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“There's no such thing as a nobody. And there are no mistakes.”
―Mitch Albom, The Next Person You Meet in Heaven
*Warning: a few spoilers ahead*
This is another one of those books where I didn't enjoy the predecessor all that much so I wasn't expecting anything. Thankfully, though, the book was a pleasant surprise. First of all, to lay down a little background information, Mitch Albom is not an author with a writing style that just anyone can stomach. Wording-wise, you get nothing too fancy and it actually reads pretty quickly. What I see most people grumble about is the tone - to some it comes off as "Hallmark" and preachy. Personally, I did not see too many mentions of the Father so if a few reminders of prayer, and well, heaven, are all right with you, then by all means, carry on.
Following Annie, the girl Eddie from the first book saved as a child, I was devastated from the start that she died as well. It felt as if the events of the previous installment were now moot. Still, I wanted to know more about her, about her life and her story. Maybe because she was a young woman, I felt like I could understand her plights more. Given that, I sympathized with her - her fear of being ostracized, her inability to connect with a distant parent, her disbelief at finding love, among other things most young adults feel. I flipped through the chapters, nodding and highlighting plenty of things I believed in and related to.
Watching Annie patch herself together in her heaven, learning about herself and her purpose, slowly renouncing her lifelong belief that she was a series of mistakes, even reliving events that might have convinced her otherwise, was immensely satisfying and heartbreaking at the same time. She grew in such a short span of time, and the twist at the end, though tragic, proved just how much she's changed, because her attitude towards what happened became a complete antithesis of who she was at the beginning.
Overall: This can be read alone, and to anyone who doesn't wish to read too many proverb-sounding insights or "Hallmark" quotes, I suggest you pick this up over The Five People You Meet in Heaven. As the first book was about a war veteran who died at a ripe age, this one I think speaks more to young hearts who used to living fast and yet afraid of dying young. It's a quick read, and a reminder to love more, forgive often, and hold on.
5/5