Mary Ann Winkowski is "the real life Ghost Whisperer and consultant on the top 30 CBS show Ghost Whisperer."  She discussed about how she discovered her gift: she can only see the spirits who linger around and don't go to the Light, then she helps them to go into the Light.  She got trained by her grandmother on how to help them.  She cannot see the ones who have crossed over to the Light.  Even if the ghost speaks a foreign language, she is still able to understand what the ghost is saying.

In When Ghosts Speak, the author brought out to light some truths about ghosts to help us understand more about earthbound spirits: 

- The spirit attends its own funeral.

- Ghosts are not ugly or scary as Hollywood movies portrayed; they look normal like the rest of us; they still have desires which they cannot satisfy because they don't have a body anymore.  These desires include going to a movie, going to see a show, and/or drinking alcoholic beverages.

- Why some spirits stay behind:  some are still attached to materials such as a beautiful vacation home they once had, jewelry, or cars; a spirit who once was famous at a work place such as Hollywood and is still attached to that work place; spirits who used to have a fun work place and still want to perform an old job such as singing a romantic song on stage; some spirits want to seek revenge or pursue justice; some spirits are nosy and don't want to leave; and some are jealous lovers and want to follow the love life of the one they left behind.

- Young spirits are different;  spirits of young children rarely come back.  They are not attached.  They don't have greed.

- Ghosts stay after unnatural deaths, such as in cases of murders and suicides.

- Pets are loyal, even after death, they still come back, and hang around their master.

- Evil spirits are rare, but they are real.  Even spirits of "bad" people-murderers, rapists, pedophiles, etc.-are welcome into the Light when they die.

- Dark Spirits are evil, they "are not of the Light", they "do not come from the Light.'  They were never human.   Black magic (dark witchcraft, Ouija board process, satanism) brings back Dark Spirits, if not performed correctly.  The author advises:  do not dabble in black arts, do not play with Ouija boards of any type, do not perform spells intended to summon a spirit to grant you greater power or wealth or fame.

In the last chapter, "Living with Ghosts", Mary Ann Winkowski discussed about how people attract earthbound spirits, how to identify spirits around us, how to deal with eartbound spirits or how to protect ourselves from their influence.

Written by James Van Praagh, a renowned and beloved medium, Growing Up in Heaven offers a clear, accurate and  insightful view about children who pass away at an early age.

Due to his gifted skills to communicate with the souls who have crossed over to heaven, James Van Praagh has relayed the messages from these children to their parents as well as other parents who have lost their child (when that child is still young) to understand:  after leaving behind the body in this world, that soul still lives on, studies, then advances to the higher level together with other loving souls such as grandparents and relatives who crossed over before that soul.  That soul will be protected by these loving souls, will never feel lonely, and will be guided by the Master Spirits in order to evolve to the next higher level.  This understanding will help parents to reduce the pain of losing a child when that child is very young. 

The author also shows parents how to communicate with the soul of their young child by using a method called "automatic handwriting."  The parent will need to make an appointment with the soul; on the day and at the exact time of the apointment, the parent will need to go into a quiet room, turn off the TV and the phones, sit down with a paper and a pen on the table.  The parent will need to relax the body and allow the hand to freely move.  After the session is over, the parent will know that the message truly comes from the soul of the child who passed away.

James Van Praagh also reveals that there are four types of soul:  Young Sould, Old Soul, (James emphasizes that it has nothing to do with age), Mature Soul, and Angel Soul. 

Young Soul:  lives heavily on feelings, loves to harm/vex others, and depends heavily on materials. 

Old Soul:  still lives and depends on materials but orients himself/herself more towards a spiritual life.  This person loves to research and study about spiritual life, begins to guide other people, and loves to serve other human beings.

Mature Soul:  this person is normally a master, a philosopher, someone who guides the society/a big crowd to advance spiritually to the higher level.

Angel Soul:  Someone whose voice, opinions, or actions influences the whole world (e.g. The Pope, The Dalai Lama).  Their activities always aim at serving mankind and the whole world.  From the time of birth, these souls already cultivate to walk the path of a Spiritual Leader.

In summary, this book is very essential in order to help us understand life on the other side.  It is a very efficacious guide for both parent and child. It provides healing to the grieving parents who never stop thinking about their departed young children.  It is an account of true stories and uplifting messages of love.