The Five People You Meet in Heaven by Mitch Albom

From Goodreads, 

"From the author of the phenomenal #1 New York Times bestseller Tuesdays with Morrie, a novel that explores the unexpected connections of our lives, and the idea that heaven is more than a place; it's an answer.

Eddie is a wounded war veteran, an old man who has lived, in his mind, an uninspired life. His job is fixing rides at a seaside amusement park. On his 83rd birthday, a tragic accident kills him as he tries to save a little girl from a falling cart. He awakes in the afterlife, where he learns that heaven is not a destination. It's a place where your life is explained to you by five people, some of whom you knew, others who may have been strangers. One by one, from childhood to soldier to old age, Eddie's five people revisit their connections to him on earth, illuminating the mysteries of his "meaningless" life, and revealing the haunting secret behind the eternal question: "Why was I here?""

Goodreads - The Five People You Meet in Heaven

Awards and Nominations: 

• Lincoln Award Nominee (2008)

I will forever and always be a huge fan of Mitch Albom's books.  The first book I read of his was Tuesdays with Morrie and I was absolutely in love.  So many of his books are moving works of literature that should be reread every few years.  You're guaranteed to get some kind of new and moving advice on every reread.  

Eddie is just a maintenance man who works at Ruby Pier.  He has lived what seems like his whole life working at the pier.  But on his 83rd birthday, he changes the course of his life and of a little girl when he attempts to save her life when a ride comes crashing down.  The next thing Eddie is aware of is that he is on an empty Ruby Pier from decades earlier.  He soon learns that he is dead and that he is going to meet 5 people from his life.  Along the way, he will learn the role and purpose he had on Earth.  

There is no way for me to sit here and act like I didn't get emotional at times over this book.  In February I decided to flip life upside down.  I got out of a long-term relationship, moved, and had to figure out how I was going to financially cover all the changes happening.  It was a lot.  So as I reread this book I found myself asking "What is my purpose?"  I question what impact I've had on those I've encountered.  This book will make you take a deep dive into yourself and make you think of who your 5 people would be.  Who are 5 people that have either dramatically impacted my life or who I've impacted?  As a teacher, I like to think that I've impacted hundreds of lives, but then I stop and ask myself who I've made a difference with.  There have been 1 or 2 kids every year that I feel like I had a special connection with and that I made an impact on them during that school year.  I remember their names and the experience I had with them.  This book also leads me to ask have I made an impact on any of my family or friends?  Are there strangers that I've impacted unknowingly?  I love Albom's concept that when we die we will meet 5 people who have impacted us or who we have impacted.  It makes death seem a little less scary. 

This book is formatted so that you get slivers of the story that will piece together to form the entire story.  There are pieces of present-day, pieces of Eddie's past, pieces of the lessons to be learned, and pieces of the people that Eddie meets.  The unique writing style keeps just enough mystery to the story itself.  I have no complaints about this book.  I did watch the movie shortly after finishing this and there were almost no differences between the two. 

I really enjoyed this reread.  It made me question what my purpose is and what impact I've had and what impact people have had on me.  Since reading it I feel like I've sort of realigned my goals and purpose.  I've been working on myself for the last few months and I'm so glad that this book just further fueled my fire.