Book Review and Giveaway: A Good and Perfect Gift by Amy Julia Becker

A Good and Perfect Gift: Faith, Expectations, and a Little Girl Named Penny, by Amy Julia Becker, arrived on my doorstep late last week ~Happy Dance!~ I’m so appreciative of Bethany House and Mrs. Becker for offering to let me review the book. Below you’ll find my take on it, as well as details on how you can win your very own copy!

About Amy Julia Becker

Amy Julia Becker is the author of Penelope Ayers: A Memoir, which critic Andy Crouch included in his list of the best books of 2009. She graduated from Princeton University and Princeton Theological Seminary, and writes regularly for Motherlode, the parenting blog of The New York Times. Her essays have appeared in First Things, The Philadelphia Inquirer, The Christian Century, ChristianityToday.com, Bloom, and other venues. Amy Julia lives in Lawrenceville, New Jersey, with her husband and three children.

Synopsis of A Good and Perfect Gift

Amy Julia Becker was top of her class at Princeton, a driven, purposeful academic who dreamed of having children who would follow the same path. When her daughter, Penny, entered the world with an unexpected extra set of chromosomes, Amy Julia’s world was turned upside down. A Good and Perfect Gift documents Amy Julia Becker’s first two years with her daughter, and provides a peak into the mind of a parent new to the world of Down syndrome.

My Thoughts on A Good and Perfect Gift

Although I attended a state college, not Princeton, and live along the Gulf Coast, rather than the northeast, Becker’s story paralleled my own. From her description of the dark cloud that descended upon her husband on the first day of Penny’s life, only to disappear as quickly as it had come, to the constant war that waged within her to embrace her daughter’s limitations while still pushing her to achieve more than was expected, I could relate.

Each chapter of A Good and Perfect Gift opens with an entry taken from Becker’s journal during those first two years. These entries provide a breadcrumb trail through Becker’s progression from her initial fears, through her internal struggles, to her ultimate embracing of Penny’s unique qualities. Becker’s experience rang true to me in many ways – the desire to put aside therapy and just let her child be who she is, apprehension when taking her out in public because she was always on guard for the reactions of others, and sensitivity to language that had, in the past, made her a little uncomfortable but now cut her to the core.

The early days following the birth of child with Down syndrome are rarely void of tension – the pressure to be gracious to people who mean well yet still manage to say the wrong things, the disappointment in knowing that your child won’t be able to achieve what you had expected while chafing at other’s low expectations of her abilities, and the struggle to redefine the meaning of the words “blessing” and “burden” in a new context. Parents of children with Down syndrome will identify with Becker’s open and honest retelling of the ups and downs, as there’s a certain level of comfort in knowing your fears and questions are shared by others. But the book isn’t just for parents – friends and family members who read the book will cultivate a deeper understanding of their loved one’s joys and struggles.

A Good and Perfect Gift is uplifting and positive, yet remains credible, refreshingly honest, and devoid of cloying sentimentality. Although Becker’s book is written from a Christian perspective for a Christian audience, the predominant message isn’t about Christian faith. At its core, Becker’s story is about her struggle with her worldview – a struggle to which all who are newly initiated into the world of special needs can relate.

A Good and Perfect Gift: Faith, Expectations, and a Little Girl Named Penny is available in both paperback and Kindle versions.

How To Enter to Win The Book

Mandatory Entry: Recommend a book for me to add to my reading list!

Bonus entries if you:

… follow me on Twitter: @AndiSligh.

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… subscribe to Bringing the Sunshine via email (don’t forget to”verify” your subscription!)

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Just fill out the form below and you’re in!

This giveaway opens on September 26, 2011 and will end on October 5, 2011 at 11:59 pm CST. A winner will be selected using Random.org and contacted by email within 48 hours. The winner has 48 hours (2 days) to respond, so if you enter, make sure to check your inbox! An alternate winner will be selected if I don’t hear from you within 48 hours.

Disclosure: This giveaway copy of Mrs. Becker’s book is being provided by Bethany House. I have not been compensated for my review (save one copy of the book) and the opinions expressed are mine and mine alone, and were not reviewed by anyone else (except Mr. Andi!) prior to posting.