The Five People you Meet in Heaven is a thought-provoking, and at times heart wrenching, novel about the afterlife.  The story, authored by Mitch Alborn, focuses on an 83 year-old World War II veteran, Eddie, who works at an amusement park.  Eddie feels as if he has done nothing important with his life and has wasted his time on Earth.  He followed in his father’s footsteps of being maintenance at Ruby Pier.  He knows everything about the rides, especially when something is wrong.

On his 83rd birthday a horrific event occurs.  A cart becomes stuck at the very top of a ride.  Although all of the passengers are rescued, Eddie is the only one who notices a little girl at the bottom of the ride and that the cart is about to fall.  Though Eddie has a bad knee and a limp, he sprints and dives to grab the little girl and save her.  Right as Eddie feels the little girl’s hands in his, the cart crashes on top of Eddie, ending his life.  Eddie then awakens in Heaven, though this is not the typical Heaven that people on Earth dream of.

In this Heaven, Eddie has to meet five people before he can be in eternal happiness.  These five people consist of people he has met before or strangers he has never even seen.  Although he may not remember some of these people, they have all played a role in his life.  Eddie meets these five people in their own version of Heaven.  Eddie soon realizes the purpose of meeting them is so they can explain the purpose he had in life.  Each chapter ends with a part of Eddie’s life on Earth.  The novel gives a different view on Heaven.  The Five People you Meet in Heaven may also make the reader realize that they have a purpose in life. I would recommend this novel to anyone who enjoys a story that makes them have a different perspective on life.