Book Review- The Twelfth Angel

The Twelfth Angel by Og Mandino

★★★★★

Title: The Twelfth Angel

Author: Og Mandino

Publisher: Ballantine Books

Year Published: Originally, 1993

Genre: Fiction, Inspirational, Self Help

Format: Physical book

Synopsis:

John Harding had a high-powered career, a loving wife, and a beautiful son. He's lost it all and has returned to his home town of Boland, New Hampshire, teetering on the brink of suicide. But an old friend asks John to manage his old Little League team, the Angels. Reluctantly, he agrees, and meets a hopeless player who bears a striking resemblance to his dead son--and through their extroardinary relationship, John finds the wisdom in living that he thought had slipped beyond his grasp forever....

Review*:

    First off, I am not a fan of inspirational books like these. I do believe there is a time an a place, but for the most part I don't find satisfaction in them. The reason I read this book was because my Mother-In-Law suggested it to me, as a fan of reading. Og is one of her favorite authors, so she let me borrow The Twelfth Angel and The Spellbinders Gift. 

   Despite all of that, I enjoyed this book. Much more than the Spellbinders gift which I will do a review for later this week.

   To give a short over-view since I don't know many people that have read it. Our main character, John, is a middle aged man who was on top of the world. He had an amazing career, moved back to his home town and was considered to be a hero, and a loving family. Unfortunately, that family ended up in a fatal car accident and all of a sudden John is contemplating ending it as well. As he struggles through life without his wife and son, an old friend visits his door and manages to thrust John right into a reason to live. The towns Little League needs another coach, and since both men had grown up playing baseball together, they have a deep connection for the sport and the town. Feeling a sense of duty, John agrees to coach the Angels. While setting up his team, John meets a little boy who will change his life forever. While the season proceeds, John learns more an more about this little boy and grows to have a special place in his heart for him. However after the season ends, John finds out that his new friend only has a short time to live. In the end John is left with a powerful message that you should never give up, despite the odds.

   I read this book after a very traumatic event in my life. I'd been sitting on it since early, early this year and I never saw motivation to pick it up. Somehow, after a month of shit I just thought this is it, I'm going to read this stupid book.

  I can't say it changed my life. I think I'm a little too critical of a reader to find much comfort in such a simple but heartwarming story. However there were some quotes and lines I found myself relating to. Adding in old quotes is something that Mandino is really fond of placing throughout his stories. My particular favorite from this book is one he states is from Lord Byron, however my google search states it's from Bruce Lee, "A man can see further through a tear than a telescope."

    At first I was really angry with John for the stance he was taking in his grieving. I understand everyone can feel and express their sorrow differently, however his conclusion to commit suicide left me frustrated. Killing yourself to relieve the pain has never seemed like the correct answer to me for any situation, except maybe medically assisted suicide. His decision to live in his grief was very much the opposite of the way I was handling my own sadness. I wanted to remember, but I didn't want to become a ghost of my former self. 

   Watching John come back through baseball was a clean linear story. There wasn't a lot of reverting back into the darkness that consumed him in the aftermath of his family passing. I think it shows a very "traditional" path of grieving in that if you find something to distract yourself you will heal faster. I can agree to an extent that by keeping yourself from constantly living in the darkness, you can find a new normal easier, but having moments to allow yourself sadness and pain is also part of the journey. To see a little more of that, outside of John's confrontations with his pistol, I think would have made the story more impactful. 

   Over all, I wouldn't read this book again because I feel like I got the message I wanted out of it. However I seriously think this should be turned into a movie. It really should have been made a movie in the 90's, just due to the social climate we were in during that era would have been more fitting for executing the movie properly. It was a really easy book to pick up and read despite me not connecting with it. 

    

   

*This section may contain spoilers.