Rating: 
Summary: New parents -- stay away from this book!
Review: I agree wholeheartedly with the other reviewers who state that this book is self-righteous and guilt-inducing. Like another reviewer I am also a licensed psychologist. As a social scientist and clinician I am appalled that the authors would make such provocative statements (e.g. about attachment, sleep sharing, "wearing your baby" etc.) with no scientific research to support their claims. New parents (and experienced parents) are sleep-deprived and anxious enough without being told that if they let their babies cry it out they will damage them. Where is the research to support this? Other books have cited rigorous scientific research showing that crying it out helps babies learn to sleep well! I have no doubt that the authors have some expertise in raising children based on raising their own 8 children and their clinical training and experience. However making claims about attachment theory seems quite far out of their purview. Their rigidity and sanctimoniousness about their point of view with no research support truly renders this book worthless.
Rating: 
Summary: A Wonderful Book
Review: This book is more than awesome-- it is the way everyone should parent. I have four children and have been an AP parent before I even known there was a name for it. It saddens me that some would give this book terrible reviews, but shows what selfish parents ones can be. Yeah, don't co-sleep because you want to think of yourself, but not what is best for your baby. I am reading some of these reviews and I am SICK. Sick of people having kids and not doing what is best for their babies because they want to stay mainstream and stay SELFISH. Idiots!This book is wonderful and I'm so thankful for Dr. Sears and Martha for writing such a wonderful book for parents. I buy it for all expectant parents.
Rating:
Summary: This book is is a philosophy, not a general reference book
Review: I purchased this book as a reference book for the first 2 years of my baby's life. My son is now 5 months old, and the book is on the shelf. The Sears do a disservice to much of the useful information in this book by being so one sided in their point of view. Their opinions are on one end of the spectrum. They are extreme in their advocacy of breastfeeding, and that the only way healthy well adjusted children can be raised is with extreme nurturing techniques. Their views are not helpful for a having a balanced family life. In fact, I have several other books, also written by pediatrician and "experts", that contradict much of what the Sears preach, particularly in the area of getting the baby to sleep. If you are looking for reassurance that having your baby sleep in the family bed is the best thing since sliced bread, and that letting a baby cry it out is cruel and unusual punishment, then you will probably enjoy this book. However, if you are looking for a general refence for the babies first year(s), I would try "What to Expect in the the First year". I find it more helpful.
Rating:
Summary: Wanna Feel Bad? BUY THIS BOOK!
Review: I read and re-read this book for about the first 2 weeks of my son's life! I felt SOOO stressed out about absolutely EVERYTHING that I couldn't sleep even WHEN the baby was sleeping!
Wearing your baby? GREAT IDEA (sometimes)
Sleep with your baby? Not if you want to sleep!
Feed them EVERYTIME THEY CRY? Super unless they just ate 5 minutes ago and you are frantically trying to figure out what is the matter with the poor little thing!
Some other advice:
"Don't pen me up!" Don't put your child in a playpen unless it is for safety...like when you get a hot dish out of the oven.
Every time they cry, PICK THEM UP! EVERYTIME! If you don't, your own PRECIOUS little child will NOT KNOW THAT YOU LOVE THEM!
Like you needed some more guilt here, RIGHT?
Feeling worried about WHAT TO EXPECT? Feeling like you want some advice? Well...if you read this book you will see that your life will NVER BE PREDICTABLE AGAIN! And that this is the BEST WAY to raise your child...
It is almost like...the more hectic your life is? The better mother you are!
I don't need this!
I thought FOR SURE that my child was unhappy because i was doing something wrong! AND I TRIED AND TRIED to do what these people suggested...I held him all of the time...wore him in a sling...breast fed him ALL OF THE TIME...let him sleep with us in our bed.. GOOD GRIEF!
My husband finally asked me WHERE IN THE WORLD I WAS GETTING ALL OF THIS INFORMATION~ And when I showed him the book, and he read it, he suggested a sacrificial BURNING of it in the back yard!
The book has some REALLY VALUABLE information about illnesses, emergencies and what to expect developmentally and physically about your baby..BUT THAT IS ALL! Like I said before, if you want to go on the mommy guilt trip train...READ THIS BOOK!
Right after you have your baby, you might find yourself feeling particularly open to suggestions that you would have found "goofy" at another time! THIS IS NOT THE TIME TO DOUBT YOUR IDEAS ABOUT CHILD REARING! If you are someone who would normally think these ideas are a little OVER THE TOP...be forwarned...at your moment of hormonal weekness...you too may succomb to the COMPLETE BRAIN WASHING of this "BOOK". Talk to your friends, find someone who has the kind of relationship with their baby that you want to have..and then get their suggestions!
Find a different book! Enjoy your child! Enjoy your life! Be close to your child when you want to be and when they need you! But be yourself too! It is possible to have a VERY HAPPY BABY sitting in a bouncy seat watching you cook dinner. YOU DON't HAVE TO WEAR THEM IN A SLING AND BREAST FEED THEM HALF OF YOUR LIFE TO MAKE THEM HAPPY!!!
Rating:
Summary: A FABULOUS baby book--the only one you'll need!
Review: I was quite skeptical of reading the series of parenting books by the Sears, as "shared sleep" was so foreign to me. But, having read this and a few of their other books, I am now thoroughly convinced that attachment parenting is a wonderful, beautiful, low-stress way to raise children. This book covers EVERYTHING you need to know about taking care of an infant, including day-to-day things like bathing, feeding, burping, to major and minor medical situatations. My husband and I find this book very reassuring when, in the middle of the night, our newborn is acting strange or when we get lots of unasked for advice and we second-guess our parenting. Frankly, I don't understand the criticism that says that the Sears preach an all-or-nothing method that makes parents feel guilty. The Sears do promote attachment parenting but they don't believe that "sharing sleep" is necessry for every family. They specifically write that each family is different and has to find what works best for them. There is an extensive section on how to continue breastfeeding if you are going back to work and how to make formula feeding a positive experience, if you feed with formula. Give this book a read and form your own opinion. I am so glad that I did!
Rating:
Summary: My favorite baby book
Review: I really liked that it was easy to read without technical terms and it covered everything. Everyone always said to not have your baby sleep in your bed and that worked fine for my first born but when my daughter was born she only slept no more than 30 minutes at a time and that was torture on me to get so little sleep that I ended up having her in bed right next to me. This book was the first time I read that it was ok to do that.
I got a baby sling after reading about it and it was excellent. I went on an airplane trip when she was 5 weeks old and she always went right to sleep when I put her in the sling and started walking around. She would even sleep right through a restaurant meal though it was a a little hard to eat with her in my lap but way better than having her awake and crying.
When I need to get a gift for new parents, this book is the first thing that comes to mind because it helped me out so much.
Rating: 
Summary: Somewhat Fanatical
Review: First, let me admit that no one can argue with the fact that the Sears are definitely experts in the childcare field, and have much to teach us. Having said that however, I was put off by what i can only describe as a rather fanatical tone of the book when it comes to things like breastfeeding, sleeping with your baby in your bed, and not ever using the "cry it out approach". As a clinical psychologist, I can attest to the fact that I am aware of no research that "proves" that failing to breastfeed (either because you are not able to or would rather not), or failing to bring your baby into bed with you interferes with attachment. In fact, I could make a very good argument for the fact that putting your baby to sleep in their own bed does far more to teach good sleeping habits than having them sleep in your own bed; it also provides them something familiar that they can call their own (their bed) and teaches them healthy boundaries (i.e., mom and dad have their own bed and I have mine). I have run into several parents who are still sleeping with their children at 6 years of age because they did this with their kids as babies and still can't shake the habit.
Regarding the whole breastfeeding thing: its great if you can make it work, but if you can't, it's not the end of the world (as Sears and other breastfeeding "nazis" would have you believe). Entire generations (including you and me) were raised on formula and are no worse off; in fact, research has evidenced that previous generations have gotten increasingly more intelligent- despite being formula fed!
I can also say without a doubt that letting your baby cry it out for three nights will do no permanent psychological damage- I promise. Unfortunately, there is no better way to teach your baby how to fall back asleep on their own and there is also no way they will ever sleep through the night on their own without using some variation of this approach. Babies have no long-term memory; they are also incapable of complex cognitions such as "my mother is abandoning me by not coming to get me right now". All that happens is that they suffer some temporary discomfort which is soon forgotten in just a few short nights.
To sum up, this book is a good resource but take it with a giant grain of salt. Parenting is too complex (and each child is too complex and individual) to be well served by the kind of black and white thinking that prevades this book.
Rating:
Summary: Too much fear-mongering
Review: I'm about to give birth and have been looking for a helpful, unbiased resource that presents several different approaches to the first few months with a newborn. The Sears book does have some useful factual information, but the sections on attachment parenting are so sanctimonious and self-righteous. I can't stand the way they insert anectdotes about people who didn't practice attachment parenting and ended up with broken family bonds, angry children, etc. I think I am open to the ideas behind attachment parenting, but this book turned me off so much that I am already exploring alternatives.
Rating:
Summary: must have
Review: I think this is required reading for all parents. Dr Sears presents a gental and carring perspective that is reaferming and refreshing. We wish all babies could be Dr Sears babies!
Rating:
Summary: Initially wary, but my fears were wrong
Review: If you are attracted to the child-centered basics of Attachment Parenting: babywearing in slings, a shared family bed and lots and lots of bonding to produce independent, happy, trusting children--then this is the book for you. It is very comprehensive (and LARGE!), so you don't need to buy separate books on health & medicine, breastfeeding, developmentally appropriate toys, etc. This will get you through age 2, at which point you probably don't need to be consulting books. I almost didn't buy this book, based on the negative review I read from the reader from Stockton, California. He stated that in this book, "my role in the care and rearing of my child is relegated to being secondary to that of my wife's." That scared me! I didn't want this to be the model my husband and I use raising our children. But I gave this book a thorough read (the latest edition--maybe this reviewer read an older one?) and found his claim to be completely wrong. Over and over, Dr. Sears and Martha Sears discuss the roles that fathers can play in their children's lives. A couple typical samples besides entire sections entitled, "Attachment Parenting Includes Fathers," "Bonding After Cesarean Births: For the Father" and, "For Fathers Only" in their Postpartum Family Adjustments chapter, among others:
Page 44: "studies on father bonding show that fathers who are given the opportunity and are encouraged to to take an active part in caring for their newborns can become just as nurturing as mothers."
Page 94: "For dads who are novices at caring for babies, massage is a hands-on course in baby handling. Also, it's important for baby to get used to dad's touch as well as mom's. Babies thrive on different strokes." Dr. Sears also gives some man-to-man advice on sex after childbirth and instructions on an especially comfy sling position just for dads called the "neck nestle." He even writes (page 293), "I felt a real high the first time I put Stephen in the neck nestle and snuggled him securely against my chest for a walk. As we strolled together, I felt a sense of completeness. Sometimes I wore him for hours at a time." Additionally, we find out from the text that Martha is active in her career as a lactation consultant and R.N. in the family pediatrics office, and that Dr. Sears writes his books from home, common practices that modern parents employ to balance work and family. There is even an entire chapter entitled, "Working and Parenting." This is a child-centered philosophy, so it follows that cutting back on work hours or working from home, if possible, are encouraged. They DO have 8 kids, which makes them definitely not mainstream America (!), but their claim that this makes them baby experts is pretty convincing. They share really practical tips, especially regarding feeding active toddlers and all sorts of medical information that you definitely want to know when (or before) something is wrong with your child. Special sections address topics like adopting kids (the Sears family includes an adopted daughter) and parenting disabled kids (they also have a son born with Down Syndrome). My only criticism of this book would be that it might be awkward for me to read this as a single mother; the authors don't seem to be adept at understanding the circumstances of this situation beyond expressing sympathy and suggesting father substitutes.
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