The Midnight Train

Finished July 25

The Midnight Train by Matt Haig.

This book came out of the responses from his previous book The Midnight Library, compelling him to explore these ideas about life in another way. Since I loved that book, I decided to try this one as well. 

The central character is Wilbur. First we see a vignette from his life, when he is on his honeymoon in Venice. Then we see him in the present, as he is nearing the end of his life, in his 80s, with regrets over his choices. He had a successful life, founding a bookstore chain and making lots of money, but he has sacrificed people and personal life over those choices. Unexpected contact with someone from his past gets him thinking and he finds himself in death, which is nothing like what he expected.

He is by train tracks, waiting for a train, greeted by someone from his past who will guide him on his journey, explaining the rules of travel and helping him understand what is happening. He is a version of himself where he was most himself, on that trip to Venice. The train will take him through time, over the course of his life. It will stop and key moments where he must get off and observe them, feeling the joy or pain or other emotions again and perhaps noticing things he hadn't noticed in the moment. The purpose of the journey is to help him better understand his life. When he hears the train, he must reboard and travel forward in time again. The train is a larger version of a toy train he had as a child.

As Wilbur witnesses his life, seeing things he hadn't noted, feeling the feelings again, he wants himself to have noticed, to choose differently, but that isn't how this journey works. But he can't help wondering whether it is possible to influence his younger self and make different decisions.

This is a fascinating read, that had me as a reader considering my choices, and what I might have done differently. What moments would my train stop for? This is a book that will stay with me.

The Five People You Meet in Heaven

Finished December 5
The Five People You Meet in Heaven by Mitch Albom

This has been sitting on my bedroom bookshelf for a while, and I finally pulled it off, and quite enjoyed it. The central character, Eddie, works as the lead mechanic at a coastal theme park. He's had a long life, and on his 83rd birthday we see him go about his day as normal, getting ready for work, making the rounds at the park checking on everything, and interacting with his co-workers and the public. Then, an unfortunate accident causes Eddie to react in a selfless way, and he is killed.
From here on the book takes Eddie through meetings with five people that influenced his life in some way. Some of them he recognizes right away, but others have to explain themselves.
As he hears the stories of these five people, he learns of their influence on his life, and his influence on their lives.
This is a story of a man looking back on his life with mixed feelings, regret, fond remembrance, guilt, and love. It is of a man who hopes that he has done well, but is afraid that he is not.
The view of his afterlife is a unique one, and one that brings comfort.