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lovelybibliomanic's review
adventurous
challenging
dark
emotional
hopeful
reflective
sad
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
I picked up this book because my husband had asked me to. His VA advisor had told him to read it because she thought that he would be able to gain more perspective on some things, and naturally he asked me to vet it for him.
The story follows an elderly man (in his 80s), named Eddie, around his day to day life as a maintenance worker at a amusement park on a pier. He is a well known figure at the pier, and many know him based on his longevity at the park. One day Eddie finds himself watching in horror as one of the rides malfunctions and a little girl is in grave danger. The last thing Eddie remembers from before he "wakes up" is that he had leapt to save the little girl and then nothing except a feeling of complete dread for the little girl and her well-being.
We then follow Eddie through a journey of 5 significant events that made Eddie who he is with The five people he met in heaven. Some of the people he knew, and some of them he had known of but did not personally know. We learn all of the lessons that Eddie taught himself through life due to these instances, as well as, what he could and maybe should have learned. He also learns of the fate of the little girl that he had attempted to save. Did she live or die? Only one of the five people he met could give him that answer.
Although, I am not religious, and I don't necessarily believe in heaven I thought that this book was still really good. I think that if you go into the read with an open mind a lot can be appreciated about this book. Lessons learned could be taken both religious and nonreligious and I really respected that.
I would advise other readers to be mindful of the content of this book and some trigger warnings that come to mind.
The story follows an elderly man (in his 80s), named Eddie, around his day to day life as a maintenance worker at a amusement park on a pier. He is a well known figure at the pier, and many know him based on his longevity at the park. One day Eddie finds himself watching in horror as one of the rides malfunctions and a little girl is in grave danger. The last thing Eddie remembers from before he "wakes up" is that he had leapt to save the little girl and then nothing except a feeling of complete dread for the little girl and her well-being.
We then follow Eddie through a journey of 5 significant events that made Eddie who he is with The five people he met in heaven. Some of the people he knew, and some of them he had known of but did not personally know. We learn all of the lessons that Eddie taught himself through life due to these instances, as well as, what he could and maybe should have learned. He also learns of the fate of the little girl that he had attempted to save. Did she live or die? Only one of the five people he met could give him that answer.
Although, I am not religious, and I don't necessarily believe in heaven I thought that this book was still really good. I think that if you go into the read with an open mind a lot can be appreciated about this book. Lessons learned could be taken both religious and nonreligious and I really respected that.
I would advise other readers to be mindful of the content of this book and some trigger warnings that come to mind.
Content Warnings
Graphic: War, Child death, Death, Child abuse, and Fire/Fire injury
Moderate: Alcoholism, Sexual assault, Toxic relationship, and Murder
Minor: Gore
kiwialexa's review
dark
emotional
hopeful
reflective
sad
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
Content Warnings
Moderate: Violence, Chronic illness, War, Child abuse, Gore, Terminal illness, Grief, Injury/Injury detail, Classism, Death, Death of parent, and Fire/Fire injury
caroline_peacock's review
emotional
inspiring
reflective
sad
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
5.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Car accident, Kidnapping, Injury/Injury detail, Child death, Grief, War, Child abuse, Mental illness, Blood, Death, Gore, and Violence
Moderate: Sexual assault, Death of parent, Medical content, Cancer, and Body shaming
Minor: Addiction and Alcoholism
peeguzzler's review
emotional
reflective
sad
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.5
It’s not my favorite book, maybe something you’d read in a high school english class. It was easy to read and understand. Really short, which is good for a quick read to get you out of a reading slump. I would definitely recommend this to an older reader, maybe. Something for them to look forward to when they die, I guess.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Mental illness, Gore, and War
Moderate: Cancer and Car accident
nefariousbee's review against another edition
emotional
hopeful
inspiring
reflective
sad
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
2.0
Honestly this book has me really torn.
Because on one hand, I like the premise. I liked the messages at times even. I like the writing style, the brisk tempo, and the composition.
But damn, it made me so deeply annoyed and even angry at times. The obviously Christian tone I could ignore, even tho I find it very annoying when authors pretend to play the all religions card and then they obviously operate in the Christian mindset. The SA excuse was... it was. It sure was.
What really did it for me was the ending. The final person. The metaphor of washing your hands of your sins. It was rushed, it was obviously done just for the emotional effect. This part could have been longer, it could have been a proper dialogue, but no, we get a quick scene where you're supposed to feel sorry for the army man because he's actually the victim here! And the thing is, he really is! This was caused by the American imperialist tendencies and yet this is not brought up or mentioned or anything. Instead we get a little kid being the bigger person.
Look. I am all for reading outside your comfort zone and this was definitely it. I think I can say I enjoy even authors whose morals and opinions don't allign with my own. It always sparks good conversations and some good old thinking about your own values as a person, being confronted with someone else's.
This just wasn't it. I couldn't take much more than a couple of nice one liners from this because the prerequisites for his arguments are just. illogical. to me. already flawed. and given the overal tone of the book I just felt patronised anyway. it truly resembles a Sunday dinner with posh distant relatives in a way
Because on one hand, I like the premise. I liked the messages at times even. I like the writing style, the brisk tempo, and the composition.
But damn, it made me so deeply annoyed and even angry at times. The obviously Christian tone I could ignore, even tho I find it very annoying when authors pretend to play the all religions card and then they obviously operate in the Christian mindset. The SA excuse was... it was. It sure was.
What really did it for me was the ending. The final person. The metaphor of washing your hands of your sins. It was rushed, it was obviously done just for the emotional effect. This part could have been longer, it could have been a proper dialogue, but no, we get a quick scene where you're supposed to feel sorry for the army man because he's actually the victim here! And the thing is, he really is! This was caused by the American imperialist tendencies and yet this is not brought up or mentioned or anything. Instead we get a little kid being the bigger person.
Look. I am all for reading outside your comfort zone and this was definitely it. I think I can say I enjoy even authors whose morals and opinions don't allign with my own. It always sparks good conversations and some good old thinking about your own values as a person, being confronted with someone else's.
This just wasn't it. I couldn't take much more than a couple of nice one liners from this because the prerequisites for his arguments are just. illogical. to me. already flawed. and given the overal tone of the book I just felt patronised anyway. it truly resembles a Sunday dinner with posh distant relatives in a way
Content Warnings
Graphic: Car accident, Child death, Violence, Terminal illness, War, Injury/Injury detail, Infertility, Gore, Cancer, Sexual harassment, Fire/Fire injury, and Confinement
Moderate: Ableism, Racism, Vomit, and Violence
camillewhowrites's review
emotional
hopeful
inspiring
reflective
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
5.0
This book will change your life.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Grief, Sexual assault, War, Domestic abuse, Violence, and Gore
noesols's review
dark
emotional
inspiring
sad
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? N/A
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.75
Content Warnings
Graphic: Addiction, Alcoholism, Blood, Car accident, Child abuse, Death, Death of parent, Domestic abuse, Gore, Gun violence, Injury/Injury detail, Physical abuse, Violence, and War
enviousadams's review against another edition
dark
emotional
inspiring
mysterious
reflective
sad
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
5.0
The best book I've read in a really long time. Short and simple to read but covers such an interesting concept without losing sight of character growth and plot. Can't recommend enough.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Child death, Death, Death of parent, and Violence
Moderate: Gore and Rape
Minor: Ableism
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