Infants Books

I recently purchased several books on traveling with children, and this was by far the best. By the time I finished the book, I had several pages of notes written down, including things to pack that I never thought of, things to do before I go, products to check out and websites to visit. Reading this book has made me feel much more prepared and less nervous for my upcoming trip to France with a 15 month old, and I am confident that our trip can only go smoother having read this one!

A must-have resource for families on the go. Interesting reading and packed with helpful tips. Easy-to-use charts to help families find the best airlines, ships, etc. for their specific needs. Perfect gift for parents of young children!

I'm flying to Europe alone with my 18 mo old daughter next month and I found this book to be a great help in preparing for the trip. It contains a lot of useful information, tips, and things I would've completely overlooked had I not read this book.

If you have kids, and like to travel... you need this book. There were so many ideas there that I would have never thought of. It has made our lives easier when traveling and I've learned some really helpful things. It's hard to travel with small kids, especially if you're a new parent and just have no idea what to expect. So for me this has really been a great find!

Seriously, this is a travel bible for new parents. What a huge help this book has been from selecting a good stroller (wished we would have found this BEFORE we had our baby for car seat info too!) to calling ahead to find out if a hotel has a crib saving our trunk space from a pack and play or other. Prepping the diaper bag and carry ons have never been simpler and I have memorized the shopping list for baby must haves while traveling. Never would have thought of some of that stuff! The blog is excellent too. Please give this gift to new mommies and daddies with your baby shower gift...I am so grateful for the different age sections and different types of travel reviews. Thank you Ms. Rivoli!

I actually purchased this for a friend. I had used it with my baby who is now six. It is full of simple, practical advice from home long a baby should feed, sleeping tips, crying technique management - you name it.

It's a great reference for all Mums with babies. The follow up is The Mighty Toddler which is also a great book to have.

I first came across this book through an inlaw when my first baby was already four months old or so. As I traversed through snippets and sections of information I wished I had found it earlier.
It is an absolute gold mine of sensible information that provides a framework for decision making in the absense of hands on experience. My second child also benefited from brush ups on stage related information. And during those long sleep deprived days, my sanity benefited from being able to read ahead and see that stages pass.
All the basics are covered - how to know how much a baby should eat at various stages, diet ideas, sleep patterns, building blocks of routines. The lay out of the information makes it user friendly. An excellent index turns it into an essential handbook.

My only regret with this book is that I didn't buy it earlier and that I didn't read it before my baby was born! It is practical, down to earth advice, not wrapped up in opinion and ideologies that have a first time parent in knots. This book recognises that all babies are different and that there is a WIDE range of baby (and mother) behaviours that are totally normal. It was the first of many books that didn't leave me feeling guilty for not being able to live up to some parenting ideology that either my baby or I didn't fit, especially around sleep and crying (what a minefield of guilt that it is!) (I've read everything from for strict routines to attachment parenting). I also like the fact the Robin Barker is a midwife and health professional so her ideas and advice are based on a wide experience and knowledge of babies and mothers in the real world. I will be recommending this book to friends.
I bought this book from Australia and I think that there must be a US and an Australian version which I didn't realise at the time, would have preferred a local version if I'd known.

by far the best book for new mothers, and if you received it as a new mother, you know it's essential for the next time, and the next time... I doubt there is a question a mother couldn't find an answer to here. Perfect gift for a baby shower. Should be compulsory for new mums.

This book was given to me by an Australian friend. I own a couple of baby books as I am a first time mom without any support group. (just moved abroad before the baby came). My little one is now 10 months old and I have to say this book answered all the little questions I had. It gives many options for different problems, like feeding or sleeping, yet it does not preach or impose anything on you like so many books that make you feel like the worst mom on earth. That common sense approach is what I like about this book. Every mother/child is different and there is no universal solution. If you follow the recommendations in Baby Love you will feel save and provide well for your baby.
The book gives lots of information on different age groups, like newborn, 3-6months, 6-9months and 9-12months. It addresses changes that happen during that time in behavior, motor skills, feeding and sleeping. It reassures you with smaller medical problems and tells you when it's better to call the ped.
Over all I love this book and I will buy the toddler-version too.

I purchase this book as a present to those I know are about to have a baby boy.
Six years ago I presented this to my son and his wife. They were being badgered into circumcising by the doctors and hosptal. I credit this information for savng my grandson from being damaged for life.

I applaud this book for bringing attention to this topic. The American way is to create problems, then sell you something to solve your problems. Like routine circumcisions, then later in life taking Viagra and other various sexual enhancers. Kudos to Ronald Goldman. It's good to see him pick up the pieces after his daughter's murder.

"Just as expected, seventy-two percent of the male students are circumcised. At Clem's party I had been reminded of the promiscuous way in which American doctors circumcise males in childhood, a practice I highly disapprove of...it constitutes, in [an] advertiser's phrase, 'a rape of the penis'. Until the forties, only the upper or educated classes were circumcised in America. The REAL people were spared this humiliation. But during the affluent postwar years the operation became standard procedure, making money for doctors as well as allowing the American mother to mutilate her son in order that he might never forget her early power over him..."

Gore Vidal
MYRA BRECKINRIDGE

If there was ever an issue that metaphorically encapsulates the Achilles heel of Western society, it turns out that this may be it, above all others. The title of this incredible, clearly thought out, brilliantly edited and masterfully written book may lead you to believe that it is all about a seemingly benign issue. Make no mistake: what this book is actually about are

1) the actual definition of the surgical practice and

2) the social, economic, sociological, psychological and anthropological forces that go into us seeing it as other than what it is.

Dr. Goldman effectively teaches in this book, from the anthropological perspectives of such luminaries as Ashley Montagu and Margaret Mead, that circumcision is a practice that is older than all recorded history and religions. (The practice was actually regimented and ritualized by the Egyptian priests and pharohs, millenia before the advent of Judaism.) Yet the practice, in and out of a religious context, continues. Dr. Goldman shows us from the purely medical/health/surgical perspective (with an avalanche of evidence and corroborative opinions in the medical profession) that circumcision is a practice that has little to no medical health value, and was once actually called a cure for masturbation and cancer by last century's medical community. Yet the implausible and unscientific theories justifying its existence keep coming up, and the practice continues. Dr. Goldman shows us, amazingly, from an internationally sociological and cultural perspective, that the United States is the only industrialized nation in the modern world that has the overwhelming majority of its infant boys be subjected to the practice. Yet the practice continues. Dr. Goldman shows us, from an ethics in medicine perspective, that circumcision is a practice that, by virtue of the harm done to infant children physically and psychologically--with little to no up side beyond the money going to obstetricians and pediatricians for the procedure--completely rips to shreds any conception of the Hippocratic oath and turns the entire life of any doctor who performs them routinely into a profoundly dangerous lie.

Yet, the practice continues.

It is an old anthropologist's dictum that the most important thing to know about a culture is what it takes for granted. Dr. Ronald Goldman, with CIRCUMCISION, THE HIDDEN TRAUMA gives us not only the hidden, true anatomy of the surgical process, along with the actual complete and (heretofore to my knowledge in everyday America) unknown anatomy of the human male, but also the secret architecture of the social forces and weaknesses that make up the ritualised American denial of the inherently violent nature of its existence. Dr. Goldman shows in this both innovatively and exhaustively researched book that the entire surgical procedure of circumcision depends on the total invalidation of the soul of the infant male child and their personhood for its existence in medicine. Only paleolithic theories of the child feeling no pain and suffering no lasting or remembered traumatic side effects from the procedure--WHICH ROUTINELY INVOLVES THE USE OF NO ANESTHESIA--justify its medical practice; and fly in the face of all kinds of logic while doing so.

I along with most of the country have never seen actual pictures of or witnessed a circumcision; part of the reason I saw no problem with it when I picked this book up. The *pictures* in this book alone of children in the process of being circumcised, however, will change your way of looking at the practice forever--as it has changed me and mine forever. Picture an adult male going through the process of circumcision, complete with his hands, arms and legs forceably bound in industrial strength velcro to keep him from being able to interrupt a surgical process performed on his perfectly healthy sex organ against his will--again, *without anesthesia*--and the first thought that will probably come to your mind is one of two things: the electric chair, or Nazi Germany.

Which by definition takes away the mystery of how BOTH in the 20th century could have come into existence.

I discovered Dr. Goldman's work in the bibliography of one of the seminal books by the psychologist champion of the human child Alice Miller (author of, among other classics in the field, FOR YOUR OWN GOOD, BANISHED KNOWLEDGE and PRISONERS OF CHILDHOOD--THE DRAMA OF THE GIFTED CHILD). Between this, Alice Miller's work, and William Dufty's SUGAR BLUES, I feel as if I have the answer to why our culture can move so far forward and fall so far backward on the evolutionary ladder at the same time. The door separating Western culture from the embrace of higher consciousness, as told to us by poets, mystics,yogis, leaders of ancient religions, transpersonal psychologists and theoretical physicist/philosophers, is our view of the spiritual and physical completeness of the human child--and the actions we take upholding that view.

That door is locked with a dead bolt called CIRCUMCISION. And even unlocking the door, as Europe has already shown us, does not by definition mean opening it. But without unlocking it opening it isn't posible.

Read this if you have to in small doses, but read it; it will change the way you view our world.

Because this unique book exposes significant issues about male circumcision that medical professionals and religious practitioners have long tried to ignore, I cannot recommend it highly enough, not only for the victims of this questionable medical procedure and religious rite, but also for the perpetrators and potential perpetrators of a primitive cultural tradition that causes great harm in our society. As a victim of neonatal genital mutilation myself, I have spent much of my life trying to come to terms with both the physical and psychological trauma involved, in part, by surveying the relevant literature on the topic. However, while I have found many books and articles that deal unapologetically with the physical trauma involved in both male and female genital cutting, as well as the psychological trauma that accompanies female circumcision, this book is, to my knowledge, the first and only published resource that delves into the psychological trauma to which males are subjected through this bizarre procedure. In his well-written study and analysis of the psychological aspects of male circumcision, Dr. Goldman, who is himself Jewish, indeed uncovers the hidden trauma that medical professionals and religious practitioners have so long denied, and he gives voice to those many victims of male circumcision whose post-traumatic stress disorder symptoms have been dismissed by those same professionals and practitioners for whom questioning the wisdom and safety of an age-old ritual would be self-indicting. In this country, the practice of female circumcision has been outlawed because, as a tradition foreign to our Judeo-Christian heritage, its harmful results are deemed self-evident. Unfortunately, many more psychological studies and academic publications confirming Dr. Goldman's findings will probably be necessary before the harmful results of male circumcision are finally accepted similarly as self-evident, and American males are given the same legal rights to genital integrity now granted to females through the U.S. legal system. Nonetheless, Dr. Goldman's book is a significant first step in providing a clear rationale for granting men equal protection under the law.

I just want to read a book that is fair about circumcision. Unfortunately, they don't exist. All books are either extremely for or against. This one is no different.

This has totally helped us keep a journal. It makes it easy to make time to do this. As much as I want to journal every moment, I never take the time. This book has been the answer. I bought one for each of our kids. Love it!

I love the journal series she has made. they are very detailed and easy to keep track off. My husband enjoyed the pregnancy one, and i missed picking up the first year one. But overall i love this journal and would recommend it to any mom that has a deployed spouse.

I recv'd this book a couple of weeks ago and wished I had purchased sooner (my son is 2 and the book is from 1-3 years). The book is a combo b/w a toddler reference and a journal. There is space for you to note what your toddler is accomplishing at particular weeks but not preset lines/questions like "what is their favorite food" or "name 3 of your toddlers favorite songs", etc. If you prefer the preset questions, you may not prefer this book.

I am so glad there was a sequel to The First Year Journal. A friend of mine got me started on the first one and I had to purchase the toddler journal to continue commenting on my child's development. Now, two kids later, I have had the chance to read and take notes about how they've developed for the first three years of their precious lives. What a great gift to give them later in life. I love the scribbling pages and handprint pages to show their progress. I also love the three areas that are covered each week: physical, cognitive, and social. I highly recommend getting this book, as well as the first one, and make as many comments as you possibly can because you forget so much about those first three years throughout your child's life.

I love this book! It provides very helpful developmental information that is always VERY accurate and also provides great prompts to help you journal about your toddler. I would recommend it to anyone!

This was an okay book. I got it from the library which is what I suggest you do. It has great photos which help you learn things such as clothing your baby, holding your baby, swaddling your baby, bathing your baby and more. Most of the photos are just fun to look at. I read this book after reading many other baby care books but it offered some new ideas for care which I now use. The only problem with this book is that it shows babies lying on their sides or stomach to sleep which is not recommended because of the increased risk of SIDS. Babies should be placed on their back. Keep that in mind and the book is a good read.

If you are looking for an easy-to-read, basic guide to preparing for a baby, buy this book! It is a great addition to any pregnancy or baby care library. It really is a simple book about calm, soothing parenting and preparing for baby, but depending on your needs/experience, it could be all you need. I bought several as gifts for friends and they all love it.

I purchased this book while I was pregnant and the cover brought tears to my eyes (still does). I believe strongly in a relaxed, calm, loving approach to parenting, and was annoyed by all the people who tried to convince me that I should be stressed out about this baby! This book really met my needs - informative and practical, and a soothing read for both calm and nervous parents. The black and white photography is just beautiful.

I'm trying to find it for every pregnant friend!

I actually bought this book before I even knew I was pregnant and put it away for the future. A few short months later, it was the first book I chose to read about parenting and baby care. It was comforting to read such straight-forward, child-centered advice. I believe that reading this book has shaped my attitude toward parenting into a more natural, simple approach and has helped me keep my focus on my child's needs before anything else. It is reassuring to know that you don't have to have it all or know it all to be a good parent. I highly recommend this book for other first-time moms.

Seeing the cover of this book I was apprehensive. Another book on how beautiful it is to have children, with little substantial help, I thought. Well it is about the beauty and a lot lot more. A comparitively short book, each paragraph has practical, sage advice on a host of things one would only learn after years of experience. Written by the daughter of a midwife, the book has years of expereince to draw from. Advice ranges from dealing with family, pets, and guests with bad timing, to setting up a useful nursery. We plan to give this book as a gift to several expecting friends of ours.

I bought this book for a friend who is expecting and she LOVES it. The short stories are informative and inspiring. And she doesn't have to commit to reading a book from start to finish. I have always loved Chicken Soup for the Soul books, and this one is a great gift for expectant mothers.

I was looking for a book like this, one that doesn't go by month to month of what I should expect physically, medically. It's a book that gives you some perspective from personnal short stories. I brought it to read during my "baby moon" and it just made me feel whole-especially mentally. Too bad there isn't a more recent version but, I would buy this as a gift-especially for a first time mother.

I really hate to give any "Chicken Soup" book less than a 5 star because I am a huge fan.

I was slightly disappointed in the content of this book. I really was hoping and expecting that it would have more stories about giving birth. It says on the cover that the 101 stories inspire and warm the hearts of soon-to-be-mothers but I felt like the subjects were too general.

For example, the contents are 1. We're Pregnant, 2. Nine Months and Counting, 3 Expectant Fathers, 4. Challenges along the Way, 5. Special Delivery 6. Small Miracle 7. Memorable moments, 8. On Motherhood, 9. Expectant Wisdom.

I didn't find many birth stories - in fact, I don't think there was even one.

However, in spite of my need for positive birth stories, I still love the stories that they put in the book.

Sheri Menelli, childbirth educator, doula, speaker and author of "[...]"

If you're an expectant mother you will appreciate the stories in this book. They are touching and funny and strike a universal chord that make you realize you're not alone. Five stars! Debbie Farmer, parenting author of 'Don't Put Lipstick on the Cat'

this book was exactly what i needed to help me love the feeling of being pregnate. during my second pregnancy i wasn't feeling all that hot until my hubby came home with the book. i read this book three times already, even my four year old loves the stories. i cried and laughed and cried some more...read this book if you're looking for something to cheer you up while you're feeling down! An excellent book--I promise!!!!

After my twins were born 3 months early, I felt really alone. No one in my family had babies like ours. The only people that I had to talk to were nurses and doctors, and the are not big on offering hope.
I finally found this book and immediately found what I needed at the time, to know that other babies had went through this and survived. This book gave me comfort while my two boys were still in the NICU, I cannot recommend it enough.

I cried in every single stories of this book. they are very touching. and yes, i could relate to all of the stories in there, especially the stories on very premature babies. the stories definitely gave me hopes on my baby's future (who was born 10 weeks premature). this book is really a good source for parents with premature babies.

how would i describe this book? engrossing, heartfelt, heartbreaking, encouraging, emotional, wonderful!
all of the babies do survive in this book, but not all come out unscathed. all the parents mention how the child is affected now by their problems. some stories are short, some are long, but they are all so heartfelt,and true! you can't help but be engaged by these stories, that are not at all what you expect. you cry with the parents, and get excited when they do well. you are amazed what these kids go through. since the stories are written by the parents, it is firsthand knowledge, and no two stories are told in the same manner,and each one is so important to the writer, which is conveyed in the story.
i really recommend this book!!

I went down this dark road after the premature birth of my daughter at 27 weeks gestation. Living Miracles offers hope to those who might feel their situation is hopeless, but it is not for the faint of heart. To be the mother or father of a premature child, especially with one who develops problems, one must learn to be strong, resilient, loving, and patient. It is a selfess calling, as these parents show us. And it always, always helps to know you are not alone . . .

Thank you for sharing!

Three years ago, I took a trip to my local book store in search of books about preemies. The selection I found was limited at best. I spent hours searching for a book with real stories about babies born prematurely-I found not one. I found some good informative books, which were also important, but none that gave me the kind of hope and inspiration I so desperately needed those weeks and months after my daughter was born at 25 weeks gestation. When I heard about this book, Living Miracles, Stories of Hope from Parents of Premature Babies, edited by Kimberly A. Powell & Kim Wilson, I thought to myself, "Well, it's about time there came about a book like this!" I was very excited about the book as I sat down to read it, but nothing could have prepared me for how wonderful the book turned out to be!

The book is laid out by gestation from 23 weeks to 36 weeks, with 22 stories in all. They have various outcomes, just as in real life. Each story is written from the parent's point of view, which makes it that much more gripping. There are stories where the children come out virtually unscathed from their experience with prematurity, and also stories where children have severe complications due to their prematurity. There are also stories about children who have problems completely unrelated to their prematurity. However the stories end up, they are all very touching and inspiring.

This is a book not only for parents of premature babies, but for everyone. You can't help but feel inspired after reading the stories of these heroic children born with the deck stacked against them. It is good for new parents of premature babies to give them hope for the future and make them realize they are not alone in what they are feeling the hours, weeks and months after their babies are born; For families of people with babies born premature to help them understand some of what the new parents are going through and feeling; For the average person who doesn't even know that there are over 400,000 babies born prematurely every year. It is important for people to be more aware of the many babies who are born early, and also that there are a number of reasons babies are born premature. Hopefully this book will find it's way to those people who don't have a clue that the preemie world even exists-just as I didn't just a short 3 years and some change ago! But most importantly, it is a great book for new parents of preemie babies because there is so much uncertainty after their birth.

I gave this to my son who is the father of a preemie. He said it was so good that he was going to loan it to me to read also. My son is a Ph.D. candidate and has a lot of reading to do, so any additional book has to be really good.

This is a wonderful book. The author not only delves into the lives of twelve families affected, but also about the history of neonatology itself. You find yourself pulling for each of these tiny infants as well as their caretakers.

this book is great! it follows the real life happenings of a nicu in california. it follows the cases of several families, through their ups adn downs, and everything in between. there are babies that recover fine, some that recover with problems, adn some do die. it also talks about things from the doctors and nurses perspectives, and gives some history of neonatology. a great book for preemie parents, non preemie parents (i am not, and just loved this book), doctors, nurses, etc. very good read.

I found this book after seeing it mentioned on Oprah. Wow. What an amazingly touching and fascinating look at the brave new world of having babies. She just has a way of finding the books that are full of heart.

This book was the most impressive book I have ever read! It inspired me to go into Neonatology! I adore this book and recommend it to any one interested in medicine!

This is *the* book to have if you are a breastfeeding counselor; it is the first one I reach for whenever a nursing mother calls for help. The information is well organized, making it easy to quickly locate topics. Quick facts are bulleted to the side of main entries, and the information provided on each topic is comprehensive and well researched. Each chapter contains a bibliography, with lists of publications for parents and references for counselors.

This book has been worth every penny, and I strongly recommend it to anyone who works with breastfeeding mothers.

I have read a few breastfeeding books and resources in the past few years. I am a mother of four children, all of whom have been breastfed. I can say without a doubt that this book is AWESOME! It has more information and more detailed answers than any other book, resource, or class that I've seen. I highly recommend it to anyone who is breastfeeding or considering breastfeeding. It's a really great book!

Having reviewed more books on lactation than I can list, the breastfeeding Answer Book stood out as the best book for both students and practitioners. The information is easy to access and is set up so that you can use it quickly.

This book is required for several programs at the Global Birth Institute and tends to be out of stock often. If you see the book listed, don't hesitate to order it.

I loved this book! I bought this when having difficulty nursing my second baby. After having experience with nursing, I was surprised after 8wks and visiting with a lactation consultant (which cost me $75) I was still having discomfort. I found this book to be a great resource!

This is a very good reference book for anyone who works in the field of lactation. It is not a book that you should read cover to cover; instead, it is a reference tool.

One downside to this book is that the index leaves a lot to be desired. It is not complete and it is poorly organized. Yes, it is in alphabetical order, but the words they indexed are often not helpful. I generally find I have to go through the TOC to find what I need - something a bit backwards from other reference material.

Other than that, this is well worth the money.

What's not to love about Carl? This is the best of the Carl books, save the original Good Dog Carl. In this book, Carl has to watch the baby and a new puppy in the park. The illustrations are multi-layer -- adults will pick up on things that kids won't (like the different art schools of the painters in the park). Adding the puppy is a fun twist. I was really glad to see this story in a board book for toddlers.

These are fanatastic books for any child (or adult!) who loves dogs. The illustrations are beautiful, and since the stories are told only in pictures, there is plenty of room for creativity when reading the book with your child(ren).

This is a book for very young children, but the illustrations are so lovely and detailed, and the situations depicted so full of wit and little hidden jokes, that I never get bored with it, even after "reading" it over and over and over again with my toddler. This is my very favorite of the Carl books, because the activities are totally non-materialistic and wholesome (riding a merry-go-round and a train, sharing an ice cream cone, getting sprayed by a hose), and because the park is recognizably inspired by beautiful Balboa Park in my native San Diego, where Alexandra Day lives. It's worth it to get both the board book and regular hardcover editions, just to appreciate the greater detail of the images in the larger format.

And I have to add just one more, mildly tongue-in-cheek comment: as for the "lesbian couple" alluded to in a veiled way by a previous reviewer -- well, I just have to giggle. Yes, there are two young, attractive women having a picnic on the grass as Carl and his charges go by. But it never would have occurred to me to impute homosexuality (or any kind of sexuality) to them. They're fully clothed (albeit in pants), and they're just sitting there -- hardly a lascivious scene no matter what your prejudices. Now if Tinky-Winky were pictured sitting with them, well, that would be a whole different story. I guess this just proves what everyone says is so wonderful about the Carl books -- you can interpret the images however you like.

I justed picked this book up at the library. I think it's great to have the majority of the book with no words, just gorgeous, colorful pictures. The more detail in the pictures, the better, as my almost-two year old loves to "find things" in them. With no words, he and I can make up our own story, it lets him decide whats happening. I plan to buy a few of the series to have around all the time.

Carl is such a great dog, and the pictures are just beautiful.

There is "no" story line with words so you can talk all about what Carl does or you can say as little as you like to.

Great series books!