"Colm Francis Magee had died seven times before his seventh birthday. Cardiac arrest. Not to be mistaken for a heart attack in which clogged arteries prevent blood from reaching the heart and then the muscle withers. There was nothing wrong with Colm's strength of heart. No, Colm Francis Magee's heart simply and inexplicably stopped beating at the most inopportune moments."

With this eye-opening paragraph, author Mary Curran Hackett begins "Proof of Heaven," the heart-wrenching story of Colm Magee and his mother Cathleen's journey to discovering why Colm is suffering, what can stop it, and how it can be accomplished. While the pair navigate the vast medical options that are thrown at them, Cathleen, a single mother, must also face the question of how much faith to put into doctors and how much faith to put into her own religious beliefs and the power of prayer.

When Cathleen is referring to yet another specialist, Dr. Gaspar Basu, she immediately notices quite a few things are different about him. For one, he is younger than most of the other doctors, is very aware of Colm's condition, and probably most importantly, speaks very little to her but mostly to Colm.

Dr. Basu is very tuned in to what Colm has to say, how he feels before his attacks happen and what he feels upon waking up. The doctor immediately suggests that Colm receive a pacemaker to help keep his heart beating when his body refuses to do so on its own.

Cathleen has her doubts that he knows what he is talking about especially when he has ordered no tests like all the others. But there is also something about the doctor that gives her a glimmer of hope that perhaps this will be the answer.

But before the procedure can be done, Colm has another attack that leaves him "dead" for over 10 minutes. Now Cathleen is willing to do whatever it takes to keep him alive. She reverts back to relying on her faith, even to the point of taking Colm on a pilgrimage to Italy for a healing. But Colm soon grows sicker and being weary of the constant upheaval, begs his mother to do one last thing for him -- to help him find his biological father, and then to let him have a little peace in his life. Unknown to Cathleen, Dr. Basu or even Colm, this request would be the one that would answer all their questions in a way no one could ever have anticipated.

This powerful book touches on the many different points of view on heaven and what happens after a person dies -- the views of the absolute believer in heaven, the nonbeliever, the one torn between belief and non-belief, and the believer who no longer believes. But ultimately, PROOF OF HEAVEN is about a mother's overwhelming love for her child and her desire and determination to take any path that will mean a cure for her son. The story will touch your heart, open your soul, and help you realize that all parts of life are worth cherishing.