement park maintenance man, shortly before he dies. When a malfunctioning park ride inadvertently kills Eddie, he quietly, painlessly ascends to Heaven, where he meets the persons referenced in the book's title.

Eddie recognizes some of those people instantly; others are strangers who seem only vaguely connected to Eddie's life. The point of these encounters will be obvious to anyone familiar with "A Christmas Carol" or "It's a Wonderful Life": all of our actions, however minor they seem, have profound impacts on everyone around us.

Some of the book's imagery is very striking and memorable. The trouble is that the book doesn't always succeed in its intended sense of uplift. Suffice to say that some of Eddie's encounters seem to exist solely to give him guilt trips about actions which unintentionally caused pain to other people.

And the book's concept of Heaven is a very strange one. Eddie travels through metaphorical situations from his past in order to meet others who have also died. The way the book explains it, these dead people have waited in Heaven for Eddie's death for years, for the sole purpose of meeting Eddie, delivering a message to him, and then moving on. The result, to paraphrase the Talking Heads song, is that Albom's Heaven is a place where nothing much happens.

"The Five People You Meet in Heaven" is a relatively painless read, and most readers would probably welcome its message of every human life being purposeful. But ironically, what Albom's Heaven most resembles is the celestial law room of Albert Brooks' comedy "Defending Your Life," where afterlifers have to justify their lives on Earth as though pleading a court case--not a terribly hopeful message.