Albom writes in the dedication of The Five People You Meet in Heaven that his uncle believed he lived an unimportant life and that he wrote this book for people like him. In what ways does Eddie express that he lived an unimportant life? For what reasons? What does Eddie believe would have made his life more important? In what ways does Eddie learn that his life was more important than he believed it was?

What is important about the story the Blue Man tells Eddie? What lesson does he teach him? Why is this an important lesson for Eddie to learn? How does it help him prepare for the four other lessons he will learn in heaven? What is the point of these lessons?

What impact did Eddie’s relationship with his father have on the rest of his life? How might Eddie have lived a different life if he’d had a different relationship with his father? How were Eddie and his father different? How were they the same? How does Eddie’s life parallel his father’s?