5 People You Meet In Heaven
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Ok look. We aren’t all going to love all books. Sometimes one person will hate a book that their friend found deep meaning in. Or at least that’s what I kept telling myself while reading the five people you meet in heaven. Because genuinely, what is the point of this book? The idea is that after death you meet five key people from the course of your life, and they will help you understand the meaning of it all. But the emotional punches just keep coming, and the author seemed much more focused on emphasizing how much the main character suffered than in making an actual point with the book. There are few things I have less patience for than pointless misery.
Focused on Ed, an old man who lived a small, sad life, the book lets us get to know him through 5 people who were important to his life in one way or another. As much as I disliked the heavy-handed
emotions, I was especially bothered by some of the flashbacks. The first where we learn how much his wife loved him despite his inability to communicate on any emotional level, and the second when we meet a young girl he saw die while in Vietnam. These women were both reduced from fully realized humans to decorations on the walls of Ed’s life, acting as balm for guilt he’d carried for years due to his own actions. The man needed therapy, not for a woman to tell him it wasn’t his fault. The young girl’s death acting as a way to prove his humanity felt especially problematic. Her character is introduced to put a face to the suffering in a war-torn country, but her entire existence ends up condensed to a single point - that the man should not feel guilty about her death. I cannot express how unimpressed I was by this.
Despite, or maybe because of the heavy-handed emotions layered on top of the book, it felt more like a self-help book than any sort of actual novel. I’m putting it in the same category as The Little Prince or The Alchemist. (I liked The Little Prince ok, and hated The Alchemist.) I have a growing suspicion that I simply don’t understand enough of the references for books that are Christian-based parables to get any enjoyment out of them. If there was a message beyond “life sucks and then you die”, I missed it. I was going to google it to see what the takeaway was supposed to be, but I just don’t feel like it. I just can’t support any book arguing that life on earth is(should be?) bad so that we earn joy in Heaven.
Instead, let’s talk cocktails! I paired this with a Seventh Heaven, which is a classic grapefruit gin cocktail with a splash of Maraschino liquor. I actively chose a cocktail I knew I would like to make up for the book, and mission accomplished! This drink is perfect for people who want a light, slow-sipping cocktail with a kick. The grapefruit balances the gin and the maraschino adds a touch of sweet, but not too much.
