Mayo Clinic Guide to a Healthy Pregnancy
Extremely high ratings on Amazon.com and from a well-trusted source. If you buy just one book, consider this one.
- Pros: Trusted Source, Factual, Detailed, Pregnancy Decisions Review & Checklist
- Cons: I don't like that it's organized with questions Week-By-Week vs. Topic Headings. Means you either need to search the appendix or skim through a whole chapter if there is a specific issue you want to research that may not align perfectly with the week you're in. it's also a bit dense. I believe there is such thing as TOO MUCH information.
Buy it here: Mayo Clinic Guide on Amazon.com
What to Expect When You're Expecting
Is anyone NOT reading this age-old, heavily publicized (and pop-culturized) book? It's like, the holy grail of pregnancy.
- Pros: I really like how this book is organized. It also follows a Week-By-Week Structure, but with topic headings. I feel like the information is easier to find than in the Mayo Clinic book. I also like how they list out certain symptoms and then suggest degrees of severity / when to contact a doctor. Again, I am someone who prefers to handle things on my own until necessary.
- Cons: Some people feel that the WTE brand/line tends to lean more toward the strict / paranoid end of the pregnancy spectrum. I haven't felt this, but I've been balancing it out with other books to keep my perspective rounded.
Buy it here: What to Expect on Amazon.com
The Panic-Free Pregnancy: An OB-GYN Separates Fact from
Fiction on Food, Exercise, Travel, Pets, Coffee, Medications, and Concerns You
Have When You Are Expecting
I love this book. It is NOT structured Week-By-Week which I think is great, because my questions don't really follow a Week-By-Week formula. If I want to know about what I can take for a headache, I just find the chapter titled, "Can I Take This?"
- Pros: As the title suggests this book has a lot of rational, sensible, non-overreactive advice, organized in a way that feels approachable and useful.
- Cons: Some people might worry it's not "clinical" enough and perhaps too liberal. Everyone differs in their pregnancy approach and experience. I personally favor resources that suggest I will not cause major brain damage to my unborn child by having one glass of red wine every now and then. (Even if I don't ultimately do it). My husband thinks I have been trying to build a case for drinking while pregnant ever since we conceived. Don't worry. I'm not. I just don't care for the paranoid approach to pregnancy, given that women have been having babies for centuries without all this detailed information and we all turned out just fine. I haven't had booze since we found out we were pregnant because I figure, better safe than sorry when possible - but if I accidentally eat some blue cheese in a salad, I'd rather not spend the next week crying over an impending miscarriage. It's just not realistic and not healthy for that matter.
Buy it here: The Panic Free Pregnancy on Amazon.com
Fearless Pregnancy: Wisdom and Reassurance from a Doctor, a Midwife, and a Mom
I love this book for the same reasons I love The Panic Free one, even if the too are a bit redundant with each other - i.e. if you're strapped for cash, just pick one, they have pretty much the same stuff. (Do you see a trend forming here?) Sound, reasonable advice from a doctor and a midwife. (They are different people). I like that the book alternates who's answering what, so you have a rounded perspective. I also like how it's organized - by topic / concern instead of by week.
- Pros: Quick, easy-to-read, collection of advice and information, organized by topic.
- Cons: Again, not a fan of the Q&A format vs. topic headings, but this one is organized by topic so that helps.
Buy it here: Fearless Pregnancy on Amazon.com
Dude, You're Gonna Be a Dad
Don't make your poor husband read YOUR pregnancy books in addition to managing your frequent tantrums and cramp complaints. They are complicated and frankly, uninteresting to anyone who isn't going through the physical details outlined in them. Get him his own bathroom reading with this fun and informative option. Naturally, I pre-read the book to ensure I agreed with everything it would be teaching my husband.
- Pros: I love the tone of this book. It's guy-talk all the way. Light, informative, funny, and gets the point across. I also like that there is a whole chapter for after the baby is born. It's the perfect little 411-manual for your dad-to-be.
- Cons: It can be too light on details sometimes - i.e., after all YOUR extensive research, you might feel that it's leaving something out that you are just dying for your father-to-be to understand. Also, it encourages dad to take a VERY hands' on approach, which I'm sure many ladies want, but as for me, I personally appreciate a bit of privacy, so telling my husband he must drop everything to attend every single doctors' appointment I have got the big old "ixnay" from me. You may feel differently. If so, feel free to highlight the part where it says "Note, missing any appointment is at your own risk."
Buy it here: Dude, You're Gonna Be a Dad on Amazon
Okay, enough with the pregnancy books already! Here's the deal. You are only going to be pregnant for 9 months, give or take - about the time it will take you to read all those pregnancy books. So, get your fill early. Use them as a resource, for sure, but MOVE ON! Enough about the pregnancy. You are going to puke whether or not the book tells you that you are going to puke. But what about when the baby comes! It's time to start reading up on that topic, because it will be here before you know it, and then, I suspect, you will have no time to read. Here are some must-haves for your blooming baby bookshelf.
Bringing Up Bébé: One American Mother Discovers the Wisdom
of French Parenting
Must-read. I absolutely adore this book and have learned so much from it. I adore the French approach to raising a small child, right down to the "Pause" they take before picking up baby when he/she cries (NOT to be confused with "Crying it Out.") I obviously don't have the kid yet, so we'll see if the techniques work for me, but I am so very, very glad I read this book when I did.
- Pros: Approachable and honest, one woman's story shared with the world. She doesn't tell you what to do. She tells you what she learned and how she felt about it along the way. I also really appreciate that she went the extra step to back up her learnings in France with research / studies conducted elsewhere and in the U.S. It gives more credibility to what she is saying.
- Cons: Some people simply won't agree with some of the approaches discussed. That's totally fine too. Also, this is a novel, not a step-by-step or day-by-day guide. You have to actually read it rather than search for a specific answer like the pregnancy books and other parenting books out there.
Buy it here: Bringing Up Bebe on Amazon.com
I have a few more choice books to read. I've listed them below for you but haven't reviewed yet because I haven't yet read them. They all received excellent reviews on Amazon and I will update this as soon as I can add my own two cents. Happy reading!
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