A Cary husband and wife who were thrust into the unfamiliar, terrifying world of the Neonatal Intensive Care Unit (NICU) upon the birth of their premature twins have written a book to help others in similar situations.

Nicole Zimmerman and Edward Sprague announce a book designed to help parents of "preemies," their families and friends -- as well as health care providers who care for these children -- to understand and navigate the uncertainty surrounding premature births.

"The NICU Rollercoaster: How to Set Up and Use an Online Blog to Help Survive the Ups, Downs, Agonies and Joys of Your Baby's Stay" explains common problems preemies face, offers suggestions for coping, and shares the authors' experiences. The innovative format combines helpful "how to survive" advice with blog entries and blog reader comments.

For Nicole and her husband, Edward, a seemingly healthy pregnancy took an unexpected turn and resulted in the birth of two profoundly premature babies. Like so many parents of "preemies" or other newborns with medical issues, they suddenly were engulfed by the Neonatal Intensive Care Unit system.

This couple quickly learned the meaning of the "NICU rollercoaster." One day everything was going well; the next day one of the babies was very sick. The ups and downs were constant and agonizing. They recount that the 160 days between July 7, 2006, and Dec. 14, 2006, were the most emotionally trying times of their lives.

Comfort came from a surprising source: the Internet, they write. Not only have amazing medical advances reached the NICU, but so has popular culture. Today, many hospitals have computers for patient and family use. Some hospitals even encourage the use of blogs to help patients cope with difficult medical issues.

In the book they share that the only time they could relax was when they were holding their babies or when they were blogging. Blogging became their main coping mechanism. While there have been books and diaries published about the NICU in the past, this is the first time a book of this kind has been published in an interactive blog format.

To order the book, visit www.xlibris.com/TheNICURollercoaster.html.

Annual Book Sale

The Moore County Library is having its annual book sale.

"Moore County employees will have the first three days of the sale, Aug. 11-13, all to themselves," says a spokesman.

The sale will open to the general public Thursday, Aug. 14, and continue until through Saturday, Aug. 30.

The library is located at 101 Saunders Street, Carthage. Regular business hours are from 8:30 a.m. to 6 p.m. Monday, Wednesday, and Friday, and from 8:30 a.m. to 8 p.m. Tuesday, and Thursday, and from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. Saturday.

Additional information is available by calling (910) 947-5335.

'N.C. Bookwatch'

D.G. Martin's guest on "N.C. Bookwatch" at 9:30 p.m. Friday, Aug. 22, is Theda Perdue, author of "The Cherokee Nation and the Trail of Tears."

Perdue will discuss the government's betrayals and the divisions within the Cherokee Nation, follow the exiles along the Trail of Tears, and chronicle the hardships found in the West.

An encore showing will be held at 5 p.m. Sunday, Aug. 24.