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A specially produced paperback edition -- with flaps -- of the phenomenal #1 New York Times bestseller, that has sold more than six million copies in hardcover.
Eddie is a grizzled war veteran who feels trapped in a meaningless life of fixing rides at a seaside amusement park. His days... read more

Summary edit see section history

"The Five People You Meet in Heaven" by Mitch Albom begins by introducing Eddie, an 83 year-old maintenance man. His father worked at the Ruby Pier and Eddie followed in suit. It was all that he ever knew, and everyday of his existence was filled with making sure that the rides at the... read more (warning: may contain spoilers)

"The Five People You Meet in Heaven" by Mitch Albom begins by introducing Eddie, an 83 year-old maintenance man. His father worked at the Ruby Pier and Eddie followed in suit. It was all that he ever knew, and everyday of his existence was filled with making sure that the rides at the amusement park ran smoothly. Eddie could even hear when something was wrong with a ride and that's why he knew exactly what happened on the fateful day when he lost his life. As a sacrifice, Eddie ran in under a falling ride to save a little girl's life. He felt tiny arms pulling him, later he would learn that those arms were pulling him to Heaven.
Eddie arrives at heaven only to learn that it not a paradise, but a place where his life is explained by five people that were somehow connected to him while he was on earth. This shocks him, especially when he meets the Blue Man. The Blue Man was a circus freak at the Ruby Pier that was accidently killed by Eddie when he darted out in front of his car. This circus freak taught Eddie that everyone in the world is connected somehow. Next, Eddie meets the Captain, his commanding officer in World War II. The Captain shocked Eddie by revealing that he had died in order to save him. Along with sharing his story, the captain revealed how sacrifice and choices can define a life. The third person Eddie met was Ruby, the co-founder of the Ruby Pier. Ruby tells Eddie that anger is useless and this allows Eddie to be able to mend his realationship with his father. After this encounter Eddie met the person he had been waiting for, his wife, Marguerite. She was the only person Eddie truly cared for and of course, she taught him about ever-lasting love. The last and perhaps most important person he met was Tala. She was a young Filipino girl who was accidentally, and unfortunatley burned in the fire that Eddie set as revenge against his enemies in the war. Eddie had never known her, but had dreamt about her every night since. At last, she revealed that Eddie's life did have a purpose and that it was protecting children everyday at the Ruby Pier.
In the end, Eddie walks through the Ruby Pier to find his wife and, his Heaven. The best thing about his Heaven is that he can go to rest knowing that his life had meaning and that everything makes sense. It's certainly not what he expected, but it was certainly what he needed. Mitch Albom leaves us with the knowledge that Eddie is a part of a Heaven for the little girl that he saved at the Ruby Pier. The cycle will continue and everyone in Heaven will have the chance of learning the true meaning of their life.

Characters edit see section history

  • Eddie: The main character. He dies at the beginning of the book and this is his journey though Heaven.
  • The Blue Man: The first person Eddie meets in Heaven. While Eddie barely remembers him, The Blue Man remembers him.
  • The Captain: A life-long military man who was Eddie's commanding officer during World War II. They were prisoners of war together and at the mercy of Filipino soldiers who starved and tortured them.
  • Ruby: The third person Eddie meets in Heaven. Her husband was a wealthy man who put his money to good use and built the Ruby Pier Amusement Park in her honor. The park later burned to the ground, taking her husband's fortune along with it, making Ruby regret its existence. She had been the reason the park had been built in the first place and why Eddie and his father had the opportunity to work there.
  • Marguerite: The fourth person Eddie meets in Heaven. She was Eddie's first love and eventually became his wife. He loved her more than anything and although they were unable to have children, they had a very happy marriage. She was the only woman that Eddie truly loved and it was what he was remembered for when he died.
  • Tala: The fifth person Eddie meets in Heaven.
  • Mickey Shea: An old friend of Eddie's father.
  • Rabozzo: In the war with Eddie.
  • Willie: Ride operator at Ruby Pier.
  • Joe: Eddie's brother.
  • Emile: Ruby's husband.
  • Morton: One of the prisoners-of-war alongside Eddie.
  • Noel: One of Eddie's old friends. Enjoys betting on the ponies.
  • Dominguez: Eddie's co-worker
Show all 14 characters
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Quotes edit see section history

  • “Strangers", the Blue Man said," are just family you have yet to come to know.”
    Blue Man
  • “Departure did not seem to be an issue.”
    Eddie
  • “All parents damage their children. It cannot be helped. Youth, like pristine glass, absorbs the prints of its handlers. Some parents smudge, others crack, a few shatter childhoods completely into jagged little pieces, beyond repair.”
    The Third Person Eddie Meets in Heaven, (p. 109).
  • “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.”
    The Third Lesson, (p. 149).
  • “Love, like rain, can nourish from above, drenching couples with a soaking joy. But sometimes, under the angry heat of life, love dries on the surface and must nourish from below, tending to its roots, keeping itself alive.”
    The Fourth Person Eddie Meets in Heaven, (p. 174).
  • “Young men go to war. Sometimes because they have to, sometimes because they want to. Always, they feel they are supposed to. This comes from the sad, layered stories of life, which over centuries have seen courage confused with picking up arms, and cowardice confused with laying them down.”
    The Second Person Eddie Meets in Heaven, (p. 59).
  • “Sacrifice is a part of life. It's supposed to be. It's not something to regret. It's something to aspire to.”
    The Captain (p. 97)
  • “"Life has to end," she said. "Love doesn't"”
    Marguerite
  • “"The only time we waste is the time we spend thinking we are alone."”
    Blue Man
  • “Fairness does not govern life and death. If it did, no good person would ever die young.”
  • ““All endings are also beginnings. We just don't know it at the time.””
Show all 11 quotes from this book

Setting & Locations edit see section history

This story takes place in several different locations in both heaven and on earth. The novel begins at Ruby Pier. Eddie grew up very close to Ruby Pier because his father worked there for a living. Ruby Pier was thus a significant setting in Eddie's childhood; the novel flashes back many times to Eddie's childhood involving incidents at Ruby Pier. Ruby Pier is also where Eddie had his career as a maintenance man and is the very place where he was killed on his birthday.
  • Ruby Pier: Named for the creater's wife, Ruby. This is where Eddie grows up and eventually works and dies. Eddie's father was also employed by Ruby Pier.
  • Heaven: Where the story takes place.
  • Philippine Islands: The only place that Eddie ever went during World War II.

Organizations edit see section history

  • Ruby Pier: This is a fictional organisation, that one of the characters named after his wife, Ruby.

First Sentence edit see section history

THIS IS A STORY ABOUT A MAN named Eddie and it begins at the end, with Eddie dying in the sun.

Table of Contents edit see section history

1. The End
- Today is Eddie's Birthday
2. The Journey
- Today is Eddie's Birthday
3. The Arrival
4. The First Person Eddie Meets in Heaven
- Today is Eddie's Birthday
- Today is Eddie's Birthday
5. The First Lesson
6. Sunday, 3 P.M.
- Today is Eddie's Birthday
7. The Second Person Eddie Meets in Heaven
- Today is Eddie's Birthday
8. The Second Lesson
9. The Third Person Eddie Meets in Heaven
- Today is Eddie's Birthday
- Today is Eddie's Birthday
- Today is Eddie's Birthday
10. The Third Lesson
11. Thursday, 11 A.M.
12. The Fourth Person Eddie Meets in Heaven
- Today is Eddie's Birthday
- Today is Eddie's Birthday
13. The Fourth Lesson
14. Friday, 3:15 P.M.
15. The Fifth Person Eddie Meets in Heaven
- Today is Eddie's Birthday
16. The Last Lesson
17. Epilogue

Glossary edit see section history

  • Gimme: Slang. Short for 'Give Me'.

Themes & Symbolism edit see section history

  • Death: All of an organism's vital organs shut down/ beyond repair/ stopped.
  • Afterlife: Events, or another life, after you die.

Series & Lists edit see section history

This is book 42 of 194 in Shelfari Most Popular (December 2010). (authoritative list)

Preceded by Digital Fortress, and followed by The Diary of a Young Girl.

This book is in Tayshas List (2005). (authoritative list)
This is book 49 of 195 in Shelfari Most Popular (December 2011). (authoritative list)

Preceded by The Lightning Thief, and followed by Deception Point.

This is book 2 of 10 in Publishers Weekly Bestselling Novels In 2004. (authoritative list)

Preceded by The Da Vinci Code, and followed by The Last Juror.

This is book 2 of 10 in Publishers Weekly Bestselling Novels of 2003. (authoritative list)

Preceded by The Da Vinci Code, and followed by The King of Torts.

This is book 45 of 195 in Shelfari Most Popular (June 2011). (authoritative list)

Preceded by Deception Point, and followed by Digital Fortress.

This is book 88 of 95 in Telegraph Top 100 Books, 2008. (authoritative list)

Preceded by Charlotte's Web, and followed by The Adventures and Memoirs of Sherlock Holmes (Penguin Classics).

This is book 40 of 195 in Shelfari Most Popular (June 2010). (authoritative list)

Preceded by The Host, and followed by Lord of the Flies.

Authors & Contributors edit see section history

  1. Mitch Albom (Author)

Other Contributors:

  1. Erik Singer (Narrator)

First Edition edit see section history

Original Language: English
Publisher: Hyperion
Country: United States
Publication Date: 2003
ISBN: 9780786868711
Page Count: 196

Classification edit see section history

Notes for Parents edit see section history

Reading Level: Young Adults

Young adults and above. About death, may be disturbing for some children. Some scenes include wartime prison.

Links to Supplemental Material edit see section history

  • Wikipedia: More information about The Five People You Meet in Heaven both as a book and a film.

Movie Connections edit see section history

More Books Like This edit see section history

   
  • Tuesdays With Morrie
  • Serpent's Tooth
  • Do Not Pass Go
  • Rivals
  • Riding the Bus with My Sister
  • The History of Love
  • The Lovely Bones

Books with Additional Background Information edit see section history

   
  • Wisdom from the Five People You Meet in Heaven (Popular Insights)

Books Influenced by This Book edit see section history

   
  • The Five Jerks You Meet on Earth

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