The Girlfriends' Guide to Pregnancy

Rating:
Summary: Not for the First Time Mom To Be
Review: I would definitely not recommend this book for a first time Mom. I read this before I got pregnant and ended up in tears. I have a great self image, but by the time I finished this book, I was sure that I would end up fat, lumpy and unlovable. I was sure that my husband would never want to touch me again. I have told all of my friends who are trying to conceive to leave this one on the shelf!

Rating:
Summary: Great book to own while pregnant!
Review: This certainly isn't the only book you should purchase when having your first child, but it is ESSENTIAL to have! It is enlightening and light hearted - especially when talking about dreaded side effects of pregnancy (from stretchmarks, to puking, to talking to your doctor about personal problems 'down there'). I highly recommend this if you are having your first!!!

Rating:
Summary: Good counter to the medical books
Review: Too many pregnancy books focus only on the ins and outs (pardon the pun) and the shoulds and shouldn'ts of pregnancy, and some of them are written by male doctors - no offense, but to quote my favorite Friend: "no uterus: no opinion". While Vicki Iovine seems to think all women start out pretty, petite and rich (SO not true for most of us) she does give a lot of the details and nitty gritty stuff we wanted to know but were afraid to ask. If you have plenty of open and honest friends and family-members who have RECENTLY had children (because believe me the memory does fade after awhile) you may not need this book. Otherwise it's pretty much an essential for your "pregnancy library".

Rating:
Summary: Not the book for the sensitive person...
Review: From the Foreword to the end it clearly states, " It is the compilation of the experiences, opinions, concerns, complaints and remedies that my Girlfriends and I had when we were pregnant. If any real medical information is passed along in this book, it largely accidental, for I leave that domain to the doctors." So clearly, some other reviewers have failed to read this page. This book is not going tell you the medical info regarding tests that are performed, what scientifically causes mood swings, etc. but what the author will tell you about is how some things seem scarier then they really are, and how they really feel unlike the doctors who always say "it will only hurt a little," and so forth. She is not an advocate of natural childbirth but does go into the experiences of her friends that are. This is an opinioned book with advice that may not apply to everyone but in no way makes, you feel pressured for disagreeing. If you have been reading all those books with the medical information like myself and find that you wake up every morning scared that something is wrong then maybe a good laugh is really, what you need. I find this book hysterical, and it has really made me realize that some of the feelings I have been experiencing are not outrageous and to be expected.

Rating:
Summary: Not for everyone - not for me!
Review: I have never written an Amazon review before, but I was so annoyed by this book that I just had to write one. The book was recommended to me by several people, so maybe I'm in the minority. I'm an avid reader with a good sense of humor, but I failed to see what's so funny or insightful about the "Girlfriends' Guide." I found it to be poorly written, sloppily edited and more irritating than amusing. Vicki Iovine bears no resemblance to my girlfriends. Her viewpoint strikes me as very west-coast-white-upper-middle-class, and much in her book seems dated (leggings with stirrups are her number one fashion tip!). "Girlfriends' Guide" reads like a slightly lewd "Cathy" comic strip without the pictures. She reinforces all sorts of stereotypes of women in general (vain, self-centered) and pregnant women in particular (irrational, grotesquely bloated) that I don't find to be true, much less funny. While I do think there's a market out there for a light-hearted, non-scientific "tell it like it is" book about pregnancy, this isn't the one for me. If you consider yourself smart and literary, you might be disappointed too. I suggest you read a chapter or two in a bookstore before you buy. That's what I should have done.

Rating:
Summary: Enjoy, relax, and ignore the negtivity from others!
Review: My cousin lent me her copy a few months back, and I have bought a copy for everyone I know who has gotten pregnant since I read it! I cannot believe that people would be disturbed by this book; Iovine makes it pointedly clear that the book is based on HER experience and that of HER friends, and that this is not a general education pregnancy book. Some of the advice is perfect, i.e. bring socks to the hospital- I had a cerclage done at 14 weeks, and wouldn't have thought to bring any were it not for this book. Thankfully I did, as the OR was about 50 degrees!
The Girlfriend's Guide is funny, personal, filled with DIFFERENT views (maybe that explains the issues some people have), and presents just another set of opinions from which to take what you can/want and chuck the rest. IT IS FUNNY, and that's the point. This book is the only one thus far that has had me laughing about my expanding backside, increasing cellulite, and chest that won't quit! All of the other books have made me feel as if the amount I have gained, and where I have gained it, is totally wrong. Thank you, Vicki, for being something other than "What to Expect..."; while informative, and used often by myself as a "medical" reference, I don't think pregnancy is as glorious as it makes it out to be. Entertaining and frustrating, but glorious? Take the Girlfriend's Guide to bed with you, snuggle up and chuckle :-).

Rating:
Summary: not worth buying- just borrow it!
Review: Thank goodness i had a friend lend me this book. It had some funny personal stories-especially in the beginning. However it gets repetitive fast, and after all is not any medical advise. Some advise i found out is just a lie. They have a good amount to say about exercising being a waste of time. To pay for bad advice-it's crazy....try to read it at the library.

Rating:
Summary: Take it with a grain of salt...
Review: This is mostly a heads-up for expecting husbands: get this book for your wives, but (if you can) have your wives take its advice and comments with a grain of salt. If you don't, your wives will find reinforcement for things that will not necessarily make them happy, like make them "realize" that they actually look fat and not cute while they're pregnant. I like the way my wife looks during her pregnancy, so I don't appreciate (even if it's meant as a joke) that the book gives her reasons to think otherwise. If you can deal with things like this, then get yourself a copy. Otherwise, be warned. :)

Rating:
Summary: Don't buy it if you have no sense of humor!
Review: This book is hillarious, I laughed until I had tears in my eyes. This is definitely not the only pregnancy book you should buy, it is what the name says it is: advice from a woman who's been there and her girlfriends, not a book that will give you all the medical info you need to know. Some of Vicki's info might be outdated, like that on maternity clothes (thanks, Gap and Old Navy), but overall the book has some good advice. I could not disagree with "she is so negative" comments more. She's not negative, she's just realistic. Pregnancy is not all fun and joy, it can also be quite uncomfortable (puking your guts out for 3 months straight, horrible heartburn, need to catch your breath all the time, inability to have a good night's sleep, etc.), and the chance to laugh with someone who went through similar experience is a relief. Her advice on expercise is sound: she recommends against high-impact exercise, not exercise in general, I don't know where people got the impression that she was against exercise. Warning: if you are all into "natural" childbirth and have a problem tolerating other people's opinions on the subject, or if you have no sense of humor (based on the negative reviews here, these often, but not always, tend to go hand-in-hand for some reason), then don't buy this book - you won't like it.

Rating:
Summary: Girlfriend's Guide
Review: The reviewers who gave this book one star need to lighten up! Vicki Iovine makes it very clear this is not like other books on pregnancy (like the much over-rated "What to Expect When You're Expecting"). I was relieved to read something that didn't falsely give women the impression pregnancy is such a joyous experience for all. I found the book to be VERY funny, while informative and honest--and I love that she didn't "preach". By the way, so what is she's a size 4 (other reviewers seem to have a problem with this)? I loved the top 10 myths of pregnancy. Buy this book to get away from the other preachy, monotonous, and over-rated books on the pregnancy experience.