Rating: 
Summary: It's a must have for first time moms
Review: I recently had my first child in July, and I must say that this book is essential for anyone having a baby. Everything I have experienced with my baby is explained in the book, from the "blisters" on her mouth after breastfeeding to a small red sore that she had under her arm. I hate calling the peditrician over every little thing, and with this book, I don't have to. It is broken down by month, and is so accurate! I strongly recommend this book!
Rating: 
Summary: Some sound advice, but alot of confusion too
Review: Overall, this book did give some very helpful advice to this first-time mom, and uses a tone that is less preachy than the Sears book. However, I found some of the advice in the book to be confusing and internally inconsistent. For example, it states that you should wait to introduce wheat until 12mos. Yet throughout the book, much earlier than 12mos, it talks about feeding your child crackers (it even has feeding self with cracker as a milestone) and whole wheat bread. The book is filled with these types of inconsistencies that will confuse the close reader (as most 1st timers are!). My advice is chart your own course between this book and another book. I do recommend that any first-timer get this book AND another book, (I got the Sears book but I understand that many folks like Brazelton's book) if for no other reason than to get a range of perspectives.
Rating: 
Summary: Poor babies!
Review: I pity the babies who will be raised with this advice. I agree with many of the other readers, and can't figure out why this book still sells so well. What got to me was something about how an 8- or 9-month old baby who cries when he or she sees its parents leaving is being "manipulative." Do the authors really think babies that age understand this concept? This book put me off parenting books once and for all. Reading this sort of misguided advice dulls parents' newly emerging intuition, which is a far more effective tool for raising one's own precious baby.
Rating: 
Summary: Every first mother's dream
Review: I think this book is the greatest. It gave me insight on what to expect during my months of pregnancy as well as my newborn. Everyone should invest in one.
Rating:
Summary: Not for new-age coddlers.
Review: .... My wife and I are first-time parents, and we had several parenting guides to use during our baby's first year. This book became our primary reference, because we found the advice to be sensible, well-organized, easy to understand, and ultimately, true to life. Fact: babies sometime stop crying on their own if they are not immediately swept up into the loving busoms of their mothers. Ours did. And when she didn't, we soon went to her and consoled her. The result of all this "abuse" is that she's a healthy, loving, intelligent 15-month old. If you're an overprotective milquetoast who thinks that any parent who would leave a child to cry for more than 10 seconds is some sort of ogre, by all means, do not bother with this barbaric book. If you think that any effort to try to shape a baby's behavior is per se child abuse, then steer clear of this horrific tripe. If, however, you give your baby a little more credit, and if you also believe that you're capable of realizing that all written advice on parenting should be applied sensibly to your own situation, this book is an invaluable and easy-to-understand resource.
Rating:
Summary: Great book
Review: This book is great. It helps put things into prespective. Answered all my questions and then some with straight forward information. I also read "The Baby Book" by Sears and hated it. "What to Expect the First Year" by Eisenberg is much better and doesn't constantly tell you that attachment parenting and breastfeeding are the answer to everything. This is a great book to have handy.
Rating: 
Summary: good general information, bad parenting advice
Review: I agree with most of the other reviews. This book has good general advice on what developmental milestones your baby may be reaching and the symptoms of various illnesses. However, the parenting advice is very outdated and harsh. They want you to treat your baby like a puppy that needs to be trained to behave, instead of as an individual with wants and needs of their own. They are very oppossed to extended breast feeding, co sleeping and responding to a babies signals. I'm sure people who follow this advice have well behaved babies, but at what cost? Are these the kids that freak out in high school because they have never had their needs met? I would recommend instead The Baby Book and First Feelings for good advice on parenting a baby.
Rating:
Summary: Book has useful information
Review: I feel this book does contain some good information. The book is well organized with easy to read sections, and best of all it focuses on one issue at a time. I feel the book is very comprehensive dealing with all sorts of issues by breaking them down month by month on things you should see, and things you should expect. This is definately a worthwhile read, its a great book to keep in mind when trying to find out about that first year.
Rating:
Summary: Absolutely wonderful
Review: This book is very informative, especially for first time moms. It addresses so many concerns, questions, and gives you guidelines in caring for your developing child. Don't take it as the absolute truth however. There are always exceptions to the rule. When in doubt, consult your pediatrician.
Rating:
Summary: Okay Medical reference, not really helpful in parenting
Review: I am a frist time mother with very little help and I grew up in a culture that baby-carrier, breastfeeding and co-sleep are must.But, I wanted the American way to raise my son. I got this book as a free gift from my insurance company. I thought this book would be a very useful reference, otherwise, they would not send it to me. I really belived everything she said in the book as the right "American way" to bring up an independent, loving, intelligent child. I read this book when I was expecting. It already made me felt very confused. Bascially, I followed everything what she said and what should I do for the first 3 months. However, it didn't help me at all. I didn't have the answers for all my questions. And I found some of her suggestions contradicted with my doctor's. Even my husband said I should not follow everything in the book(he jokes the book is my "bible"), and my mother disaproved I let my son slept alone, I was still not to give up the book. Until the fourth month, my son could not make one of the milestones the book suggested. I started to feel I had slow him down. It really hurt my self-seteem as a mother. After 3 months of sleepless nights in order to train my son slept alone, I was exhausted and frustrated. My husband sugested let him slept with us. However, what the book said about the disadvanges of co-sleep concerned me. My husband asked me "you and your siblings were co-sleep. What are the side effects you guys have from that?" Actually none,it only made us have a really close relationship. So, I decided not to follow this book. I bought a half dozen pacificers and a carrier, and put my son sleeps in our family bed. Now, he is not only can sleep through the night, alot sounder that before, he also able to fall into sleep by himself without any help from me. He is much happier and feels more secure. TRUST YOUSELF when it comes to parenting especially you have a very sensitive baby like mine. You don't need this book.
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