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The Ten Best Days of My Life
Twenty-nine-year-old Alexandra Dorenfield suddenly finds herself in heaven after an unfortunate encounter with a MINI Cooper. The seventh—and highest—level of heaven to be exact. Her dog, Peaches, is with her; she is reunited with her beloved grandparents; she has the wardrobe of a movie star; and she lives in the house of her dreams next door to a handsome guy. This is heaven! But there’s a catch. Alex must prove she led a fulfilling existence by writing an essay on the ten best days of her life—or she will be demoted to a lower level of heaven, where the clothes are last year’s styles, the men aren’t quite as handsome, and, worst of all, Peaches and her family won’t be nearby. Witty and inspiring, this divine debut novel dares to ask a material girl—and the rest of us—what makes life precious.
261 pages, Paperback
First published January 1, 2008
About the author
Adena Halpern
7 books139 followersBREAKING NEWS: 20th Century Fox has just attained the rights to Adena's most recent novel, 29! Look for it in theaters soon!
Adena Halpern is the author of a memoir TARGET UNDERWEAR AND A VERA WANG GOWN- NOTES FROM A SINGLE GIRL'S CLOSET and the novel THE TEN BEST DAYS OF MY LIFE. Adena has also written for Marie Claire, Daily Variety and The New York Times. She has a Bachelor of Fine Arts degree in dramatic writing from New York University and a Master of Fine Arts degree in screenwriting from The American Film Institute. 20th Century Fox has attained the rights to THE TEN BEST DAYS OF MY LIFE with Amy Adams to star. A proud Philadelphia native, she resides in Los Angeles with her husband, screenwriter Jonathan Goldstein.
Adena Halpern is the author of a memoir TARGET UNDERWEAR AND A VERA WANG GOWN- NOTES FROM A SINGLE GIRL'S CLOSET and the novel THE TEN BEST DAYS OF MY LIFE. Adena has also written for Marie Claire, Daily Variety and The New York Times. She has a Bachelor of Fine Arts degree in dramatic writing from New York University and a Master of Fine Arts degree in screenwriting from The American Film Institute. 20th Century Fox has attained the rights to THE TEN BEST DAYS OF MY LIFE with Amy Adams to star. A proud Philadelphia native, she resides in Los Angeles with her husband, screenwriter Jonathan Goldstein.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 208 reviews
February 6, 2011
A heavenly novel about what truly matters in life. In this hilarious and heartwarming first novel, twentynine- year-old Alexandra Dorenfield suddenly finds herself in heaven after an unfortunate encounter with a Mini Cooper. The seventh—and highest—level of heaven to be exact. Her dog Peaches is with her; she is reunited with her beloved grandparents; she has the wardrobe of a movie star; and she lives in the house of her dreams next door to a handsome guy. This is heaven! But there’s a catch. Alex must prove she led a fulfilling existence by writing an essay on the ten best days of her life— or she will be demoted to a lower level of heaven, where the clothes are last year’s styles, the men aren’t quite as handsome, and worst of all, Peaches and her family won’t be nearby. Witty and inspiring, this divine debut novel dares to ask a material girl—and the rest of us—what makes life precious.
The plot of The Best Ten Days of My Life is one of the most inspired plots I have ever come across. I’ve read over 400 novels and this would make my top five favourite plots easily because it’s just so unique. I must admit, I wouldn’t like to have to write an essay about the best ten days of my life, because at 20 years of age it wouldn’t be very inspiring, but for Alex to do it at 29, after being killed by a Mini Cooper (of all things!), it was inspiring. I loved delving into Alex’s mind and re-living the days she crowned as the best of her life. They aren’t all life-changing, and they aren’t all perfect but it’s easy to see why they were chosen. If you read this book for any reason, it has to be for the plot.
Because the book is mainly told in flashbacks to Alex’s best days of her life, and because she’s in heaven also where everything is perfect, there aren’t that many characters that we come across and it’s a fairly tight-knit cast. Alex is a wonderful main character, she’s flawed but she’s totally warm and bubbly and loveable. The closeness she has with her family, her parents, grandparents and Uncle, is something not a lot of people have and I loved their little quirks and routines when they were all together. They seemed so so wonderful, despite the ups and downs that occured. I loved Alex’s dog Peaches, and Alex’s best friend Pen and Adam, the man Alex meets in Heaven just seems perfect. I love it when each of the characters make an impact on me and that’s true with this book.
The Ten Best Days of My Life is written very, very well. It’s told entirely from Alex’s point of view and we meet her just after she’s died whilst she waits to go into heaven. We then see what it’s like living in Seventh Heaven, before getting onto her 10 best days of her life. They’re separated into chapters and interspersed between are Alex’s musings on heaven and her life. I loved how the book was presented, with each day having a separate chapter and I thoroughly enjoyed the ride Adena Halpern took us on. It was emotional, but it was good emotional.
I absolutely loved this book. I’m not kidding, I thought it was amazing. The plot was well-executed, the writing was fantastic and I absolutely loved Alex. But what really got me was the message it sent out. Just because you think you haven’t lived a fulfilled life, once you get the chance to actually revisit days in your past you do realise that maybe it wasn’t all a lost cause, and that maybe you can make your mark on the world without actually realising it. It made me laugh, it made me cry, and I didn’t want it to end, ever.
The plot of The Best Ten Days of My Life is one of the most inspired plots I have ever come across. I’ve read over 400 novels and this would make my top five favourite plots easily because it’s just so unique. I must admit, I wouldn’t like to have to write an essay about the best ten days of my life, because at 20 years of age it wouldn’t be very inspiring, but for Alex to do it at 29, after being killed by a Mini Cooper (of all things!), it was inspiring. I loved delving into Alex’s mind and re-living the days she crowned as the best of her life. They aren’t all life-changing, and they aren’t all perfect but it’s easy to see why they were chosen. If you read this book for any reason, it has to be for the plot.
Because the book is mainly told in flashbacks to Alex’s best days of her life, and because she’s in heaven also where everything is perfect, there aren’t that many characters that we come across and it’s a fairly tight-knit cast. Alex is a wonderful main character, she’s flawed but she’s totally warm and bubbly and loveable. The closeness she has with her family, her parents, grandparents and Uncle, is something not a lot of people have and I loved their little quirks and routines when they were all together. They seemed so so wonderful, despite the ups and downs that occured. I loved Alex’s dog Peaches, and Alex’s best friend Pen and Adam, the man Alex meets in Heaven just seems perfect. I love it when each of the characters make an impact on me and that’s true with this book.
The Ten Best Days of My Life is written very, very well. It’s told entirely from Alex’s point of view and we meet her just after she’s died whilst she waits to go into heaven. We then see what it’s like living in Seventh Heaven, before getting onto her 10 best days of her life. They’re separated into chapters and interspersed between are Alex’s musings on heaven and her life. I loved how the book was presented, with each day having a separate chapter and I thoroughly enjoyed the ride Adena Halpern took us on. It was emotional, but it was good emotional.
I absolutely loved this book. I’m not kidding, I thought it was amazing. The plot was well-executed, the writing was fantastic and I absolutely loved Alex. But what really got me was the message it sent out. Just because you think you haven’t lived a fulfilled life, once you get the chance to actually revisit days in your past you do realise that maybe it wasn’t all a lost cause, and that maybe you can make your mark on the world without actually realising it. It made me laugh, it made me cry, and I didn’t want it to end, ever.
October 11, 2012
We had the best conversation with this book group selection! We had more fun naming our "ten best days." It was really a fabulous way to really get to know book group friends.
February 7, 2017
The Ten Best Days of My Life by Adena Halpern was such a cute story. Alexandra Dorenfield finally finds her purpose in life and then gets hit and killed by a Mini Cooper. When she arrives in Heaven, she find it to be more than she expected, but there is a caveat...she must write an essay on the ten best days of her mortal life. Thus begins the body of the story as she reflects back as to what really mattered and didn't matter in her short life. This was a cute story, and I look forward to reading more by this author.
Go Cards! L1C4!!
Go Cards! L1C4!!
April 7, 2011
Alex (that's Alexandra NOT Alexander) Dorenfield is living her normal 29 year old life when she suddenly finds herself in seventh heaven - the REAL seventh heaven. That's right, she dies. I'm not giving away any secrets here. The first line of the book is "I died today, which is so weird." Sadly, dying doesn't guarantee a stress free life, as Alex finds out. The powers that be aren't really sure Alex belongs in seventh heaven - maybe she's more suited for fourth. So Alex sets out to prove her worth by writing an essay of her ten best days.
Don't fall into the trap of thinking this book will be anything like Mitch Albom's "The Five People You Meet in Heaven". While the themes are similar, "five people" was deep and kind of dreary. "the ten best days of my life" is a light hearted and fun book. I actually laughed out loud more than once. Despite this it also asks some pretty deep and interesting questions - if you died today, what have you done to change the world? Can you think of ten days that defined the direction your life was taking?
I couldn't help but ask myself what my ten best days would be. I totally copped out on the first six by including my two wedding dates and the birth dates of each of my kids. Yes, I included my first wedding. Surprised? Well, it was an amazing day. It was my first true rebellion - which turned out to be a disaster, but at the time felt very freeing and grown up. And it set my feet on the path to all the rest of the wonderful things that happened in my life after that. That's the fantastic thing about the best days. Not only are the activities of the day amazing, but the aftereffects are life changing and not to be missed.
OK - this book is not going to win any big awards. It's not full of great insights into what heaven might really be like. If you are looking for spiritual insights, look in a spiritual book. This isn't one of those. Adena Halpern is also pretty honest about what 29 years in this world might include (although the descriptions aren't what I'd call explicit) - so if you have sensitive ears you may want to skip a part or two. That said, it is a great escape book. Perfect for the beach or just an easy 'get away from my life for a few hours' read.
Don't fall into the trap of thinking this book will be anything like Mitch Albom's "The Five People You Meet in Heaven". While the themes are similar, "five people" was deep and kind of dreary. "the ten best days of my life" is a light hearted and fun book. I actually laughed out loud more than once. Despite this it also asks some pretty deep and interesting questions - if you died today, what have you done to change the world? Can you think of ten days that defined the direction your life was taking?
I couldn't help but ask myself what my ten best days would be. I totally copped out on the first six by including my two wedding dates and the birth dates of each of my kids. Yes, I included my first wedding. Surprised? Well, it was an amazing day. It was my first true rebellion - which turned out to be a disaster, but at the time felt very freeing and grown up. And it set my feet on the path to all the rest of the wonderful things that happened in my life after that. That's the fantastic thing about the best days. Not only are the activities of the day amazing, but the aftereffects are life changing and not to be missed.
OK - this book is not going to win any big awards. It's not full of great insights into what heaven might really be like. If you are looking for spiritual insights, look in a spiritual book. This isn't one of those. Adena Halpern is also pretty honest about what 29 years in this world might include (although the descriptions aren't what I'd call explicit) - so if you have sensitive ears you may want to skip a part or two. That said, it is a great escape book. Perfect for the beach or just an easy 'get away from my life for a few hours' read.
November 11, 2009
I love the way Alex reflect upon her life that she lived on earth in and essay ..and realizes only in the end of it all that it was a fulfilling life she lead...i think she had realized in her subconscious mind when she stated working on her how ..dressing up people.
We all do come to this point in our life..when we wait, look around and think for ourselves...is our life worthwhile, have we done any good to people around us, our parent...are we heading to right direction in our lives, what do we want out of our life...
some people question themselves quite later in their in their life time...some do it quiet early on...This Book made me think,look back, reflect upon my life till date...i admit was hard task...still looking for answers...anyway this isnt about me..
i had great time reading this book and i surely recommend all those..materialistic ...overly pampered daughters to read it too.
Enjoy!
We all do come to this point in our life..when we wait, look around and think for ourselves...is our life worthwhile, have we done any good to people around us, our parent...are we heading to right direction in our lives, what do we want out of our life...
some people question themselves quite later in their in their life time...some do it quiet early on...This Book made me think,look back, reflect upon my life till date...i admit was hard task...still looking for answers...anyway this isnt about me..
i had great time reading this book and i surely recommend all those..materialistic ...overly pampered daughters to read it too.
Enjoy!
October 24, 2012
3.5 stars. Fun book. The beginning was a little rough for me, because the heroine, Alexandra, was, well, a little annoying. But – she’d just died, at 29, so I guess she had a right. The descriptions of heaven and its rules, levels, conditions, etc. were fun…loved it. I love the concept of thinking about the 10 best days of your life and how they represent you and what you value in life. What seemed like a fun, beachy read, actually ended up having some thought-provoking substance. By the end of the story, I grew to care for Alexandra. Her return to Earth, for her wake, was bittersweet and made me cry. If only they’d given her a reprieve! Yet, alive or dead, the lessons she learned are timeless: be true to yourself, love your family and friends, and be a good person...not matter how long you live, life is too short.
August 15, 2013
Well, I stuck with it to the end, but it was pretty diabolical. Depressingly formulaic: self-centred, spoilt rich princess realises~ she is actually a contributing member of society? Yeah, right. The protagonist's voice is particularly grating, describing her so-called best-friend in such judgemental, shallow language I almost gave up right there. But I hate to not finish a book so I plodded on, right to the chicklit-by-numbers hackneyed ending. Do yourself a favour and steer clear.
Plus side? It's mercifully short.
Plus side? It's mercifully short.
January 11, 2016
This sappy, silly, light read has been sitting on my shelf for years, and I'm so glad I finally got to it. Both entertaining and thought-provoking, I laughed and ugly-cried, and was even able to look past the fact the timeline doesn't add up and the typos (perhaps mine is an ARC that isn't marked as such?).
November 3, 2008
I loved this very quick, light read about an essay the heroine must write in order to get into the 7th level of heaven. The title of the book makes for good conversation. If you had to write an essay about the 10 best days of your life, what would YOU include?
October 12, 2017
I really enjoyed reading this book. It was light and funny and an entirely different perspective on heaven. I never thought about heaven from this angle. How awesome would it be if heaven was like it was portrayed in this book?!?! Who knows... it's probably beyond our wildest dreams or novels!
December 18, 2022
This book was hilarious! I love books when the author makes the character interact with the reader also. I highly recommend checking this book out!
July 1, 2008
This book was fun to read about the perfect heaven after death. We all would want to be on the seventh level. You'll understand what I mean if you read this book.
February 3, 2023
I had high hopes for this book. Mainly because i love Drop Dead Diva. Even though in this book she does not come back from death. I think that my hopes let this down a bit. I think what brought this book down was the fact that i didnt like the main character. She is bratty and seemed to not have any morals. What also bothered me was that majority of the book goes in great detail of her days but what happens after she submits the essay. Seemed as though i was missing pages. When i turned the last page i was expecting more and yet that was it.
I did love that she did learn from this test but it was missing a lot of conclusion to the story. At the end it skips ten years and goes in to detail about who is joining her there but then rushed to an end.
I did buy a few of her other books along with this one solely based off of reviews and also the description im hoping they are better than this one.
This book is about a 29 year old woman that has it all. She has all the opportunity to lead a great life. She ruins it by thinking of herself as a miracle child. Alex is an only child and her dad owns his own company making them really rich. Alex screws up her life by not knowing the value of a dollar and thinking she deserves everything. She is forced to work at her dads company to pay back her debt. One day she sees this man she finds really attractive and makes a point to see him nearly every day at lunch. Alex does not know who this man is because its at a salad restaurant . This man Charles is actually the son of the lawyers for her dads company. Once he asked her dad if he could take her out and her dad gave an over the top approval that is when Alex instantly wanted nothing to do with him. (WHAT makes no sense at all. She loved her family and yes at the time she was mad at her dad but that is because she was acting entitled. It seemed really off to me.) Any way she learns to move on and life changes from that moment on.
I did love that she did learn from this test but it was missing a lot of conclusion to the story. At the end it skips ten years and goes in to detail about who is joining her there but then rushed to an end.
I did buy a few of her other books along with this one solely based off of reviews and also the description im hoping they are better than this one.
This book is about a 29 year old woman that has it all. She has all the opportunity to lead a great life. She ruins it by thinking of herself as a miracle child. Alex is an only child and her dad owns his own company making them really rich. Alex screws up her life by not knowing the value of a dollar and thinking she deserves everything. She is forced to work at her dads company to pay back her debt. One day she sees this man she finds really attractive and makes a point to see him nearly every day at lunch. Alex does not know who this man is because its at a salad restaurant . This man Charles is actually the son of the lawyers for her dads company. Once he asked her dad if he could take her out and her dad gave an over the top approval that is when Alex instantly wanted nothing to do with him. (WHAT makes no sense at all. She loved her family and yes at the time she was mad at her dad but that is because she was acting entitled. It seemed really off to me.) Any way she learns to move on and life changes from that moment on.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
July 25, 2022
"...wenn ich also einen guten Aufsatz schreibe, darf ich im siebten Himmel bleiben..." S.140
Als Alex mit ihrem Hund spazieren geht, ahnt sie nicht, dass das der letzte Tag ihres Lebens sein würde. Ein Auto überfährt die 29-Jährige, die sich kurz danach vor den Toren des siebten Himmels befindet. Dort gibt es alles, was ihr Herz begehrt und was sie sich schon immer gewünscht hat, inklusive dem Wiedersehen ihrer bereits verstorbenen Verwandten. Doch einen Haken hat das Ganze: ob sie wirklich hier bleiben darf, soll ein Aufsatz über die zehn besten Tage ihres Lebens entscheiden.
Dieses Buch beginnt mit dem Tod der Protagonistin und fängt damit erst richtig an. Man erfährt einiges über das Leben von Alex und irgendwie war sie mir meist unsympathisch während der ganzen Geschichte. Dann beginnt sie ihren Aufsatz zu schreiben und ich habe selbst darüber nachgedacht, welche Tage in meinem Leben bisher die schönsten waren. So rückte Alex beim Lesen immer weiter in den Hintergrund für mich. Nichtsdestotrotz geht es ja hier um dieses Buch. Es liest sich locker und leicht, handelt aber für meinen Geschmack ein bisschen zu sehr von Mode und Filmen, die ich kaum bis gar nicht kenne. Immer mal blitzen kurze Passagen durch, in denen mir Alex wirklich sympathisch rüber kam, aber irgendwie wurde ich nicht warm mit ihr. Am Ende wird ihr klar, was wirklich zählt im Leben und dass es nicht darauf ankommt, wieviel Kalmotten etc. man hat. Wow. Was für eine bahnbrechende Erkenntnis. Applaus. Alles in allem also ein okayes (darf man dieses Wort so verwenden!?) Buch.
Als Alex mit ihrem Hund spazieren geht, ahnt sie nicht, dass das der letzte Tag ihres Lebens sein würde. Ein Auto überfährt die 29-Jährige, die sich kurz danach vor den Toren des siebten Himmels befindet. Dort gibt es alles, was ihr Herz begehrt und was sie sich schon immer gewünscht hat, inklusive dem Wiedersehen ihrer bereits verstorbenen Verwandten. Doch einen Haken hat das Ganze: ob sie wirklich hier bleiben darf, soll ein Aufsatz über die zehn besten Tage ihres Lebens entscheiden.
Dieses Buch beginnt mit dem Tod der Protagonistin und fängt damit erst richtig an. Man erfährt einiges über das Leben von Alex und irgendwie war sie mir meist unsympathisch während der ganzen Geschichte. Dann beginnt sie ihren Aufsatz zu schreiben und ich habe selbst darüber nachgedacht, welche Tage in meinem Leben bisher die schönsten waren. So rückte Alex beim Lesen immer weiter in den Hintergrund für mich. Nichtsdestotrotz geht es ja hier um dieses Buch. Es liest sich locker und leicht, handelt aber für meinen Geschmack ein bisschen zu sehr von Mode und Filmen, die ich kaum bis gar nicht kenne. Immer mal blitzen kurze Passagen durch, in denen mir Alex wirklich sympathisch rüber kam, aber irgendwie wurde ich nicht warm mit ihr. Am Ende wird ihr klar, was wirklich zählt im Leben und dass es nicht darauf ankommt, wieviel Kalmotten etc. man hat. Wow. Was für eine bahnbrechende Erkenntnis. Applaus. Alles in allem also ein okayes (darf man dieses Wort so verwenden!?) Buch.
February 13, 2018
* spoiler alert* The ten best days of my life by Adena Halpern.
This is my review about the book: The ten best days of my life.
If you like fantasy, sci-fi, drama and a little bit of romance you're at the right place, if you don't like any of these genres you have to find a another book review to copy ( sorry buddy), and if you want to know this book contains 261 pages and I would say this book is for the ages 13 or higher.
I hope you will enjoy my review.
This story is about a girl named: Alex Dorenfield, and I know what you're thinking:' another drama book, boring', well you're wrong, and why? well let me tell the story.
Well where was I? oh. This story is about a girl named: Alex Dorenfield. This girl had a normal life, normal days, normal work, normal house, but this day was not normal, no she died while she was walking out her dog Peaches. She was hit by a mini cooper( can you believe that, she was killed by a MINI COOPER) ohh and her dog Peaches died also. Well just like all the other people she went to heaven, she thought everyone was in heaven, but no. You see heaven has 7 planes, and Alex she was luckily in the 7th plane. That means that you get everything you wish for, because the angels said you worked hard enough on earth, so you can relax in heaven. But the lower plane you get the worse it gets. Alex was very happy, because she had her dreamhouse, dream man and everthing she wanted. But when everything went better and better, her guardian angel appears and tells her that everyone in the 7th heaven had done something very good in their life’s like: built an school for childeren, or saved people from death, but Alex hadn’t accomplished anything in her life. So the guardian angels told her she had to write an essay about the ten best days of her life in order to stay in the 7th plane and if her essay is not good enough she wil go planes lower.
Will Alex stay in the 7th plane with her dreams or wil she go planes lower or worse to: HELL.
If you want to see what is going to happen with Alex and Peaches ,read: The ten best day of my life by Adena Halpern.
This is my review about the book: The ten best days of my life.
If you like fantasy, sci-fi, drama and a little bit of romance you're at the right place, if you don't like any of these genres you have to find a another book review to copy ( sorry buddy), and if you want to know this book contains 261 pages and I would say this book is for the ages 13 or higher.
I hope you will enjoy my review.
This story is about a girl named: Alex Dorenfield, and I know what you're thinking:' another drama book, boring', well you're wrong, and why? well let me tell the story.
Well where was I? oh. This story is about a girl named: Alex Dorenfield. This girl had a normal life, normal days, normal work, normal house, but this day was not normal, no she died while she was walking out her dog Peaches. She was hit by a mini cooper( can you believe that, she was killed by a MINI COOPER) ohh and her dog Peaches died also. Well just like all the other people she went to heaven, she thought everyone was in heaven, but no. You see heaven has 7 planes, and Alex she was luckily in the 7th plane. That means that you get everything you wish for, because the angels said you worked hard enough on earth, so you can relax in heaven. But the lower plane you get the worse it gets. Alex was very happy, because she had her dreamhouse, dream man and everthing she wanted. But when everything went better and better, her guardian angel appears and tells her that everyone in the 7th heaven had done something very good in their life’s like: built an school for childeren, or saved people from death, but Alex hadn’t accomplished anything in her life. So the guardian angels told her she had to write an essay about the ten best days of her life in order to stay in the 7th plane and if her essay is not good enough she wil go planes lower.
Will Alex stay in the 7th plane with her dreams or wil she go planes lower or worse to: HELL.
If you want to see what is going to happen with Alex and Peaches ,read: The ten best day of my life by Adena Halpern.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
May 18, 2023
📖: The Best Ten Days of My Life
✍🏻: Adena Halpern
Rated: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
Twenty-nine-year-old Alexandra Dorenfield suddenly finds herself in heaven after an unfortunate encounter with a MINI Cooper. The seventh—and highest—level of heaven to be exact. Her dog, Peaches, is with her; she is reunited with her beloved grandparents; she has the wardrobe of a movie star; and she lives in the house of her dreams next door to a handsome guy. This is heaven!
But there’s a catch. Alex must prove she led a fulfilling existence by writing an essay on the ten best days of her life—or she will be demoted to a lower level of heaven, where the clothes are last year’s styles, the men aren’t quite as handsome, and, worst of all, Peaches and her family won’t be nearby.
Thoughts💭:
This book was such a fun, quick enjoyable book. I loved all the characters, especially Alex. She was which a well developed character. I loved learning about her life trough her best 10 days. This was a story about life and death. But it’s a happy fun story. Yes, I cried but only tears of happiness. So don’t let that deter you from reading this book. There’s lots of heart and meaning in this book.
✍🏻: Adena Halpern
Rated: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
Twenty-nine-year-old Alexandra Dorenfield suddenly finds herself in heaven after an unfortunate encounter with a MINI Cooper. The seventh—and highest—level of heaven to be exact. Her dog, Peaches, is with her; she is reunited with her beloved grandparents; she has the wardrobe of a movie star; and she lives in the house of her dreams next door to a handsome guy. This is heaven!
But there’s a catch. Alex must prove she led a fulfilling existence by writing an essay on the ten best days of her life—or she will be demoted to a lower level of heaven, where the clothes are last year’s styles, the men aren’t quite as handsome, and, worst of all, Peaches and her family won’t be nearby.
Thoughts💭:
This book was such a fun, quick enjoyable book. I loved all the characters, especially Alex. She was which a well developed character. I loved learning about her life trough her best 10 days. This was a story about life and death. But it’s a happy fun story. Yes, I cried but only tears of happiness. So don’t let that deter you from reading this book. There’s lots of heart and meaning in this book.
February 16, 2021
I'm a puddle. No, I'm a poodle.
It's like I've died and gone to heaven.
I admit it: I cried. I loved this little book and recommend it to all readers.
Beautiful and hopeful and sweet and funny. I love her writing. Is there more?
"A kiss though. A kiss to me is the most intimate thing two people can share, and I think I spent the rest of my life searching for another kiss that was just as good as the first one."
* My 10 best days:
I gotta start with these two:
The birth dates of my two children
1. March 17, 1983
2. November 18, 1990
And my wedding day:
3. September 4, 1989
The birthdays of the grandbabes (OMG!):
4. November 21, 2014
5. February 6, 2020
The day “the kids” called to tell us we were gonna be grandparents:
6. Spring 2014
The day I got on the bus from New Jersey to California:
7. Summer 1979
My first day at Local 347:
8. February 22, 1988
The day Don got a liver transplant, and we won a great contract and a hopeful new mayor:
9. June 27, 2001
And my new next favorite day is when we get to hug again:
10. TBA
It's like I've died and gone to heaven.
I admit it: I cried. I loved this little book and recommend it to all readers.
Beautiful and hopeful and sweet and funny. I love her writing. Is there more?
"A kiss though. A kiss to me is the most intimate thing two people can share, and I think I spent the rest of my life searching for another kiss that was just as good as the first one."
* My 10 best days:
I gotta start with these two:
The birth dates of my two children
1. March 17, 1983
2. November 18, 1990
And my wedding day:
3. September 4, 1989
The birthdays of the grandbabes (OMG!):
4. November 21, 2014
5. February 6, 2020
The day “the kids” called to tell us we were gonna be grandparents:
6. Spring 2014
The day I got on the bus from New Jersey to California:
7. Summer 1979
My first day at Local 347:
8. February 22, 1988
The day Don got a liver transplant, and we won a great contract and a hopeful new mayor:
9. June 27, 2001
And my new next favorite day is when we get to hug again:
10. TBA
July 29, 2019
2.5 stars rounded up to 3. I wanted to like this book more, I really did, the concept is a reflective, intriguing, and funny coming of age tale. What are the 10 best days of your life? And based on them, is your life fulfilling enough to deserve eternity at the 7th level of heaven (no calorie counting, dream home, dream car). I found Alex more annoying than endearing and I tried really, really hard to like her. The flow of the story also didn't work for me with major shifts between paragraphs that were confusing. What really did it (or rather did me in) was the poor editing. There were so many misspelled words and errors with punctuation that it read like it was edited by a 5th grader. Great plot idea, just poorly executed.
December 31, 2017
When I first read the synopsis for this book, it really sounded like something I’d like. I liked the sample, and downloaded the book, excited to get started.
The story takes place after the central character of the book has died; and no, this is NOT a spoiler. That’s the first sentence!
Picture It’s a Wonderful Life meets Touched by An Angel, but not as compelling, or profound.
Some tender moments, but mostly whiny, self indulgent prattle.
One thing in it!s favor though, it was over quickly....just like her life.
The story takes place after the central character of the book has died; and no, this is NOT a spoiler. That’s the first sentence!
Picture It’s a Wonderful Life meets Touched by An Angel, but not as compelling, or profound.
Some tender moments, but mostly whiny, self indulgent prattle.
One thing in it!s favor though, it was over quickly....just like her life.
June 3, 2021
This was a really great book! Not going to lie, I wasn’t expecting much however I really enjoyed it.
The story is of a young woman who dies and goes to heaven. She meets up with her grandparents, gets a great house, and food doesn’t make you fat! But there’s a small catch, she might be in the wrong area of Heaven and now she has to plead her case to stay.
The story is funny and heartbreaking too. The character is a young Jewish woman and the scene of shiva at her parent’s house literally made me cry.
Definitely a great book and I would recommend it.
The story is of a young woman who dies and goes to heaven. She meets up with her grandparents, gets a great house, and food doesn’t make you fat! But there’s a small catch, she might be in the wrong area of Heaven and now she has to plead her case to stay.
The story is funny and heartbreaking too. The character is a young Jewish woman and the scene of shiva at her parent’s house literally made me cry.
Definitely a great book and I would recommend it.
September 14, 2019
Pourquoi ai-je acheté ce livre ? Je ne me souviens pas, mais j'aurai pu m'en passer. Peut-être si j'avais eu 18-20 ans, j'aurai mieux aimé. Ça me parait être plus une lecture pour jeune adulte. Je n'ai vraiment pas été intéressée par l'histoire ni par le personnage principal : superficiel, immature, hyper matérialiste (que de marques citées, pfff....). Bref, un roman qui ne me correspond pas du tout. Seul point positif : la lecture se fait très rapidement (et pourtant je ne lis pas très vite), et donc même si on n'aime pas, on a vite fini, ha, ha !
January 12, 2021
I loved the story. I laughed and cried and was reminded a valuable lesson... that material things aren’t what matter in life. There are some spelling and punctuation errors as well as missing words which drove me a bit crazy as a communications professional, but overall it was definitely worth the read and one I couldn’t put down!
January 29, 2022
Perfect book to read on a snowy day.
Alex, a 29 year old woman, is killed by a mini-cooper. To stay in 7th heaven, she needs to prove she deserves it. As the ten best days of her life are revealed, not only is this a fun read, but there is actually a ton of depth to the story.
Glad I read it.
Alex, a 29 year old woman, is killed by a mini-cooper. To stay in 7th heaven, she needs to prove she deserves it. As the ten best days of her life are revealed, not only is this a fun read, but there is actually a ton of depth to the story.
Glad I read it.
October 11, 2017
Ten Best Days was cute, and at times, a little funny. I was worried it would be too whiny. It wasn't. Worried it would have too much of an immature, entitled brat. It didn't, thankfully. I enjoyed it.
November 12, 2019
Really enjoyed the premise of and the sensitive (and humorous) way Adena approached this story. I was touched by the "best days" as they were listed, and it prompted me to consider my own. I've bought additional copies to pass along to several friends and highly recommend it!
May 12, 2021
This was an interesting book. I enjoy reading about the days in the girls essay to stay in the seventh level of heaven. I like that she is happy to be reunited with her grandparents and uncle. She also meets her soulmate.
December 30, 2021
I borrowed this book from a friend who suggested it.
The story makes you think about your life and what is most important in it. A lot of times people get caught up in material things, when really they should focus more on relationships with family and friends.
The story makes you think about your life and what is most important in it. A lot of times people get caught up in material things, when really they should focus more on relationships with family and friends.
January 26, 2024
Enjoyed this book more than I expected. A surprisingly lighthearted viewpoint on death and the afterlife. Definitely makes you stop and think, but also has all the emotions … I laughed … I cried … I pondered. All the things. A great book and one that I would definitely want to read again.
February 24, 2024
This is the best book I’ve ever gotten my hands on!! It literally had me laughing out loud, maybe even too much! Definitely a good starter book if you’re getting into reading! I will say it had some triggers though, if you’re sensitive it may not be for you.
August 20, 2017
Story of rich girl getting killed and has to earn 7th heaven (vs a lower level heaven) by reflecting on her life
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