There are hundreds of books about pregnancy out there and it can be difficult to find the most reliable advice and information for expectant mums and dads.
Here’s our list of, what we consider, the best five pregnancy books;
The Day-to-Day Pregnancy Book - Dr Maggie Blott
Count down your pregnancy day by day with advice from a team of experts and amazing images for every stage of your baby's development.
The Day-by-day Pregnancy Book provides a comprehensive look at every week of pregnancy. From early foetal development to how your hormones prepare you for birth, Q&As with experts and mums will help put your mind at ease. The Day-by-day Pregnancy Book also breaks down the 12 hours post-delivery with an hour-by-hour account and the day-by-day format continues for the first two weeks of life with a newborn baby.
The Expectant Dad's Survival Guide: Everything You Need to Know – Rob Kemp
The Expectant Dad's Survival Guide tells you everything you need to know during your partner's pregnancy and the first few weeks of your new life as a dad. Combining expert advice from midwives, psychologists and obstetricians with first-hand accounts, it explains what's happening with her, what's going on with your baby, and what the hell you should be doing every step of the way.
What to Expect When You're Expecting 5th Edition – Heidi Murkoff
This newly-updated pregnancy book is full of must-have information, advice, insight and tips. With its trademark warmth, empathy and humour, it answers every conceivable question expectant parents could have, including lots of new information on the ever-changing pregnancy and birthing practices. Advice for dads is fully integrated throughout the book, and all medical coverage is completely up-to-date, including the latest on prenatal screening and the safety of medications during pregnancy.
Expecting Better: Why the Conventional Pregnancy Wisdom is Wrong and What You Really Need to Know Paperback – Emily Oster
Pregnant women are often treated as if they were children, given long lists of items to avoid - alcohol, caffeine, sushi - without any real explanation from their doctors about why. They hear frightening and contradictory myths about everything from weight gain to sleeping on your back to bed rest from friends and pregnancy books. In EXPECTING BETTER, Oster shows that the information given to pregnant women is sometimes wrong and almost always oversimplified.
Juju Sundin's Birth Skills: Proven Pain-Management Techniques for Your Labour and Birth
Explanations about the physiology of pain and what techniques can help ease it help pregnant women understand what bodies experience during labour and what can be done to actively manage the pain. With a combination of professional advice from a 30-year career in obstetric therapy and recommendations from a program-participant’s personal journey, this guidebook offers proven pain-management tips such as movement, breathing, vocalising, and using stress balls and keywords. All types of birthing methods are described—including short and long labours, natural or epidural labours, and water births. This much-needed resource aids women to prepare for their biggest fear—the pain of labour—and shows them not only how to get through it, but also illustrates the empowerment of managing such pain.
