Heaven is for Real Literary Elements

Christian Literature

Present day, after Colton Burpo has recovered from medical death

The book is written from Todd Burpo's point of view, and also from Colton's as it is his experiences that are being narrated.

Uplifting and motivational

The protagonist is Colton; the antagonists are the naysayers who are skeptical about the voracity of his experiences.

There is conflict inside Todd himself; he doesn't want to believe that what Colton is saying is true yet he realizes that it must be.

After being clinically dead, Colton makes a recovery which was deemed almost impossible by his medical team.

The bold statements that Colton makes about his experiences foreshadow the skepticism that the book is received with by some sections of the Christian community.

Todd states that he knows some people won't believe Colton's account which turns out to be an understatement because there is a great deal of unexpected criticism and negativity.

No particular allusions

Colton paints incredibly vivid pictures of his experiences in Heaven, for example he tells of seeing the Virgin Mary at the feet of Jesus, and of both Jesus and Mary kneeling before God. The images are traditional Christian images but are seen through the eyes of a child.

Colton has knowledge of his parents' lives that he could only know If he had been there at the time; since he was not there at the time his unexplained knowledge is used as evidence that what he is saying about Heaven is true.

There is a parallel between Colton's experiences in Heaven and the traditional picture book version of Heaven that is usually presented to very young kids. This is also partly why there was some skepticism about the book's validity.

Colton talks of the angels, summing up the different people who have passed whom he meets in Heaven but doesn't really know.

No particular examples