When we asked Dr. Vonnegut what books he would recommend to an expecting parent he said with a smile, “They should stop reading and go out to dinner and see movies while they can…there is a false belief if they read the right books they’ll have a good baby/be a good parent.”
Having said that, here are some of our choices:
Infants and Mothers: Differences in Development, T. Berry Brazelton
The Magic Years, Selma Fraiberg
Operating Instructions, Anne Lamotte
Happiest Baby on the Block, Harvey Karp
Your Baby’s First Year: Fourth Edition, American Academy of Pediatrics, Steven P. Shelov, MD
Home for Dinner, Mixing Food, Fun, and Conversation for a Happier Family and Healthier Kids, Anne K. Fishel, Ph.D.
The Nursing Mother’s Companion, Kathleen Huggins
iRules: What Every Tech-Healthy Family Needs to Know about Selfies, Sexting, Gaming, and Growing Up, Janell Burley Hofmann
Last Child in the Woods: Saving Our Children From Nature-Deficit Disorder, Richard Louv
the Nature Fix, Florence Williams
Baby Massage: The Calming Power of Touch, Dr. Alan Heath and Nicki Bainbridge