Rating: 
Summary: A must read for pregnant women (and their husbands)
Review: If you're following "Friends", you'll see a pregnant Rachel constantly reading from "The Girlfriend's Guide to Pregnancy". Why? Well, it's just about the most helpful, funny, and honest book about pregnancy out there (believe me, I've looked!). Vicki Iovine, fed up with the clinical, boring books available during her 4 pregnancies decided to poll her girlfriends regarding everything preggo: 1.) Why are most maternity clothes available so hideous? They either make you look like a fat pilgrim or an expanded flight attendant! 2.) What REALLY is morning sickness? How can I deal with my eyes watering and throat closing down at the sight of certain foods? 3.)Why am I crying over every diaper commercial I see? 4.) I think I might have to strangle my husband.The beauty of this book is this: every pregnant woman has fears and concerns that she may feel silly calling her OB/GYN every half hour for. Thank goodness Vicki and her gaggle of G-Friends have complied a full list of general preggo paranoia points. You will laugh until your eyes water, and also be surprised at just how much that tiny little bundle in your belly will change and take over your life even before it's born. Be sure to check out Vicki's other books regarding "Surviving the First Year", "Toddlers", and "The Girlfriend's Guide to Getting Your Groove Back". (NOTE: Vicki herself has never experienced miscarriage- a friend of mine who's had 2 miscarriages chose not to get this book soley based on the fact that she didn't like how Vicki handled the whole miscarriage topic. This is a good point to keep in mind for any girlfriends you might consider buying this book for.)
Rating:
Summary: Laugh a lot, learn surprising things and love women
Review: I bought this book as a congratulatory present for the first girlfriend of mine to become pregnant, peeped at it and then had to read it cover to cover. I thought it was an absolutely magical hoot and I wasn't even pregnant! THIS is the book that made me look forward to pregnancy more than any of the serious tomes I bought later. It made baby-growing seem real and human and wonderfully flawed in a way that other books miss. There is none of the dry, detached and sometimes dictatorial stance that is common in the highly rated specialist pregnancy books. I read this book again and again when I finally was pregnant - it was a wonderful lightener on those days when pregnancy seemed less than appealing. Iovine's humour is wicked, but never at the expense of the magic of pregnancy. She seemed to have a window into my pregnant mind. It was so reassuring to know that thousands of pregnant women before me had also sobbed uncontrollably over the children's aid appeal ads on TV. That my husband was not an alien and bad-Dad-to-be because he couldn't feign believable interest in feeling the baby kick or choosing a baby name. And I'd MUCH rather find out about the prospect of "piles", what they are, why you might get them and what to do about them from a mother of four's horror-humour revelation of her own experience, than from reading it as a one liner under "What you may be experiencing: haemmoroids". The first description was one you couldn't ignore; the latter one you readily skip over confident that nothing so appalling could ever happen to YOU! I found remarkable information in this book that I found nowhere else, it made me relish my pregnancies and it made me laugh. As Iovine describes in her book, it made me feel like a part of the circle of mothers. This book is not "What to expect......" but then it doesn't pretend to be. It offers it's own invaluable contribution towards surviving and enjoying pregnancy and the "friends sharing secrets" style of the book really appealed to me. Pregnancy is so intimate and the great pregnancy bibles seemed so detached from what I was experiencing. The Girlfriend's Guide seemed like a girlfriend. It is a wonderful counter balance to other more medical sources.
P.S. I DID buy my pregnant friend a fresh copy!
Rating:
Summary: Finally the Truth
Review: This pregnancy is my first. After spending much of it with my commode I became extremely disappointed in all mommy-kind. I felt there were these secrets that all women with children have been keeping from us. "A little morning sickness"; I couldn't even keep down bananas somedays, and cold toilet water on your face does not make it better. I never expected my body to feel so different. A friend loaned me the book and I laughed and felt like finally someone was telling me the truth. This book helps you keep all the yucky stuff in perspective. My husband has even enjoyed reading about his alien wife. To all you pregnant mom's, this is a book you can trust and have a laugh.
Rating:
Summary: The Truth About Pregnancy
Review: I'm currently going through my second pregnancy, and of all the books I had given to me, loaned to me, and shoved at me, this is the only one the tells the god's honest truth about pregnancy. This was a book which was clearly written by a woman who has been there and done that with 4 pregnancies under her belt. I found the book informative and funny, and the author always made it clear that she wasn't a medical professional. My recommendation for all you pregnant women out there is that after you've bought your copy of What to Expect When You're Expecting you buy this book. Honestly, they're probably the only two books you'll actually read more than once.
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Summary: VERY FUNNY AND TURE! MUST READ!
Review: I FOUND THIS BOOK TO FIT ME ALMOST TO A TEE. I ENJOYED READING IT AND LEARNED ABOUT THINGS NOBODY ELESE WILOL TELL YOU ABOUT! I THINK THAT IF YOU ARE LOOKING FOR SOMETHING TURE WITH A SENSE OF HUMOR THIS IS THE BOOK FOR YOU.
Rating:
Summary: Feedback
Review: The information in this book is very helpful. I just started the third trimester so I could affirm the advice/observations about the beginning. I found the adivce about what to take to the hospital very helpful as well as what is essential to prepare for the baby. My only critical observation is that the author is so clearly a woman of privilege that the book could be insulting to women without the kind of financial and lifestyle resources that Ms. Iovine has (along with her Girlfriends).
Rating:
Summary: Honesty matters
Review: Vicki Iovine's views may not match yours or mine on every single issue, but that is not the point of the book. The point is an honest discussion of pregnancy from a woman who's been there. She doesn't mince words and she doesn't judge (unlike many Natural Parenting extremists, I've noticed). As anyone with Girlfriends knows, we don't always agree on every single issue. But it is our shared experiences, our honesty, and our unconditional support of each other that makes life a little easier. When we refrain from judging each other, we can make our own decisions without the fear of being outcast because we took a different path. For example, at the end of the book Vicki does agree that breastfeeding is better than bottle feeding, but that some women find it extremely painful; her bottom line is that if you can't do it, don't hate yourself for being human. The fact is, there is room for debate on some of these issues, and Natural Parenting extremists who condemn such things as hospital births are being as totalitarian as any fundamentalist. By denying a woman's right to choose between the available options, they are damaging their own agenda in the long run. The truth is, pregnancy is work! It is sacred and divine work on one hand, and sheer physical effort and endurance on the other hand. Vicki simply acknowledges and honors that. I found many of her tips to be extemely useful and her sassy, lighthearted sense of humor refreshing.
Rating:
Summary: Let's get one thing straight...
Review: I would suggest to all these negative review writers that they completely missed the point: yes this book is flippant about the whole pregnancy experience, and that is precisely why it is a good book! It never pretends to be a medical, serious book about pregnancy - there are already more than enough out there. Nor does the author, to her great credit, ever suggest you should not read them (in fact she encourages you to!) This is a personal experience book, a supplement to the serious books, that gives you the lowdown on things you could be embarassed to mention to your doctor (or even to your grilfriends), as well as really practical down to earth info that the "medical" books usually ignore.
I am also a strong believer in the "no contest" idea, that if you want the natural birth and your o.b. is OK with it by all means go for it, but dont diss those women who prefer a medical birth and whose o.b is OK with it: it is an entirely personal choice that has nothing to do with the baby's health...
Rating: 
Summary: Vapid tips for the oblivious
Review: Not exactly "The Thinking Women's Guide to Pregnancy," this vapid tome was the single worst and least helpful book we bought to educate ourselves on pregnancy. This book will not help you unless you view pregnancy as an unfortunate condition that needs to be coped with rather than embraced. And the "coping with" is make-up tips from the author-model. If you are at all into natural childbirth (and fall on the breastfeeding and cloth diaper sides of the issues) then this book will mostly just offend you. If, on the other hand, you think women who forego drugs are wacky leftists, then this book will help you feel good about being oblivious.
Rating:
Summary: The Girlfriends' Guide To Pregnancy
Review: The Girlfriend's Guide To Pregnancy is not only full of great "real" info, but it is hilarious as well. I am experiencing my third pregnancy, and this book is right next to my bed for easy reference. So, this book is not the "What To Expect" book, but for a woman whose body is ever-changing at this time, it truly is a no-nonsense, and almost always funny book, and what could be better than that at this point in life? There were some good honest topics covered in this book that I've not seen in other books, and might otherwise be embarrased to discuss openly with someone else, but with Vicki Iovine's candor, it was all laid out for me. This is a great book for the first-time or seasoned mother-to-be. I adored this book, and my husband as well. We both got a lot of laughter and information out of it.
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