-
Eddies 5th Birthday
On the day of his fifth birthday, Eddie receives a red cowboy hat from his mother. Also through this flashback, the reader is first introduced to the tattered and neglected relationship between Eddie and his father. The narrator also introduces Eddie's fathers friend, Mickey Shea, who gives Eddie "birthday bumps." This is the first of the many flashbacks to Eddie's past birthdays, leading up to his final birthday, the day of his death. -
The Blue Man
The first person Eddie meets in heaven is a stranger that he doesn't recognize: the Blue Man. Once he introduces himself, Eddie remembers he was part of the freak show at Ruby Pier when Eddie was a young boy. The lesson the Blue Man teaches Eddie is that every person in your life can impact your life and vice versa. When Eddie was young, he was playing in the street and the Blue Man was driving and swerved to avoid hitting Eddie, causing him to die. He took his life, like Eddie did for the girl. -
The Captain
THe second person Eddie meets in heaven is his captain from his service in WWII. The setting is the battleground; dark, muggy Phillippines. A flashback ensues to the juggling act Eddie performed for his captors that freed him and his fellow POWs. After excaping, Eddie notices a figure in a burning barn and runs to save it. In order to save Eddies life, the Captain shoots him in the leg, giving him the injury that depresses him for the rest of his life; leaving Eddie in shock. -
Tala
The final person Eddie meets in heaven is a young girl covered in burns and blisters. She tells him, in all the English she can muster, that her name is Tala. She explains that she is the young girl from the barn that he saw in the Phillippines. Eddie then washes her of her injuries. The lesson she teaches Eddie is that his meaning in life was to be protecting children at the Ruby Pier. -
Ruby
In an old cafe, Eddie meets Ruby, who he has never met in his life. She is the wife of the man who built the Ruby Pier and when the first pier burnt down she says it ruined her husbands spirits and financial situation, Ruby tells Eddie that she wishes it had never been built, though it was a fond memeory of her marriage. Even though they never met, Ruby's impact on Eddie would change his life. -
Joe
Eddie's brother, Joe, plays a big part in Eddie's life because Eddie is constantly compared to Joe. A welathy family man with a business in FLorida takes a toll on Eddie's confidence. Even though Joe was always a good brother to Eddie, their father never missed a chance to compare the two, and Eddie alwasy admired Joe. Eddie was stronger and athletic but Joe had all the smarts. They were closer than Eddie was with his father, but their differences set them apart and made them unrelatable. -
Weddings
Eddie opens up the doors to a wedding reception and is confused as to who he should be meeting next. Each door he opnes is a wedding celebrated in a differect culture. Finally, he sees Margaruite, his long-time love and wife who passed away years before. Looking just as she did the day they met, he feels as if this is the first time he has layed eyes on her. She explains the meaning of true love, and that it doesn't die with death. She tells him she still loves him and always will. -
Eddie's Death
Ironically, Eddie, the long-time maintenance man of the Ruby Pier, tragically dies on the day of his 83rd birthday. Bravely attemtping to save a young girl from a rollercoaster gone wild, Eddie lays down his life. However, since he immediately acsends to heaven, he's not quite sure as to whether or not the girl lived. Throughout the book, Eddie desperately questions the meaningfulness of his life and if the young girl survived. -
Ruby Pier
Dominquez, a maintenance worker at Ruby Pier and friend of Eddies, takes Eddie's job after he dies. He collects Eddie's documents and tells the preist about Eddie's life for his funeral service. This is important because Eddie knew the Pier would be in good hands. -
Meaning
After meeting the five people in heaven, Eddie finds out he did succesfully save the young girl from being crushed by the Ruby Pier coaster. He also realizes that he will be one of the people waiting for her in heaven to tell her about the story of her rescue and his death in doing so. Eddie's realization of purpose in life is life changing. -
Maintenance for Life
With intentions of getting far from Ruby Pier and never working there, Eddie doesn't accomplish much. WHen his father becomes sick and goes in the hospital, Eddie takes his father's spot as the maintenance man at Ruby PIer. Because of his health, Eddie permanently takes his fathers position as the maintenance man and does that until his last day. Although it never was his intentions, the Ruby Pier was where he truly belonged. -
Antagonist
Throughout the book, we see Eddie's father shine through as the antagonist of the story. The severred realtionship between the two is unmendable and it hurts Eddie insde, creating internal conflict, though he never shows his pain. His father is hard on Eddie, unappreciateive, and unnecessarily harsh. THey also have extrenal conflist with the physical abuse from his dad. Though they never fix their relationship, Eddie never lost respect for his dad.
