Book Review: Heaven Is For Real For Kids

Heaven Is For Real For Kids is by Colton Burpo, as told to his parents Todd and Sonja Burpo.  It is an account of Colton's trip to heaven when he was four years old.

This Summer I read Heaven Is For Real (the adult version) aloud to the family.  The kids LOVED it.  We laughed.  We cried.  We had many great discussion about death and heaven.  It was so timely because in the Spring my great-grandmother passed away and in June my grandfather passed away.  Right after that my grandmother went into Hospice care.  She passed away in September.  So, death and heaven is a regular topic of conversation around here lately--a rather heavy subject for little children.

We all enjoyed the regular Heaven Is For Real so much that I was actually hesitant to even order to kids' version.  I'm not one to think that kids need a dumbed-down version of most literature.  However, the kids and I were delighted with this book.  In fact, the little ones (the six year old, the four year old, and the two year old) have been reading it often for their daily devotional time.  The big kids (the ten year old, the nine year old, and the seven year old) enjoy reading it to the little ones, too.  The pictures are beautiful and engaging.  I think it's been comforting to them when they are missing their grandparents.  The book has all the innocence and beauty of the regular version without changing any of Colton Burpo's vision of heaven.

However, I don't think that this book for kids replaces the regular version.  I am glad that my kids have experienced both.  I would encourage parents to read the regular to their children and have the picture book available for discussions and devotional time.  They are a good set when used together.  I wouldn't use this separate from the other.

I'm so glad that I ordered it and it is now a permanent part of our Peace Retreat.

(I received a copy of this book for free from Thomas Nelson's BookSneeze Program.  I was not paid for my review.)