Since the books are short and sweet, I will give you a short and sweet review:
Have a Little Faith. Auntie Monica (my BFF) and I have had an ongoing discussion regarding religion and blind faith and is it necessary today (religion and/or blind faith) and this book really hit the spot with me. It is not a bible thumping book, it is however a book about believing in something. It is the story of two men, one a former drug dealer and convict, who as a very young man wanted to be a preacher and only found his way a grown man by preaching to homeless in an old church that is literally falling a part; the other an author who is drifting along in life after leaving his religion many years prior, until his 82 year old former rabbi asks him to deliver his eulogy. Not feeling worthy of the task, Albom sets forth to know and understand the man better. This book helped me to understand that it is indeed okay to believe in something bigger than me.
I read Tuesdays with Morrie right before we moved to the scorching desert and it helped me to gain and keep my perspective. It is about Mitch Albom again, and Morrie Schwartz, his college professor from nearly twenty years ago, only now, Morrie is dying. The two rekindle a friendship and re-learn about life in the process. Albom originally wrote the book to help with Morrie's medical bills. This book continues to guide me along the path of life with a slightly wider view and an astoundingly better understanding of the precious time we have here on earth.
I read The Five People You Meet in Heaven around the same time my grandmother died. The book is about Eddie, a cranky old man who used to be an optimistic young man. He works at an amusement park and his days are filled with regret and loneliness until his 83rd birthday, when he dies trying to save a little girl at the park. Eddie wakes up in the heaven – but it’s not a heaven Eddie had pictured. It is the place where your life on earth is explained to you by five people who were in it. These people could be anyone, and at some point, they changed the path Eddie had traveled while alive. One by one, Eddie's five people illuminate the unseen connections of his earthly life. As the story builds to its stunning conclusion, Eddie desperately seeks redemption in the still-unknown last act of his life: The story progresses while Eddie ponders that one question we all have, was my life a success or failure? Did I do it right? Great book. One that made me think.
I read For One More Day around the time my relationship with my mom was at one it its downhill points and at that same time, I found out my favorite Aunt, had died six months earlier. This book really hit home for me. If you have ever wondered what you would do if you could spend just one more day with someone you love but lost, this is the book for you. As a child Charlie had to choose between his mom or his dad. He chose the latter only to be abandoned by him later on. As an adult, Charlie loses his job and leaves his family. He is an alcoholic filled with regret. When he learns that his only daughter does not want him involved in her wedding. Charlie then decides to end it all and ends up taking a drive to his hometown, where stumbles upon his old house where surprisingly, his mom, who has been dead for eight years, is alive and welcomes him home where he finally has a chance to make amends.
I recommend each of these books to anyone who wants a good read that will also make them think after they put the book down. I've come to the conclusion that either Albom is really synced with the timing in my life, or (enter whisper here) I see parallels where there are none.
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