A review by bakingbookworm
The Happiest Man on Earth by Eddie Jaku

dark emotional hopeful informative inspiring reflective sad medium-paced

5.0

Wow. Simply wow.

I am so thankful that I listened to this memoir. I had borrowed both the hardcover and the eAudiobook from the library but I strongly suggest the audiobook. Hearing Jaku's life story told to me by talented narrator Raphael Corkhill made this memoir even more poignant. 

Readers will immediately be pulled into this short but powerful story about Eddie Jaku, a Holocaust survivor who, despite the horrors he faced during the war and his many near-death experiences, he remained hopeful and drew solace from his family and friends, finding joy in the tiniest of instances. 

“The best balm for the soul is friendship.”

“It is never too late to be kind, polite, and a loving human being.”

Emotional, inspirational and eye-opening, this book is a good reminder that despite what life throws at us, we have a choice. And if we focus on even the briefest moments of happiness, they can bring us through the toughest times and perhaps we can be the balm for someone else.

“Your efforts today will affect people you will never know. It is your choice whether that effect is positive or negative. You can choose every day, every minute, to act in a way that may uplift a stranger, or else drag them down. The choice is easy. And it is yours to make.”