My Journey to Heaven: What I Saw and How It Changed My Life

Craker coauthored and finalized the manuscript of this posthumously published book by a man who says he was taken to heaven by angels for a brief visit while he was hospitalized for an acute illness. He describes a conversation with St. Peter about whether he could stay or had to return to earth. “ ‘Marv, I talked to God,’ ” says Peter, “ ‘and God told me to tell you that you had to go back, that he still had work for you to do on earth.’ ” That work, he says, is the goal of the book: to somehow put heaven into words and conclude by asking readers, “Will I see you at the gate?” Witnessing thousands of babies born and unborn, he comforts grieving parents who have lost infants. He also consoles his daughter by relaying that her late husband was one of the six people he sees in heaven, that he is no longer in pain, and is waiting for her. Finally, he claims to have seen God but only from a distance. “I beheld the throne, where our God and his Son are seated and will reign forever.” Besteman takes a reasoned and cautious path that targets the skeptical mind, those wondering if he was only hallucinating or dreaming. For this new entrant on the I-saw-the-afterlife bookshelf, heaven only knows if readers will find his story believable. Agent: Esther Fedorkevich. (Sept.)