Book Review: ‘The Five People You Meet in Heaven’ by Mitch Albom

As soon as I finished reading ‘Tuesdays with Morrie’ I got hooked by another bestselling book by Mitch Albom titled ‘The Five People You Meet in Heaven’ and soon reached the last page. I’m still floating in the serene atmosphere of the after-death world, the mesmerizing visualization by the author was so vivid.

My key takeaway is that whatever we see or experience in this living-world is one-sided or partial. Only the story of the people we interact with makes it complete. Instant judgment is insane. Sometimes the damage is beyond repair.

This book illustrates 5 key lessons through the five people that the central character of this book meets in heaven which are as follows:


Lesson 1:
“No life is a waste,” the Blue Man said. “The only time we waste is the time we spend thinking we are alone.”

Lesson 2:
“Sometimes when you sacrifice something precious, you’re not really losing it. You’re just passing it on to someone else.”

Lesson 3:
“Holding anger is a poison. It eats you from inside. We think that hating is a weapon that attacks the person who harmed us. But hatred is a curved blade. And the harm we do, we do to ourselves.”

Lesson 4:
“Lost love is still love, Eddie. It takes a different form, that’s all. You can’t see their smile or bring them food or tousle their hair or move them around a dance floor. But when those senses weaken, another heightens. Memory. Memory becomes your partner. You nurture it. You hold it. You dance with it…..Life has to end. Love doesn’t.”

Lesson 5:
“The secret of heaven: that each affects the other and the other affects the next, and the world is full of stories, but the stories are all one.”

Mitch Albom, born on May 23, 1958, is an American author, journalist, and screenwriter. He is best known for his inspirational works, blending fiction and non-fiction with profound insights into life’s complexities. His major books include:

Tuesdays with Morrie (1997), The Five People You Meet in Heaven (2003), For One More Day (2006), Have a Little Faith: A True Story (2009), The Time Keeper (2012), The First Phone Call from Heaven (2013), The Magic Strings of Frankie Presto (2015) and The Next Person You Meet in Heaven (2018).

//Syed Akhteruzzaman | LinkedIn | FaceBook | www.beyondtourismbd.com