A Walk With God

By Reviewer: Tiffany
Title: Heaven is For Real
Author: Todd Burpo
Primary Audience/age group: Teens and Adults
Genre: Christian Nonfiction
# Of pages: 163
Publisher: Thomas Nelson
Year of Release: 2010
Part of a Series? No
Rating: 5
Recommend? Yes

Description: (From the book jacket) When Colton Burpo made it through an emergency apendectomy, his family was overjoyed at his miraculous survival. What they weren't expecting, though, was the story that emerged in the months that followed--a story as beautiful as it was extraordinary, detailing their little boy's trip to heaven and back.
Colton, not yet four years old, told his parents he left his body during the surgery--and authenticated that claim by describing exactly what his parents were doing in another part of the hospital while he was being operated on. He talked of visiting heaven and relayed stories told to him by people he met there whom he had never met in life, sharing events that happened even before he was born. He also astonished his parents with descriptions and obscure details about heaven that matched the Bible exactly, though he had not yet learned to read.
With disarming innocence and the plainspoken boldness of a child, Colton tells of meeting long-departed family members. He describes Jesus, the angels, how "really, really big" God is, and how much God loves us. Retold by his father, but using Colton's uniquely simple words, 'Heaven is for Real' offers a glimpse of the world that awaits us, where as Colton says, "Nobody is old and nobody wears glasses."
'Heaven is for Real' will forever change the way you think of eternity, offering the chance to see, and believe, like a child.

Review: The book is written in an easy-to-read form and is very engaging and interesting from the first page. Though I doubted the truth of Colton's story when I began reading the book, I soon firmly believed his story as it was confirmed in many different, interesting ways in each and every chapter. This books changed my view of heaven and life in general.

Rating: 5

Positive: Colton's entire family are Christians. The entire book is written from the view of Colton's dad, who is a pastor. The Burpo family shares strong family bonds with one another. Colton has a good relationship with his parents and his sister.

Spiritual Elements: Where do I begin? The entire book is a Christian book. Verses, prayers, and references to God, the Bible, and Jesus are frequent throughout the entire book.

Violence: Todd Burpo goes through a lot of pain and medical problems. Colton's surgery and everything that happened leading up to his surgery is a little graphic though not disturbing. Todd Burpo describes when he was playing softball once, and upon sliding to home base he heard a bone in his leg snap.

Language: None

Sexual Content: None

Other: There are references made to a miscarriage that Mrs. Burpo had years before. (Spoiler: Colton meets the child in heaven.)

Recommendation: I strongly recommend this book, especially to those who doubt the existence of Heaven, but also to those who just want to read a good, true, uplifting book. I love this book and I recommend it to everyone I know and all their friends. If you have time, please pick up this book and read through it. It is not very long, but it is well worth the time spent reading it.