Aimee

=Aimee=

//The Five People You Meet in Heaven// by Mitch Albom

Eddie is a wounded war veteran, an old man who has lived, in his mind, an uninspired life. His job is fixing rides at a seaside amusement park. On his 83rd birthday, a tragic accident kills him, as he tries to save a little girl from a falling cart. He awakes in the afterlife, where he learns that heaven is not a destination. It's a place where your life is explained to you by five people, some of whom you knew, others who may have been strangers. One by one, from childhood to soldier to old age, Eddie's five people revisit their connections to him on earth, illuminating the mysteries of his "meaningless" life, and revealing the haunting secret behind the eternal question: "Why was I here?" (Summary from Amazon.com)




 * This book was important** to me because I thought it gave a really good messge. It was a beautiful story, and I liked how it showed that each of our lives are so directly effected by the lives and decisions of everyone else. I love Mitch Albom's style of writing, the way he writes things so simply give them much more meaning.

**Alex G's comments**: I loved this book! I loved how the author introduced each character that Eddie met in heaven and the lessons he learned. So interesting and so good! (checked by mrs J 10/20 20 pts)

**Rebecca's comment:** I really liked this book and the messages behind it. I thought it was cool how the author made heaven not just a paradise but an explanation as to why Eddie's life on earth was important since he thought it was completely pointless.

//The Boy in the Striped Pajamas// by John Boyne This book is about a little boy named Bruno who lives in Germany pre WWII. He has a very nice lifestyle with a big home and lots of friends. When Brunos father is premoted to head of a concentration camp, Bruno and his family are fourced to move. Bruno originally hates his new home, but after exploring he comes across a high electric fence- with a boy his age on the other side. Bruno quickly befriends the boy despite the fact that he is not aloud to talk to anyone on the other side of the fence. Bruno spends everyday with his new friend, unaware that he is a Jew and that the fence actually surrounds a concentration camp. (reviewed by Aimee Meller)


 * This book is important to me** because I am Jewish, and I thought it was a very intresting way to write about the Holocaust. The author uses a lot of symbolism which I love. Since the entire book is from the point of veiw of a nine year old boy, he doesn't truly understand what is going on around him, or what his father does. In a way the author is very cynical, but covers it up with Bruno's naive outlook on everything.