In the story, Wiese gives very specific details concerning the look, smell, and atmosphere of Hell. He makes note of particular feelings and thoughts he had. While relating the story, Wiese also scatters numerous Bible references throughout the first few chapters. He claims these passages were only known to him AFTER his journey - when he made an intense study of the information God's Word gives to us about Hell.
The latter part of the book is a survey of some Biblical information regarding Hell. There are some excellent appendices that are useful for quickly finding a Scripture reference.
First, I will offer my literary criticism. The book, which may be considered an "easy read" despite the tough subject matter, was written in a straight-forward and simple manner. Sentence structure was not complex, and the information was not given in a sensational way. This is perfectly understandable when you consider that the author never claims to be a "writer", and that he is supposedly telling this story as it happened. So, from the literary standpoint, it is an unimpressive book.
Second, I give you my personal opinion of the matter. There are two strong pieces of evidence in the book that tend to persuade me that it is truthful as written. 1. The weak literary contribution. As I mentioned, Wiese does not pour on the intense hair-raising, edge-of-your-seat suspense that you might expect. Now, if I were going to invent a story about a trip to Hell, I would probably go over the top - knowing that people would EXPECT Hell to be quite sensational. The fact that Wiese fails to do this suggests to me that he is presenting the facts as a witness to actual events, and anyone who has ever read historical narrative knows that eye-witness reports tend to be fairly bland. 2. The appeal to Scripture. Bill Wiese repeatedly states throughout the book that preference is given to God's Word on the matter. He compels the reader to study the Bible for themselves and reach their own conclusion. In fact, he even goes so far as to say that if the ONLY result of the book was to make people read their Bibles to attempt to invalidate his story, then the book has accomplished its objective. He points people to God's Word. Furthermore, I could find no portion of his story that violated any doctrine of Hell given in Scripture.
While it may seem unbelievable, I do believe God can and will do extraordinary things to reach people with the Gospel and to glorify His own Name. He may even send someone (a Christian, no less) to Hell for 23 minutes. I recommend this book.
