A Letter from Heaven
Steve Butler
AuthorHouse
ISBN: 978-1-4343-4715-2 (sc)
34 pages 

Steve Butler, the author of A Letter from Heaven, has presented the story in a way that will appeal to children; Jamie reads a letter from his sister Alexandra who is in heaven.  It is a child talking to a child about her birth, death, love, and the miracle of roses. It provides comfort and satisfies the inquisitive minds of young readers without exposing them to too much too fast.  Even the subject of the ashes in the ceramic jar, a difficult subject to bring up to young children, is handled with much skill. The ashes are addressed, but the emphasis is on the important part of Alexandra—that part of her who lives in heaven with God.  The author also reinforces how much the living child is loved by his parents, grandparents…and his sibling in Heaven.   

In reading this book, I found myself remembering a time in my life many years ago when I suffered multiple miscarriages.  For some reason I always found it difficult to talk with my son and daughter, who were born years afterward, about their siblings, now living with God.  Mostly, I would remind them that these babies are very much alive in Heaven, even though they did not take a breath on earth. I wish this book had been available to me at that time.  I personally feel A Letter from Heaven is a wonderful and much-needed resource for helping parents and health professionals talk with children and explain the loss of a baby sibling who was born before them. It is an issue that has been very much neglected by the book industry. 

I highly recommend this book and believe that it should be in libraries across the country. 

Bettie Corbin Tucker
For IP Book Reviewers
August 01/2008