Recommended Reading

cioccolata16

Hi all, I thought it might be nice to have a place where we can give and receive recommendations for useful reading! A friend gave me a list of useful titles, and so far I've only made it through Expecting Better (which was a nice presentation of scientific evidence for various pregnancy concerns...thought it's probably a bit dated now, with a decade of new research since). My husband is also enjoying The Birthing Partner, in case anyone's significant other wants to read up. At some point I'll switch to post-partum and early childhood reading!

dinomeetsjedi

It's true, expecting better is outdated and I wish there was a more updated version. I wish my husband was willing to read because I have heard good things about The Birthing Partner. Maybe I will have to read it for myself and give him the highlights, haha.

I didn't read a ton of books with my first because it gave me too much anxiety/insomnia from trying to plan all the ways I would take care of my child, and I haven't read any this time around yet, but I would like to plan a little more for birth since I didn't really have one last time and I'm hoping to this time.

Last time I also read Crib Sheet by Emily Oster and it was good, It wasn't as helpful as Expecting Better, I thought.

I also ready Bringing Up Bebe which I have heard a lot of good things about before and since but I didn't really love. It is about how French Culture raises kids and how they are far superior to the U.S. and French parents are a lot happier. I thought there were some good points and ideas, but a lot of it, I thought, although it is different from the U.S. and maybe easier on parents, it is maybe equally problematic for other reasons. And some of the things like their preschool/daycare/schooling situation would be lovely but is just not accessible in the U.S. 

I think those were about the only books I read.

ceclarlinetlo

I really enjoyed Birth Day: A Pediatrician Explores the Science, the History, and the Wonder of Childbirth by Mark Sloan. Most other books I tried felt biased in one way or another, and this one felt very “here is some interesting historical information on how birth trends have changed over time” without painting any particular style of approach to birth as better over another.