Rating: 
Summary: The best!!!!
Review: It is very well written, has variety of viewpoints and lots and LOTS of very practical helpful advise. In it's relativerly short breastfeeding section i was able to find advise that I could not find in any other source. Really the only book you would ever need. Has very very helpful information on babywearing, sleep patterns, etc. Well illustrated and easy navigate. Thank you for the great book!!!!
Rating:
Summary: A Must For New Mother's
Review: I am a first time mother and found this book to be outstanding!
I received a lot of books and this one was by far the best.
It tells you everything you need to know from before you bring baby home, what to expect while in the hospital and what to do when you bring baby home.
This is a great gift for first time mother's
Rating: 
Summary: Don't buy!!
Review: I cannot think of a worse parenting book than this one. I was absolutely sure attachment parenting was the only way to go, until my son was born. My milk quality was horrible, he lost weight because I believed I was hurting my child by not breastfeeding him longer (thanks to the judgemental opinions by the Sears, stated in this book) My husband and I hated co-sleeping, and I was miserable with my baby hanging over my chest all day long. I became depressed, lethargic, and wondered why I was so unhappy when this book assured me that this was the only way to have a happy, healthy infant. I read "Babywise" and put my child in his own bed, on a schedule, and my nursing improved, my baby was happy and my marriage was good!! The Sears make you believe in this book that the lifestyle of those living in 3rd world countries is the only way one should parent, and that you will scar your child for life if you don't live the way they believe is correct...I am proof that life is BETTER when you don't make your child the center of your life, but instead, make your precious little one a welcomed member of your family, keeping your marriage and sanity important as well. The guilt, the mis-information and the absurdity that this book entails made my first few weeks of a new parent miserable..don't let it happen to you too. Don't buy this book...find something more middle of the road, or something with a schedule, but don't make the mistake of wasting your money on this garbage!!
Rating: 
Summary: Mixed review.
Review: I think that this book is hands down the best medical source for parents of all the baby books I've gone through, and I've gone through plenty. However, I think that Dr. Sears greatly undersimplifies children's behavior, which I found very irritating. It just seems like the answer to EVERY behavioral problem is AP! And that just isn't the case. Children are more complex than that, and you don't even have to be a doctor to know that. For example, he talks about how much better babies sleep in "the family bed." My baby never ever wanted to be anywhere but his own crib, and to this day will ONLY sleep there.Another thing that bothers me, and I know some here disagree, but Sears takes the hard-line on nursing, childbirth, attachment parenting and nutrition, but I feel that he wimps out when it comes to forming an opinion on daycare vs. at-home mothers. If you're going to express your opinion on everything else, why not this? (By the way, many mothers who stay at home do it because they believe it's the right thing for their child, and end up scrimping and saving, and NOT because they have loads of cash from their husbands' income!) This is the bottom line: my advice is actually to buy this book. For me, the medical information was and is invaluable. Unlike a lot of these other reviewers, however, I never felt like a "bad parent" for not doing everything Dr. Sears recommended. I feel extremely secure in my abilities and instincts as a mother, so I really didn't care if I got the feeling that Sears would think I was doing my child a disservice just because he always slept in his own crib. If you can ignore this kind of thing too, I think you will find this book to be a great resource in other ways. One thing he says in this book is absoultely true, even applied to his own advice: if it doesn't feel right, DON'T DO IT! Remember that when you read this book, and don't be intimidated by the AP style if it's not for you.
Rating: 
Summary: Great info. - Beware if you are easly brainwashed LOL
Review: I REALLY liked this book!! I do admitt that Dr. Sears is a bit opinionated... He is an advocate of attachment parenting, and there is no exceptions... I consider myself an MODIFIED attachment parent:) We do not share a bed... but shared a room for months... now are 12 month old sleeps in the crib in his own room... But I do readily meet his needs... I carry him in a sling... I breastfeed... I fed him solids when HE was ready, not by a timeline set by the baby food companies :)... we use Baby Signs... (I am a stay at home mother) etc., etc.. Like any other book, YOU HAVE DO THE THINGS THAT WORK FOR YOU AND YOUR FAMILY!! I think it was a WONDERFUL source of general informaiton!! Everything from cradle cap to feeding guidlines (what when, etc. ) to beginning learning... I think no matter if you adopt the AP style or not, this book has a lot to offer!! I always say I am an attachment parent, that uses a flexible schedule, but used the "Mindell" method to help us over the "sleep/nap" hump!! Do what works for you and your baby!!
"Knowledge is the difference between being prepared, and being lucky" Good Luck!!
Rating:
Summary: The Only Baby Book To Buy! A Guiding Light In The Dark
Review: Dr. and Mrs. Sears seem to be the only people in the pediatric world who know anything about babies, and who actually care about what is best for them, rather than ways for selfish parents to make excuses for doing what they prefer to do. This book contains information in every catagory and is sooooo helpful. ... I cannot stress enough that Dr. Sears has true, proven research as well as experience and good instincts to back up all of his information. The Sears have 6 healthy, well balanced children to show as examples. Until I had a baby I basically trusted doctors, but I have learned that pediatrics is another world altogether. The patients can't speak for themselves, or defend themselves from doctors, who only a short time ago, didn't even use anesthesia for surgery on babies. God bless Dr. and Mrs. Sears!
Rating:
Summary: A wonderful resource for the thinking parent
Review: This book is a great resource for a new parent. As a new parent it is easy to feel that it is impossible to be a good mom or dad--this book shows you how. It's called Attachment Parenting because the author describes how to be emotionally attached to your child, and who can argue with that? Personally, I don't see what all the controversy is about. While there seem to be people who felt that if they couldn't do EVERYTHING the book said, it must be useless, I assumed I was supposed to take what I could and leave what was impossible. I must have missed the part about the child-care police. Modify it for your situation, of course! We decided to:
Breastfeed: 100%, no supplementing. I work, so I pump.
Sling: We use ours when we are alone as caregiver or out shopping by ourself, but a stroller when we need free hands. Mostly we hold or carry him... he's all smiley that way!
Family Bed: Our son started sleeping in his crib at 2 1/2 months, but we bring him into our bed if he cries or needed to nurse. So, Half and half.
Cloth Diapers: Yep, we use them. We got some fancy snapable (no pins) and one size fits newborn to 2 years old from MotherEase. One extra load of diapers every 1-2 days or so. Big deal. And so on. It's all doable... you decide what you can handle. I never felt judged because we have our son in a crib (I do sleep better), but I also was convinced never to Cry It Out. Compromise. I must disagree with all the rigamorole some people have posted about how "too much attention will ruin your child". As a Methodist minister who has worked extensively with youth, most of the problems we see are with kids who get too little attention from their parents, not too much. Are there some spoiled kids (especially here in this affluent suburb?). Certainly! But they are spoiled with too many Things, not too much Love, and often get even less attention than their peers! When I meet a parent who spends a lot of time with their children and knows what is happening in thier life, I know that child will be thriving. So keep attaching to your child, it will pay off in the long run!
Rating: 
Summary: BEWARE!
Review: Beware of Dr. Sears and his many strong opinions! He will make you doubt yourself if you have any other inclination. His "Attachment Parenting" steps may suit you and that's great. But when they don't (such as when the Family Bed didn't work for us) he will tell you to question your motives. Although he claims that co-sleeping is the norm in most of the world, it seems that the Family Bed is actually quite rare. It is sleeping in the same ROOM that is common. Of course those same people frequently live in one room also.
As the reviews here show, this book has a cult of avid believers, people who claim their child is wonderful and credit Dr. Sears. But many people in my parents generation, none of them attachment parented, grew up happy and healthy and secure, not because the parental world revolved around them, but in a busy family where they were NOT the center of attention. Why are those of us who follow that model at fault? This book does seems to hit the right note with our times. I wonder what people will think when they read it fifty years from now? It will be a timepiece, a relic of our age, adamantly spouting a philosophy that will surely change, and we will be laughing at Dr. Sears for his humorless insistence that he is right, all others wrong.
Rating:
Summary: Another Amazing Book by the Sears Family
Review: I bought "The Pregnancy Book" and absolutely loved it. I immediately thought about buying "The Baby Book." When I looked at the listing for it at Amazon.com I was a bit disappointed by some of the reviews and thought about passing the book up. People said that it made them feel guilty for not breastfeeding or sleeping in the same bed with their baby. Others said that it was unrealistic or that the methods described in the book would raise spoiled children. I decided to take a chance and buy the book anyhow. As I read it I had to ask myself, "Were those critics even reading the same book?" The book is about how to go with your instincts when raising your child. It emphasizes that every baby and parent is different, so there is not set of guidelines that will work for everyone. It offers an ideal method of raising children but allows you to step back, look at the sitution in your home, and realisticly do what will work best for you. (I have a feeling the critics were completely missing this point when they read the book.) If you can't breastfeed for any reason, don't. If you can't stand the thought of sleeping in the same bed with your child or worry that you might smother your baby, don't do it. If you can't carry around your child as much as possible, then find another way of ensuring that your child is safe and comforted throughout the day. If you can't be a stay-at-home parent, then work (just be sure that you get good child care). Remember, the practices in this book are simply suggestions and the supporting statements are simply there to explain why the practices are suggested. I don't believe for a second that any of it is supposed to create a sense of guilt in the parent. I'm a teacher and a parent; plus I have worked in child care. In my experience with children, all the information given is sound advice. No, it is not a medical text book or a reference book about child psychology. It is about creating a parenting philosophy and a healthy and nuturing lifestyle for both parent and child with information based on actual studies and personal experiences. I'm so happy that I bought the book, and I'm sure I'll be passing it around to all of my parenting friends. I know I will be following much of the advice in this book, partly because so much of it is common sense and the rest of it just makes sense. There are a few things that I won't be able to do (like sleeping in the bed with my child because I'm a wild sleeper), but I don't feel guilty for not doing them. After reading this book, I became a huge fan of attached parenting. We need more parents who have an individualized parenting philosophy rather than just trying to follow step by step instructions in a "how to take care of babies" book. After all, no scientific study or expert can tell you what is right for you and your child. This book is an excellent first step in creating your own parenting philosophy.
Rating:
Summary: The most compassionate approach...
Review: ...for both baby and parents. This book not only has all the info you need regarding developmental milestones, common ilnesses, nutrition, baby-proofing the house, etc., it also has wonderful encouragement for following your instincts with your child. If the other child care and "sleep training" books leave you cold, then this is the book for you. The tone of the book is completely different--you can truely tell that it is written by folks who have kids (they have 8!) and who enjoy children (so many of the other books seem to want you to view your baby as a manipulative adversary whose spirit needs to be broken so that you can get a good night sleep). It's a beautiful book and so helpful.
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