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INTROSPECTION Realising someone’s worth always happens after a while.

Title: For one more day

Author: Mitch Albom

Publisher: Sphere Publishers

Price: Rs.195

For One More Day, by Mitch Albom is his third book after Tuesdays With Morrie and Five People You Meet in Heaven The prologue begins on a sad note with Charley Benetto, who tries to kill himself after his life falls apart due to alcohol. Full of regrets Charley goes back to his old home hwere life takes an unexpected turn. He meets his mother, who died eight years ago and spends an entire day with her.

 A Saga

Charley follows his mother and meets various people — Miss Thelma, Miss Rose and an Italian woman, who was his father’s first wife. As he meets all three of them, he looks back at his life, his college life, his days as a baseball champion, the times when he stood up for his mother and the times he didn’t. If none of us ever give importance to the words of our mothers or rather spend more time in understanding her, then, it’s high time we read this book. It conveys one of the best qualities that mothers have - the loving and nurturing quality.In this book, Charley, who failed to heed to whatever his mother said, realises, the amount of affection and love, she had for him, even at times he let her down. He realises the amount of tale-telling he has done to her and how many times he failed to respond to the letters she had written to him.

A transforming read

This book not only enthrals us, it also transforms our perspectives. Charley’s mother, the role model, teaches us about the importance of those small pleasures in life, hard work, acceptance and self-reliance. At the end of the book, as she lays her hand on Charley’s forehead, she says something which we have forgotten in today’s world: “Forgive yourself”. Soon after the dream, Charley wakes up to find himself injured in a car accident and he infers that he has had a brush with death. Remembering what his mother said, he firmly commits himself to strengthening relationships with those whom he loves for next three years. I firmly believe that people who read this book will have tears in their eyes especially when they understand how Charley’s mother welcomed him back as if nothing had happened. I also believe that as they read this book, they will learn and transform themselves as well.

NITHYA RAGHAVAN, Ist year, BBA, Manipal University, Dubai

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