The Wonder Within You by Carey Wickersham

With all the pregnancy books available in the bookstores these days, The Wonder Within You by Carey Wickersham sets itself apart in this broad genre by incorporating faith and biblical insight.  It is hard to categorize this hybrid book as its part "coffee table" book, gift book and personal journal all rolled into one.

This book features beautiful images of 3d ultrasounds corresponding with each week of pregnancy.  A simplified overview of the corresponding gestation is covered as well.  The first person account of fetal development from the unborn baby's point of view is a powerful statement to show the humanity of each unborn baby.  There are also practical "nutritional nuggets" as well as links to additional content available on the web which can be addressed by a website or through a smart phone reader app.  This book integrates the high tech direction that media is entering.

 While this work incorporates these different elements of a pregnancy wellness book, gift book, and pregnancy journal  into one volume, it does not distinctly fit into any single category.  For example, while there is space for journaling in each week covered, the space is limited and based on focused questions.  There is also a blank calendar in the back to personalize for your nine months as well as stickers to highlight special pregnancy milestones which were a special added feature. Nevertheless I found that some of these generic milestones don't apply to everyone, and for some moms- largely irrelevant.  For example not everyone sets up a nursery, registers for gifts, or shops or has a birth plan or prenatal class.  These stickers seem to advertise the worldly material aspects of pregnancy and may in fact alienate some moms to be in less than ideal socio-economic situations. Overall a significant number of the stickers were superficial, celebrating the material worldly aspect of pregnancy. The inclusion of this, and its focus in part negates the faith based aspect of this book.  Nevertheless, this book still brings faith to the mainstream, and into the sphere of motherhood and pregnancy.  This book isnt so theological as to scare away the secular reader and is in fact a good outreach attempt to tap into the market of pregnant women who are so eager to spend their money on anything pregnancy or baby related.  As a blogger for Tyndale I received this book published by Tyndale- which is also  Focus On The Family Resource.