Tuesdays with Morrie

This article is about the book. For the film, see Tuesdays with Morrie (film).

Tuesdays with Morrie
Author(s)	Mitch Albom
Country	United States
Language	English
Genre(s)	Biographical Philosophical novel Memoir
Publisher	Random House
Publication date	1997
Media type	Print Hardcover & Paperback
Pages	192
ISBN	0-385-48451-8
OCLC Number	36130729
Dewey Decimal	378.1/2/092 B 21
LC Classification	LD571.B418 S383 1997

Tuesdays with Morrie is a 1997 non-fiction novel by American writer Mitch Albom. The story was later adapted by Thomas Rickman into a TV movie of the same name directed by Mick Jackson, which aired on 5 December 1999 and starred Jack Lemmon and Hank Azaria. The book topped the New York Times Non-Fiction Bestsellers of 2000.

In 2007, the 10th anniversary of the books publishing a new edition with an Afterword by Mitch Albom was released.

Synopsis

Newspaper columnist Mitch Albom recounts time spent with his 79-year-old sociology professor, Morrie Schwartz, at Brandeis University, who was dying from Lou Gehrig's disease (ALS). Albom, a former student of Schwartz, had not corresponded with him since attending his college classes 16 years earlier. The first three chapters incorporate an ambiguous introduction to the final conversation between Albom and Schwartz, a brief flashback to Albom's graduation, and an account of the events Albom experienced between graduation and the reunion with his professor.

Albom is a successful sports columnist for the Detroit Free Press despite his childhood dream of being a pianist. After seeing Schwartz on Nightline, Albom called Schwartz, who remembered his former pupil despite the lapse of 16 years. Albom was prompted to travel from Michigan to Massachusetts to visit Schwartz. A newspaper strike frees Albom to commute weekly, on Tuesdays, to visit with Schwartz. The resulting book is based on these fourteen Tuesdays they meet, supplemented with Schwartz's lectures and life experiences and interspersed with flashbacks and allusions to contemporary events.

Themes

Schwartz and Albom's conversations canvas acceptance, communication, love, values, openness, and happiness. Albom emphasizes the importance of forging a culture of one's own to transcend the tyranny of popular culture, suggesting that the media is preoccupied with death, hatred, violence and depression. Quoting his favorite poet, W. H. Auden, Schwartz insists we must "love each other or perish".

Throughout the text Albom's character changes as Schwartz's stories inspire him. Albom brings food to Schwartz at every visit, an affirmation of life and health. It is the only gift besides company that Albom is able to provide to Schwartz in his suffering.^{[citation needed]}

Symbols

As Schwartz's condition deteriorates, so does the hibiscus plant atop Schwartz's study. It represents the natural trajectory of life. Schwartz tells the story of a wave crashing into shore, symbolizing death. He acknowledges his fear of death, simultaneously reassuring Albom that he will go on to something greater. Schwartz repeats the aphorism "When you're in bed, you're dead" to symbolize his final surrender.^{[citation needed]}

See also

• The Five People You Meet in Heaven
• For One More Day
• The Last Lecture

References

• Roberts, Cokie. available "Mitch Albom in an interview by Cokie Roberts on Inside E Street, episode 1010,". http://www.aarp.org/politics-society/newsmakers/info-06-2010/inside-estreet-1010-morrie.htmlpreview available. </ref>

• Albom, Mitch (1997-08-18). "Tuesdays with Morrie". Random House. ISBN 9780767905923. http://books.google.com/?id=1nSgwQZXQOsC&printsec=frontcover&dq=Tuesdays+with+Morrie. Retrieved 2009-05-19. 
• Albom, Mitch (July 2007). Broadway Books. ISBN 978-0-7679-0592-3. 

External links

• Tuesdays with Morrie publication history at the Internet Book List
• Tuesdays with Morrie.com - Official website
• Summary and analysis of Tuesdays with Morrie at Sparknotes