I need pregnancy/baby book recommendations for a guy.

[Karen sn]

We are doing a home birth and will not vaccinate or circumsize. (My personal beliefs - don't care if you do or don't - so no flames please).
I want a book more radical than I am. But I don't want to run the man off either!
I have Gentle Birth Choices and What Your Doctor May Not Tell You About Circumcision.
I don't need any more hippy books (love Ina May Gaskins but I don't think my man is ready for her).

He is 40 and has never had a kid. His sister has 3 but he really wasn't all that into her pregnancies and she's not at all into alternative medicine. (Not that she's against it - I think she's just never been exposed to it).

He knows absolutely nothing about pregnancy and is currently reading What to Expect When You're Expecting, but that book is a little too "why epidurals are necessary AND safe" for my taste.

Any recommendations from the hive would be most apprecitaed. Thanks in advance.

[Sue G in PA]

The Bradley Method of Natural Childbirth is good and one called something like Husband Coached something or other (sorry, name escapes me...I'm sure somebody else knows!). Don't know any on circumcision...my dh and I were always in agreement that we didn't want to circumcize. I think it's great that he WANTS to read up on pregnancy/childbirth. It took YEARS before my dh even knew anything about the nitty-gritty on *how* to get pregnant (I'm not talking about the *fun* part...just the cycle part...he was always good w/ the *fun* part:D). If I think of more, I'll post later.

[Mom2legomaniacs]

I found The Birth Book by Sears to be really well done. I thought the approach (from what I recall -- it's been 7 years now) was informative, not telling you one method was the best. I thought the slant was more toward the natural and how to best do that.

That's the only one I had that I know of that would be a possible fit for that.

[Janna]

The Bradley Method of Natural Childbirth is good and one called something like Husband Coached something or other (sorry, name escapes me...I'm sure somebody else knows!).

It's called "Husband-Coached Childbirth (http://www.amazon.com/Husband-Coached-Childbirth-Bradley-Method-Natural/dp/0553375563)" by Dr. Bradley.

I'm reading this book right now. So far, I'm not impressed. He's rather humorous, or at the least, desperately trying to be, but he seems rather old-fashioned. I don't know. I'm about 3/4 of the way through and trying to determine whether I'll pass this over to my dh to read or not. It's not a bad book by any means. Just out dated on a lot of stuff - not all. It's a take it or leave it (the advice) book, which is why I'm trying to decide whether it's worth my dh's time.

However, now that I think on it, this is our 3rd pregnancy. It very well might be a good book for your mate because it's his first. At the very least, check it out and see for yourself. It's a fast read.

I think there's another book my dh read with our first called "The Expectant Father (http://www.amazon.com/Expectant-Father-Advice-Dads-Be/dp/0789205386)". It was OK.

[Janna]

I was just thinking on this book, Karen. I know now what I don't like about it. You'll have to determine whether it's something your db would be affected by or not.

I was trying to think what about the book doesn't sit well with me. It's that Dr. Bradley is so sure HIS method is THE method, you know? And it may very well be. BUT, he certainly isn't favorable in the least towards births where medication is used. He goes on and on and on about how Bradley deliveries are full of laughter and joy in the birthing room - quiet and peaceful, nary a noise. Soft whisperings and gentle touches by the husband. He goes so far to suggest that because of this, medicated (epidurals) birth mom's are jealous (Tom Cruise and Katie Holmes, anyone?). He gives story after story about women who didn't need him to help in the "delivery" (which he doesn't even like to call it that) and that women should be able to give birth on the side of the road, pick up the baby and carry on with their day (as evidenced by comparing a Chinese woman who did this), or at the very least, be able to give birth then get up and walk her baby to the recovery room (at the time, labor, delivery and recovery rooms all being the same were very rare). This makes me nervous for dh to read because I can see his expectations becoming that for me. You'll have to decide if your db would be like that or not. He goes on the say that we (women) weren't meant to stand on 2 legs - we were meant to be on 4 (which is thus, highly suggestive if evolution which I don't agree with it at all. I don't know where you stand on that, so this might not be an issue for you), because he compares human birth with animal births - why don't they retain water but we do? Why don't they sleep on their backs, but we do (uh, because we're not a cat or a dog or a cow).

My sil actually just sold her Bradley practice after teaching it for a number of years. Unfortunately, I was never pregnant during the time she taught and now I live too far away from her. But she did train my other sil who has delivered 2 babies the Bradley way (and she herself - teaching sil - has delivered 3 this way). I can assure you that both of them did not have peaceful, joyful, laughter-filled births. According to Dr. Bradley, they did it incorrectly then.

There are some good things in the book though. I just have to take them for what they are and dismiss the rest and hope dh does the same. :)

[Cadam]

women should be able to give birth on the side of the road, pick up the baby and carry on with their day

I really have nothing constructive to add, just that no matter how good his methods this man has obviously never pushed a 10 pound child out of his body. ;)

[~Tara~]

A Baby Is Born has some info and pics of growing baby and such.
I often recommend Active Birth (I always forget the author :blush: ) as it doesn't necessarily focus on home birth. Which, most don't seem to care to hear about. But it has some good pregnancy and birthing info. Info on ... being active...during birth. Enlightens folks to other positions...beyond 'lie on your back, feet up to the ceiling', KWIM? Tis good stuff.

[Mamagistra]

The Natural Pregnancy Book (http://www.amazon.com/Natural-Pregnancy-Book-Nutrition-Holistic/dp/1587611783/) by Aviva Jill Romm
Mothering Magazine's Having a Baby Naturally (http://www.amazon.com/Mothering-Magazines-Having-Baby-Naturally/dp/0743439635/)
The Thinking Woman's Guide to a Better Birth (http://www.amazon.com/Thinking-Womans-Guide-Better-Birth/dp/0399525173/) by Henci Goer

[lovemyboys]

He is 40 and has never had a kid.

He knows absolutely nothing about pregnancy and is currently reading What to Expect When You're Expecting, but that book is a little too "why epidurals are necessary AND safe" for my taste.




Armin Brott's books for the expectant dad and then father of a newborn, father of a 1-year old, father of a toddler.

Don't remember the specifics about birthing opinions there, but the overall attitude is warmly supportive.

Dh here was given a number of books and also read mine, this was absolutely our favorite for him. So much so that relatives gave him others in the series when he became a dad. :)