the five people you meet in heaven

I haven't read an adult book in so long. I've had my share of "Where's your smile, crocodile?" and "The Cows who Type" (very good books by the way), but I hadn't read anything for myself lately. Last night we were in Target and I was browsing their book selection. I came across "the five people you meet in heaven". I remember this book from an Oprah show. I read a few pages and decided that I would get it from the library the next day, as I didn't really want to **buy** it. This afternoon, Jenna and I headed to the library to get some books. She got the above mentioned books plus a couple more and I got "the five people you meet in heaven". We walked over to the park and I started reading while she played. I just couldn't put this book away. I finally finished it up about 7pm. This book really touches your soul...really gets you to look at some things differently. I admit that I spent a good majority of the book teary, but it was that good. It really reached me.

Here is a review from Good Reads. It really sums it up well.

This story is told in such a unique and fascinating way that you will be wondering why everyone doesn't write their books this way. The story of one man's life starts at his death, and you learn about his life through his encounters in heaven as well as memories from past birthdays. I loved the lessons taught and it gets you thinking of how important your life is. You really do impact a lot of people, some that you will never even meet. A very strong thinking novel.

Some interesting quotes from the book:

"It is because human spirit knows, deep down, that all lives intersect. That death doesn't just take someone, it misses someone else, and in the small distance between being taken and being missed, lives are changed (p. 48)."

"Sometimes when you sacrifice something precious, you're not really losing it. You're just passing it on to someone else (p. 94)."

"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 (p. 141)."

This book was definitely a great way to spend a stormy afternoon. Has anyone read Tuesdays with Morrie? I think I will read that one next.