Book Review - Tuesdays With Morrie by Mitch Albom

Morrie Schwartz was a teacher, educator, and author. He was diagnosed with Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis (ALS) which is better known as Lou Gehrig’s disease. There is no cure for this disease. Victims of this disease die slowly as they lose motor control of their body. He was interviewed several times by Ted Koppel during Nightline (a late night news show). Morrie Schwartz discussed about his illness. Rather than talk about the negative effects of his illness, he discussed about what he can do. One of his former students, Mitch Albom, saw him on television and decided to re-connect with his former teacher. Together they wrote a book,”Tuesdays with Morrie: An Old Man, A Young Man, and Life’s Greatest Lessons”.

“Tuesdays with Morrie” is about life lessons and perspectives of an elderly Morrie as he reflects on life. The story itself touched a nerve to anyone who heard the story. It became a television show produced by Oprah Winfrey. The book was the legacy of Morrie Schwartz as told to his former student, Mitch Albom. The book is not about dying. It was about living and making the most of our lives.

All of us will eventually die. Most people do not want to think about that. In our culture, death is a taboo subject that is only discussed when we get older. If we accept that death is inevitable whether it is a few months or a few decades away, then we can live life to its fullest. It is a cliche that we should live life to its fullest. The book,”Tuesdays with Morrie”, presents that point in an appreciative and uplifting way. The book points out the true meaning of family and relationships. We should stop and appreciate our relationships. Also, there are things that we can still do while we can. Morrie Schwartz loved to dance. As the disease took its toll on his body, he was unable to even stand up by himself. He was not bitter that he could not dance anymore. He reflected back that he was able to dance when he was not ill with Lou Gehrig’s disease.

Many people who have read the book or have watched the television movie usually reflects forward on their life. They start to appreciate what is important rather than be bitter about those regrets.

The book is written concisely. Mitch Albom presents the lessons from Morrie Schwartz in a poignant yet non-preachy way. It is reflective of Morrie Schwartz’s calm and soothing demeanor. According to the book, Morrie Schwartz’s epitaph states,”A Teacher to the Last”.

Book Review - Tuesdays With Morrie by Mitch Albom