The phrase "don't let a good story get in the way of the truth" comes to mind when reading this wishful thinking gibberish.
The boys father is a minister for gawd sakes....while he claims the kid tells the story in his own words, one should really take that assertion with a grain of pound of salt.
This story panders to peoples needs...plain and simple...Heaven isn't a "place" for gawd sakes, it's a state.
I am an NDE'r, and this book gives me the willies....
If you really want to learn about the "afterlife" and want to free yourself from the prision this book is trying to draw you towards, then I strongly suggest you read Anita Moorjani's book "Dying to be Me."
This book is nothing but fluffy woo-woos meant to pull at your heartstrings. Guess there's no more financial problems in the Burpo household....Praise be to God!....gag!

Beautiful journey of a little boy's journey to Heaven amid emergency surgery. Whether the experience was real or just a subconscious imagination combined with a religious family upbringing, we'll never know. Still spiritual comfort in our world of jaded materialism.

Heaven is for Real is the true story of the Burpo family as they struggle through health and financial issues, an emergency appendectomy for their not yet four-year old son, Colton, and the gradual revelations that Colton had visited heaven during his surgery.

I had not heard of this book until a few weeks ago, when a friend mentioned that she was going to attend a short study based on the book. It sounded like an interesting book, but I was somewhat sceptical about the subject matter. I believe that heaven is real, and yet, I am always leery about wholly embracing outlandish claims. Still, when I saw this title available on booksneeze.com, I could not wait to get my hands on a copy and read it for myself.

Heaven is for Real is an engaging and easy-to-read narrative. Despite my busy schedule, I managed to read it in a day and a half. It was hard to put down! I truly enjoyed reading this book! It was refreshing in its honesty and simplicity, but biblical truths were not compromised.

I would recommend this book to anyone, Christian or not. It is an interesting book that will, at the very least, make you think about spiritual matters.



Disclosure of Material Connection: I received this book free from the publisher through the BookSneeze®.com http://BookSneeze®.com book review bloggers program. I was not required to write a positive review. The opinions I have expressed are my own. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission's 16 CFR, Part 255 http://www.access.gpo.gov/nara/cfr/waisidx_03/16cfr255_03.html : "Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising."

Story Description:

A young boy emerges from life-saving surgery with remarkable stories of his visit to heaven.

Heaven Is for Real is the true story of the four-year old son of a small town Nebraska pastor who during emergency surgery slips from consciousness and enters heaven. He survives and begins talking about being able to look down and see the doctor operating and his dad praying in the waiting room. The family didn't know what to believe but soon the evidence was clear.

Colton said he met his miscarried sister, whom no one had told him about, and his great grandfather who died 30 years before Colton was born, then shared impossible-to-know details about each. He describes the horse that only Jesus could ride, about how "reaaally big" God and his chair are, and how the Holy Spirit "shoots down power" from heaven to help us.

Told by the father, but often in Colton's own words, the disarmingly simple message is heaven is a real place, Jesus really loves children, and be ready, there is a coming last battle.

My Review:

A lovely and endearing story about four-year-old Colton Burpo who underwent emergency, life-saving surgery and miraculously slipped from his body and went to Heaven where he met Jesus. Describing heaven as only a four-year-old who has been there can, is truly astounding. He meets the sister he never knew he had and brought his parents comfort upon learning that it was a "girl" they had miscarried a couple of years before and never named her. For his Gramma, always wondering whether her deceased husband had ever made it to heaven, brought great relief to her ongoing worry.

It was a page-turner that I couldn't put down and ended up reading it in one sitting. This story just might win some non-believers over to the believer side. I'd definitely read this one again just for the beautiful descriptions of heaven told by Colton to his family.

I read all these reviews on the book, so I thought it was a must read. I don't know if I believe the story being told. In other words I don't believe that Colton actually saw all this. There are bits of the story where I think "hm, maybe it's for real". I was raised a Seventh Day Adventist, and since a small child, I always had the image of angels and Jesus exactly the way Colton described. These images were all over the church, in Sabbath School, and even in the stories my mom used to read to me before going to bed. So obviously being the son of the pastor, Colton would be exposed to these images every single day of his life. Children are sponges and absorb everything!!! When Colton's father was amazed and surprised at Coltons visions, is when I thought "you've got to be kidding me". Pop's pictures were all over the house and in family albums, so that didn't fool me either.

Overall the story is good, and well written. I thought it was cute. What the family had gone through and how generous their community was, is inspiring. I'm glad to hear the family is doing well.

loved the book-one i can actually believe from front to back.

My wife and I both read "Heaven is for Real" recently while we were on vacation and were inspired once again with what is in store for us in eternity. It’s a believeable easy-to-read book that moved us to tears more than once.

It's amazing what goodness can come from one of the most difficult experiences a parent may ever have to go through...almost losing a child. Then to begin to understand just exactly what your child went through, when they start to reveal something so amazing you can hardly believe it, something each of us has wondered about at least once in our lives...is heaven for real? Then to know...really know...beyond a shadow of a doubt that Heaven is for real...and your child has seen it! Wow! This is a great book...great story!

Heaven Is For Real is a the story of a little boy's trip to Heaven and back.

Colton Burpo was only three years old when he had an emergency appendectomy. His doctors had told his parents for over a week that he had the stomach flu and after repeated trips to the hospital he is told he is fine and the family goes on a trip. However, the trip ends with Colton being rushed to the hospital fighting for his young life as the septic poison courses through his body from his ruptured appendix.

The family is relieved when Colton is healed and they think nothing else of it until several months later when Colton begins to say things that make his parents become shocked by the words he speaks. Colton begins to say things that he has no way of knowing and his parents try to get out of him what his words imply.

Colton shares many things with his parents, like how Jesus looked or his Pop as well as, he describes other people who he met there and he tells his parents he sat on Jesus' lap and was only dead for three minutes. His parents are confused, for the medical records do not state that Colton died at any time during any of his surgeries.

When Colton speaks of his sister who he met in Heaven, both his parents are now believing that maybe he did visit there, for they believe there is no way that Colton could know of their earlier miscarriage. They go on a mission to find out what Jesus looked like to Colton and none of the pictures they show him is right and they meet other children who believe they have traveled to Heaven and back.

I'm not sure what to make of this book, as a fictional piece, it is well-written and easily read. It's a short read and told with innocence and wonder of that of a child. I found the family likeable and they were easy to read about.

I'm not sure what to make of Colton's story though. His father is a pastor, could Colton have subconsciously over time picked these things up and shared them as he did? Yes, I do believe that is possible. It's just I found most of the things that Colton shared are things that we, on Earth, portray Jesus as. I would've been more impressed if he had shared something that wasn't common, just because its in a man made bible, doesn't make it true in the "real" Heaven.

I do believe that children see things that we adults do not and maybe Colton did travel to Heaven as his parents believe, but there wasn't enough evidence there to state as full on truth for me. The miscarriage mention would have been unnerving to hear from his young lips and perhaps on that basis alone, I would've been inclined to believe him if he were my own child. I think it would have given more credential to his story if they did remember some of the names Colton gave for some of the people he met, but conveniently this wasn't the case.

I think this is a book that is determined by the individual reader to make up their own minds about what is being shared on these pages. Its one of those books where you either believe or you do not, and while I believe that Colton may have touched upon some ethereal imagery, I'm not sure if I have been convinced he visited Heaven. So, I shall leave that for you to decide...

I don't agree with the concept that this book implies, that if you don't believe in Christ you will not be allowed in heaven. What about people of other faiths, doesn't that imply that they're doomed? As subtle as this is in the book, it destroyed any part of me wanting to believe in the story.

I have read a few books about heaven in the last couple of years. They have been good books. Heaven is for Real is a GREAT book. Simply written, easy to read, yet beautifully insightful, this is a book that I will continue to recommend to many people, from all walks of life and of all ages.

I had no idea that this book is about a pastor's family, but as I started to read the story, as a pastor's wife, I could identify with it right away. Todd Burpo talks about the struggles & sacrifices pastors & their families often make in the name of ministry. He talked about how he and the family went through some awful times leading up to Colton's sickness and near death, and how he was really angry with God about it all. At one point, Todd, in a room by himself while Colton is in surgery, rages at the Lord. "Where are you? Is this how you treat your pastors?! Is it even worth it to serve you?" Sharing this heart-wrenching detail, one that is very hard to admit, but something that many pastors have struggled with at one time or another, lent credibility to the whole story for me.

Another thing that stood out for me was the sweet innocence of Colton's story. As bits & pieces came out over time, he shared very naturally about his experience in Heaven, just as you'd expect any pre-schooler to share about a trip to Grandma's house for the weekend. Anyone with little people knows that details about their adventures can be shared at any time, out of the blue, sometimes seemingly completely out of place and prompted by who knows what.

Colton shared about what he saw in heaven in kid terms (markers, monsters, rainbows...), describing things as he saw them, rather than using adult words or Christian-ese. That made this glimpse into heaven very refreshing, as compared to some of the more theological / spiritual explanations I have heard adults use to describe things they have seen in heaven. Simple, straight-forward, just what he saw.

So many of the things that Colton shared match what I have understood about heaven: there's lots of work to do there, but it's good work that you love doing; there are many children there, children who never lived on earth but have been adopted by "Jesus' Dad", as Colton described it; you recognize people there and they recognize you; it's a beautiful perfect peaceful place lit not by a sun, but by light coming from the Lord; time in heaven must be different than time on the earth, because in his 3 minutes there Colton saw more than you could see in a year here; the first person you see when you get to heaven is Jesus, and He has beautiful eyes!

There are a few things in Colton's retelling of his visit to heaven that I want to research and read more about, things that I hadn't heard before or were contrary to what I learned about heaven. I had given up the idea that we have wings in heaven, but Colton clearly described something like wings on the people around him. I need to look into that more. His accuracy in describing other things has me at least thinking that I need to give this another look.

Colton's story of his heavenly visit has effected many people that way - encouraging them to take a 2nd look at things, to hope again where they had lost hope, to study God's word more closely, to draw closer to the Lord who somehow seems more tangible when a 4-yr-old describes His Heavenly Earth in greater detail than he can describe our fallen one... Some of the stories of the healing and hope people have received from hearing and reading Colton's story are more powerful than the original story, and that's saying something!

The Lord never wastes anything. The Burpo's willingness to share this story, the story of the visit to heaven that can't be disconnected from the harrowing experience of having very nearly lost their son and enduring the agony of his near-fatal sickness, shows that even our suffering can minister to others, perhaps better than our mountain-top (or out of this world!?) experiences.

To witness God's provision for another pastor's family (we really are just normal families in many ways with the same hurts and insecurities and hardships as any other family) is very encouraging. I'm still not sure that my unease about 'forever' is completely settled, but the detail and the many confirmations of scripture and real life details Colton could not have known about do provide something a little more solid for me to hold on to. There's too much in Colton's story to simply brush it off as childhood make-believe. His recounting of those 3 minutes in heaven is as close to first-hand experience as I have heard, and if it is to be believed, it's very encouraging evidence of something far more wonderful than my human head can possibly comprehend at this point.

For Colton, and for many who read his story and find hope and comfort in it, there is no doubt - Heaven is for Real!

Book has been provided courtesy of Thomas Nelson & Graf-Martin Communications, Inc.

This is an amazing book and highly recommended for anyone wondering about their future or the reality (or not) of the afterlife. Being that the book is the story of a young boy's experience of going to heaven makes it all the more believable. It is difficult to imagine that someone so young would imagine what he experienced - or would come up with such a story on his own. Read and be encouraged. (Book has been provided courtesy of Graf-Martin Communications, Inc. Available now at your favourite bookseller.)

Most readers of Heaven is For Real will find that the Burpo's sound like a fairly normal, Christian family. Of course, there was that year when Todd Burpo, a part-time pastor, broke his leg in two places, suffered from kidney stones, had a mastectomy (breast cancer), and nearly lost his 3-year-old son to a burst appendix. Then there were the revelations shared with them by their little guy, his experiences during a near-death-experience, an 'in-the-spirit' trip to heaven, the throne room of God, and into the arms of Jesus himself.

This is such a sweet and encouraging story, told by Todd Burpo, the father of Colton Burpo, a little boy who was graced with a glimpse of heaven that his family is now sharing with the world. Not only is this a tale of God's healing, provision, and revelation, but it is also very much the story of a family. Of parents who love their children, of parents suffering to see their son deathly ill, and who struggle to understand his new knowledge of God and passion for evangelism. I'll admit that I shed a few tears while reading of their challenging passages together as a family.

Collaboratively written by Todd Burpo and Lynn Vincent, it is difficult to say how much of the writing is Burpo's and how much is Vincent's. Burpo has obviously provided all of the material, and since Vincent is making quite a name for herself as a co-author of memoirs and auto-biographical works, it is quite likely that we have her to thank for the clarity and crispness of the writing found in Heaven is For Real. While I don't know how such collaborative projects generally work, I'm certainly thankful for the professional quality of the writing, and the easy-to-read engaging style that she uses.

Thankfully, Burpo isn't presenting his son's experiences as definitive. He shares them humbly, as what they are - words from the mouth of a small child who is still in the tactless, calling things as they are phase of life (you know - when your children point at people in the store and say rude, if honest things about them?) I am relieved that Burpo is sure to use scripture to make connections between his son's experience and the Word of God, comparing everything that is said to the ultimate revelation that God has given us - the Bible.

While this book is certainly an encouraging exploration of Colton's child-like explanations of heaven that will bolster faith and rekindle our excitement to reach our eternal home, it is, perhaps more importantly, the story of an event that will hopefully reach out to doubters, to seekers, and help them find their way to heaven's shores as well.

Reviewed at quiverfullfamily.com

Actually, all this made me believe is that the mind is a marvelous thing, capable of filling a lot of little details from subliminal input; that people are somehow surprised that a child absorbed all the things his parents and friends believed and told him to believe; and that outside perspectives on the subject are skewed by their own belief system. Why wouldn't the boy dream of "Heaven" when he's been told all his life that it's real, and how it should look? Why does the fact that he couldn't read it for himself [but has heard it every day] somehow make his recollections fantastic? Why wouldn't he absorb conversations from around him while he was in a coma [or clinically dead] and put it together subconsciously into a picture of his surroundings? And why wouldn't a believer such as the father [who is telling this story and has filtered it through his own beliefs and biases] put the most faith-based slant on it he could? It's a nice little tale of hope, sure, but it isn't "proof" of the existence of heaven any more than one eyewitness account proves that Elvis is still alive. I'm not saying the people involved are deliberately misleading the readers - I'm saying that they have told a tale from their own viewpoint, and that viewpoint is very skewed by their own desire to belive in the divine. It should be taken as the nice little piece of enhanced pseudo-reality that it is [like "A Million Little Pieces"] and left at that, nothing more and nothing less.

Just finished reading this book a few minutes ago and wow it really moved me completely. This story is told by Colton's father whom is a pastor in their hometown. It's about a three year old boy by the name of Colton whom has to have emergency surgery and dies for only three minutes on the operating table. He tells his parents all about heaven and of the people he met there people he has never seen or heard about. This book will make you a believer.

I really enjoyed this book. There are a lot of scripture quotes that I was the craziest about, however, you get the point and I really enjoyed reading about this little boys experience.
I am loaning this book out to my famiy and friends because, true or not, it gives people hope that the ones we have lost, we have a chance to see them again. Know what I mean? It gives people hope. It's the best gift you can give.

I read this book cover to cover in one sitting. I couldn't put it down. It is the story of a 3 year old's near death experience and visit to heaven. For all those who believe in God and an afterlife, this book will give them hope and will strengthen their faith. For those who do not believe, it will certainly give them something to think about.

Heaven is for Real is the true story of a three year old boy who believes to have visited Heaven while undergoing emergency surgery. Told by his father, this story describes Colton's experiences that he has shared since his incredible journey.Colton describes Heaven, Jesus and many other experiences in a believable and childlike way. His accounts include details and information about people that he could not have known otherwise, making the story that much more incredible.

I am a Christian and I have always believed in Heaven, but in a sort of mystical sense. This book made Heaven a tangible place that I hope to someday visit and be reunited with loved ones. The story really hit home for me when Colton tells his family about meeting his sister in Heaven... a sister that he had never been told about because his mother suffered a miscarriage before Colton was born. I have had miscarriages and I have always hoped that someday I will be reunited with these children in Heaven, but now I feel sure that they are there waiting for me.

I know there are people out there who will attempt to explain away Colton's accounts of his trip to Heaven, but I am not one of them. His story is remarkable and nothing short of a miracle. I am happy to accept it, and I was really glad to have the chance to read this book.

Heaven is For Real
By Todd Burpo with Lynn Vincent
For a long time I looked forward to the arrival of this book to my home. I love modern stories from people who have experienced the next world in one way or another. It took a very long time for the book to arrive, but finally last week I had it in my hands.
I wondered how the author would present: "A Little Boy's Astounding Story of His Trip to Heaven and Back". I did expect the story to be written from Colton's perspective.
The happening itself is credible. Why not? Why wouldn't a person of any age die for a few minutes while on the operating table and experience timeless heaven? These things fit easily into my world view, and I appreciate the care Todd (Colton's father) took to gather and record the information as spoken by Colton as true as possible to how Colton witnessed and experienced it. It is a good story, a good thing to share with the world.
I was a little disappointed to discover that this story is actually Colton's father, Todd's, story: full of Todd's point of view of what happened to Colton. The impact Colton's experience had on Todd's life.