Book Review: For One More Day by Mitch Albom

“Have you ever lost someone you love and wanted one more conversation, one more chance to make up for the time when you thought they would be here forever? If so, then you know you can go your whole life collecting days, and none will outweigh the one you wish you had back.”

― Mitch Albom, For One More Day

Mitch Albom published the philosophic book For One More Day in 2006. It has mortality as a major topic, just as his earlier works. The narrative of a disturbed man and his mother is told in the book, which also looks at how someone may use the chance to spend a day with a long-lost family member.

Synopsis from Goodreads...

As a child, Charley "Chick" Benetto was told by his father, "You can be a mama's boy or a daddy's boy, but you can't be both." So he chooses his father, only to see the man disappear when Charley is on the verge of adolescence.

Decades later, Charley is a broken man. His life has been crumbled by alcohol and regret. He loses his job. He leaves his family. He hits bottom after discovering his only daughter has shut him out of her wedding. And he decides to take his own life.

He makes a midnight ride to his small hometown, with plans to do himself in. But upon failing even to do that, he staggers back to his old house, only to make an astonishing discovery. His mother, who died eight years earlier, is still living there, and welcomes him home as if nothing ever happened..

What follows is the one "ordinary" day so many of us yearn for, a chance to make good with a lost parent, to explain the family secrets, and to seek forgiveness. Somewhere between this life and the next, Charley learns the astonishing things he never knew about his mother and her sacrifices. And he tries, with her tender guidance, to put the crumbled pieces of his life back together.

My reaction to this novel...

In certain circumstances, reading a book causes you to reflect about the characters in the novel as well as your own life. That’s how I felt about Mitch Albom’s book. Have you ever wished for another day with someone you care about? A day when you could speak whatever you needed to say and make up for any past wrongdoing?

Before I add anything further, let me mention that this book is written with everyone in mind. Any young person may connect to it, regardless of their age, because we have all experienced similar experiences with our mothers. This is a story about every mother and her child.

So after losing everything that had any meaning in his life, Charley Benetto is at his lowest point. He comes to the conclusion that ordinary life is not worthy of experiencing. He then receives the benefit of spending another day with his mother, who has been deceased for eight years. This book is about connections, and it focuses on relationships between parents and children. I thoroughly like the narrative on the choices made across a lifetime. They began to reflect on their own lives and how easily loved ones might be overlooked by children and even adults, leading to unintentional harm. An elegant and captivating read.

This novel literally gave me goosebumps. It’s both surprising and lovely. Sincere and passionate. These plain, real, brilliantly crafted phrases made a particularly major influence on me, rather than any problematic expression or beautiful lines. I can’t put it into words. My eyes were filled with tears. I really suggest it to everyone, even those who aren’t big readers, because we may gain a lot from it.

My Overall Rating: ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐(5/5)

“When someone is in your heart, they're never truly gone. They can come back to you, even at unlikely times.”

Even if someone is gone for days, weeks, or even years, if we love them, we will always remember them. It will always seem as though our recollections of them can never, ever be erased by our thoughts. Even when the pain is no longer there, the memories are; often, the pleasant recollections are the ones that endure.

“But there's a story behind everything. How a picture got on a wall. How a scar got on your face. Sometimes the stories are simple, and sometimes they are hard and heartbreaking. But behind all your stories is always your mother's story, because hers is where yours begin.”

Every tale, in my opinion, has a beginning. Moreover, I believe everything started because of God. However, God gave us our mothers as the starting point of our lives. For our safe arrival on earth, we were safely inhabiting in our mother's womb. God chose to show us his unfailing love via our moms. She is the one tool that shapes us into who we are.

“You can go your whole life collecting days, and none will outweigh the one you wish you had back.”

Every second matters. Although we can always gather those memories, I also think it is very difficult to bring back every good memory we have if we look back on them. This, in my opinion, is one of the reasons why individuals find it difficult to recall happy moments because they are aware that there are times when they cannot be brought back. 

“One day spent with someone you love can change everything.”

There are many memories we have with people we know or even just by ourselves, but sharing them with someone we love is truly priceless. It fills our hearts with joy and value. Even with more costly items, we cannot trade it since spending time with them is a reward for our souls as much as for ourselves.

Where to buy this book...