Mitch Albom - The Five People You Meet in Heaven

Pros: cutesy
Cons: too cutesy

What's going on in the corridors of publishing power? Just take a look: books written for kids get longer and longer (and more expensive), while books ostensibly written for adults get shorter. Don't believe me? Try comparing the heft of Harry Potter ...

Pros: Inspirational story. Very well written and engaging.
Cons: A bit short on substance. Some may think the story is a bit corny.

I'm a little late to Mitch Albom's party. I remember a few years ago, when his book Tuesday's With Morrie was hot. I was curious about all the hubbub, but never got around to actually buying the book. My mom read it and sent me a copy. ...

Pros: Albom can WRITE!
Cons: Not all that original; too expensive for what you get

From the very first pages of The Five People You Meet in Heaven, the reader knows that the main character is going to die. Eighty-three year old Eddie is a maintenance worker at Ruby Pier amusement park. And the first chapter slowly counts down ...

Pros: It'll make you cry...
Cons: It'll make you cry...

Death. It's scary. The whole pre, during, and after of it is a mystery but more importantly, it's a certainty. What's it like to know that you're going to die? Sure, we all know that we're going to die someday, but ...

Pros: Short and sweet
Cons: Almost too short

The Five People You Meet In Heaven is the tale of an old man who is killed at a carnival while trying to save the life of a little girl. The old man, named Eddie, worked there in maintenance and had always believed that he led a fairly pointless life. ...

Pros: Inspirational, easy read.
Cons: Don't know.

I have been looking for a little inspiration lately and I remembered hearing all these great things about the book, The Five People You Meet in Heaven. So I decided to give it a read, if for no other reason than to lift my own spirits. The fact that it ...

Pros:

Easy read, warm and pleasant

Cons:

Not quite what I was expecting

With The Five People You Meet In Heaven, in under 200 pages, Mitch Albom brings his reader a lovely impression of life after death. I'm one of the few who hasn't read Tuesdays With Morrie, Albom's predecessor, so I could be missing my mark when I say ...

Pros: An easy read, with some memorable imagery
Cons: Doesn't always provide the intended sense of uplift

The good intention of the novel The Five People You Meet in Heaven (198 pgs., Hyperion, $11.97) is to show that ordinary people are capable of extraordinary things. Unfortunately, the novel doesn't make an entirely convincing case. The ...

Pros: Clever, a joy to read, skillfully written.
Cons: Short, perhaps too light for some.

In comparing The Five People ... with The Odyssey, Frank McCourt is certainly setting the bar high - although such blurb-testaments rarely compel me to buy a book, this one caught the attention, and the ambitious subject matter just about ...

Pros: short read, easy to get into, easy to follow
Cons: I hoped it covered more about God, but it still has an impact.

I met Frank Walker at the Five & Dime two weeks ago and told him how well he looked in his new suit.. Frank saw Sharon two days later and because I commented on how great he looked, he had enough confidence to ask Sharon to the movies. Once Sharon ...

Pros: Clever subject, thoughtful narrative
Cons: A little on the short side

"This is a story about a man named Eddie and it begins at the end, with Eddie dying in the sun. It might seem strange to start a story with an ending. But all endings are also beginnings. We just don't know it at the time." Eddie considers his life to ...

Pros: Strong writing from an Established author
Cons: Short story leaves you wanting more

"This is a story about a man named Eddie and it begins at the end, with Eddie dying in the sun. It might seem strange to start a story with an ending. But all endings are also beginnings. We just don't know it at the time." Although the author has a ...

Pros: Touches your heart. Fantastic character development.
Cons: It ended

Who can forget “Tuesdays With Morrie,” in which sports writer turned novelist Mitch Albom inspired us to be grateful for what we have, and cherish each day to the fullest of extents. Well, if you couldn’t get enough of that book, there’s another sappy ...

Pros: it's short, thank goodness so it's over with real soon
Cons: Patronizing, artificial, contrived, predictable

First, I better tell you readers that I am an open-minded atheist. This means I’ll defend anyone’s right to believe in anything….remember we live in America where we have freedoms to believe in what we want to. Mitch Albom’s other ...

Pros: A very nice, sweet story.
Cons: Kind of expensive, and a little bit of a let-down after Tuesdays with Morrie.

I picked up this book on impulse as I was wandering through a bookstore, and was pleased to see that it was written by the same man who brought us Tuesdays with Morrie, which was very touching and interesting. Although I found it a little pricey for ...