For as long as she can remember, exchanging letters with a mysterious Uncle Jack has been routine for fourteen-year-old Marley in Heaven by Angela Johnson. In Heaven, Ohio, Marley’s life is calm with a strong support system of her parents, her younger brother Butchy, her best friend Sugar (Shoogy) with an all-too-perfect family, and Bobby: the young father of Feather, the little girl that Marley babysits. 

Everything is shaken up, however, when her parents finally sit her down and tell her the earth-shattering truth. Marley discovers that her parents are really her aunt and uncle and Uncle Jack who has always been there for her through his letters is her biological father, who couldn’t take care of her after her mother’s death. 

Marley doesn’t know who to trust or turn to, now feeling like she’s surrounded by liars instead of love like she used to, but slowly, the information about her biological mother, the love letters her biological parents shared, and the unrelenting support her family offers help her adjust to the exposed truth. 

All the characters, even Uncle Jack who only showed up through letters for the majority of the book, were well-developed and all the relationships felt real. The length also makes it a more attractive read for younger readers despite its potentially heavier topics. However, the book didn’t go too in depth into the entire process, though the discovery of her adoption remains the only main conflict of the story. 

For a shorter but touching story of a girl, her support system, and how she comes to terms with her adoption, Heaven isn’t a story as heavenly as the name, but it’s heartwarming nonetheless for a quick, single-conflict focused story.