Review: Have a Little Faith by Mitch Albom

Goodreads rating: 4.18/5

My rating: 4/5

Synopsis: Did you know that Mitch Albom is Jewish? He is. And the only rabbi he's ever followed in his entire life asked him to write his eulogy, years before his death. Mitch Albom doesn't just write him a eulogy, he writes this book, which is his rabbi's memoir. Alongside this, he writes about a pastor who was once a drug addict that had spent some time in prison.

The whole time I read this book, I had some of my atheist friends in mind. I was hoping I had found a book that may help them find faith again. However, I have to admit, this book wasn't strong enough to do so. Nonetheless, it was a very pleasant read. I don't know how Mitch Albom does it, he seems to be able to turn any simple story into something inspiring. I have not read a single book of his that hasn't left me feeling spiritually energized.

Albom seems to always be meeting some very special people and Albert Lewis, his rabbi from childhood, is definitely one of them. When Albert asked Mitch to write his eulogy, Mitch decided he had to get to know his rabbi as a person. He would visit him often with his notepad, interview him and make notes of any significant teachings or stories. Within the book, there are a few pages of some of Albert's sermons, most of which were quite inspiring. I guess that is why Mitch could not just write a eulogy, he had to write a book to share the wisdom that his rabbi had so generously taught him. Together they explored intermarriage, forgiveness, God and heaven, faith and endurance during difficult times. I was left with much to ponder on, as I usually am at the end of every Mitch Albom story. Below is an excerpt that had me exclaiming, "Ha!", regarding forgiveness:

" "... our sages tell us to repent exactly one day before we die."

But how do you know it's the day before you die? I asked.

He raised his eyebrows.

"Exactly." "

Mitch admits to turning a cold shoulder to religion but I could feel his faith being renewed. He hosted a charity which is how he met the pastor, Henry Covington. Before doing so, he asked his rabbi if he should be helping someone that was not Jewish and Albert told him that it didn't matter what religion the person was of. This itself showed that Mitch was applying all that he was learning from Albert and fundamentally practising his faith. In doing so, he realized that maybe the eulogy was not a favor he was doing but was rather, receiving.

The pastor's story is something else. He'd been to prison, dealt drugs that he was addicted to and yet was able to reform himself into a pastor. If that's not inspiring, I don't know what is! One thing that confused me, however, was the inclusion of pastor Henry in this book. He did have a compelling story but I wish this book was purely about Albert only, I feel like a separate book regarding the pastor could have been written. I kept waiting for Mitch to explain why he had written both stories alongside each other but none was given. There was a very small converging point but it was not enough for me to understand his vision for this book.

That's my only complaint about this story. As with every other book by Mitch, the writing was easy to comprehend, the teachings were valuable and it was definitely worth reading. As the blurb on the book says, this book is "about a life's purpose; about losing belief and finding it again; about the divine spark inside us all. It is one man's journey, but it is everyone's story." That indeed it is. Read it!