So as a FTM I am trying to soak up all the info I can to help prepare for the arrival of our little boy. I've spent the better part of this afternoon scouring through amazon
reviews looking for some good books for DH and myself. I've found some
hopefuls but wanted to see if you ladies have any real-life advice about
books you've read or intend to read to help prepare for you LO. A
couple of the books that I've added to my cart so far are "Strong
Mothers, Strong Sons" by Meg Meeker and "The New Father: A Dad's Guide
to the First Year" by Armin A Brott.
Re: Baby/Parenting Book Recommendations
I fail in the book department, plus I don't like being told what to do.
The Happiest Baby is good, but I thought the DVD was all you need (I got it from the library)
Baby 411 is pretty helpful too.
For sleep issues I liked the No Cry Sleep Solution, but I thought it was useful to read a variety of techniques and perspectives and go with what feels right.
For BF I like the Nursing Mother's Companion. I would recommend not to read all of the trouble shooting issues ahead of time, but instead wait to see what issues you actually have.
Dec '12 & Jan '15
I loved Bringing Up Bebe.
For DH, he loved Be Prepared: A Practical Handbook for New Dads by Gary Greenberg. Very funny, but useful too.
For sleep training, we used The Baby Sleep Solution by Suzy Giordana. A little hard core for some moms, but DS was sleeping 12 hours by 12 weeks (give or take a week).
I really liked Baby 411 as sort of a reference guide (not so much to sit down and read front to back). It's organized really well, is up to date, and had a lot of practical info. I bought Toddler 411 but haven't really used it like I did Baby 411.
For sleep books, I liked Healthy Sleep Habits, Happy Child. I can't say we always followed it, but it has some good tips, expectations, etc. I used it mainly from 6-8 weeks to 6 months.
I also liked The Baby Book by Dr. Sears. Not everyone agrees with his philosophies (mostly attachment parenting), it's got a lot of good, basic info and includes a lot of charts with developmental milestones.
Another one I still use is Touchpoints, Birth-Three by Brazelton. It's older (published in '06), but it's a good one to read once you're past the newborn phase. It's broken up by age and is focused primarily on developmental/emotional issues or phases. It's great for helping understand what's going on with your child, especially as they are out of the newborn phase.