Rating: 
Summary: A fabulous resource for moms-to-be
Review: I was recently given a review copy of this book so that I could evaluate it for use in a prenatal clinic I run for expectant mothers. I am highly impressed with the book and will be recommending it to all of my clients. Not only is the book highly readable: it's medically accurate and does an excellent job of pointing readers in the direction of other top-notch health resources. I also highly recommend The Mother of All Baby Books, another terrific book by the same author.
Rating:
Summary: A pregnancy book that conveys the essence of motherhood
Review: The Mother of All Pregnancy Books is a comprehensive guide to preconception, pregnancy, labor, birth, and postpartum. The book is divided into 12 chapters plus a series of appendices, which are as follows: Chapter 1: Are You Ready to Have a Baby?
This chapter discusses the costs of raising a child, how having a baby may impact on the rest of your life (your relationship with your partner, your working life, etc.), and how your age impacts on your fertility. Chapter 2: Your Pre-Game Plan This chapter talks about what you can do to get your body in the best possible condition for becoming pregnant (e.g, dietary and lifestyle changes you and your baby's father may want to consider making). It also talks about what you can expect from your preconception checkup. Chapter 3: Sperm, Meet Egg
This chapter discusses the science of conception and what is involved in becoming pregnant. Chapter 4: Missed Conceptions
This chapter is about fertility problems and both high-tech and low-tech methods of treating infertility. Chapter 5: Winning at Baby Roulette
This chapter talks about pregnancy tests, choosing a doctor or midwife, what your due date really means, and how your baby will develop during the months ahead. Chapter 6: Operation Healthy Baby
This chapter talks about important lifestyle modifications you will want to make during pregnancy: e.g., diet, exercise, avoiding cigarettes and alcohol, getting off any medications that could be harmful to your baby, finding out whether you are exposed to toxins on the job that could be harmful and so on. Chapter 7: The Worry Zone
This chapter covers the top worries for each trimester of pregnancy and includes detailed information on shopping for baby gear and your rights as a pregnant worker. Chapter 8: The Complaint Department
This chapter provides helpful advice on troubleshooting common pregnancy complaints like breathlessness and cravings. Chapter 9: To Test or Not to Test
This chapter is all about prenatal genetic tests such as amniocentesis, CVS, and the quad screening test. Chapter 10: Lights, Camera, Action!
This chapter is all about giving birth: whether prenatal classes are worth it, the advantages of hiring a doula, how to tell if you're experiencing true or false labor, what labor is really like, how to cope if your baby is overdue, and what it's like when you finally get to meet your baby. Chapter 11: When Pregnancy Isn't Perfect
This chapter explains why some pregnancies are classified as high risk and how to cope if yours ends up being a bit more complicated than usual. Multiple pregnancies and preterm birth are talked about. The chapter also offers some excellent resources on miscarriage and pregnancy after miscarriage. Chapter 12: Life After Baby
This chapter talks about your postpartum body, how you may be feeling emotionally, and what you can do to make the weeks after the birth of your baby as stress-free as possible for yourself, your baby, and your partner. The Appendices
The book includes a glossary, a birth plan, emergency childbirth procedures, a directory of organizations, a Web Site directory, Statistics (e.g., number of multiple births, place of birth, etc.), and a huge list of recommended readings. The book features helpful charts and checklists which allow you to find information quickly. The book's key strength, however, is its warm narrative voice and the many voices of the mothers who were interviewed for the book. "I feel a bond with any woman who has ever given birth," says Lori, one of the moms in the book. "I feel as if I should become her friend. After all we went through the same things and have so much in common." That powerful mother bond jumps off every page, reassuring you that you're not in this thing alone: you're part of a universal club of mothers who understand the highs and lows of pregnancy and motherhood. That's what makes this such a fabulous book.
Rating:
Summary: Highly Recommended
Review: This is a very useful book to have by your side. The information was presented in an engaging and readable manner. This book along with Debbie Farmer's book "Don't Put Lipstick on the Cat!" and Bruce Cameron's "8 Simple Rules" makes a perfect parenting survival package.
Rating:
Summary: The insider's guide to pregnancy
Review: Most pregnancy books give you the basic facts, but this book really tells you what you really need to know -- how to increase your odds of conceiving quickly and what you can do to ensure that you've done everything possible to ensure that you and your partner are in optimal health at the time of conception; what lifestyle decisions you can make to reduce your risk of experiencing a miscarriage and increase your chances of giving birth to a healthy baby; what you can do to minimize morning sickness and otherwise feel as healthy as possible during pregnancy (sure, some of this is out of your control, but this book offers practical strategies for dealing with everything from back pain to round ligament pain to belly button soreness to headaches -- you name it, it's here). There's also extensive information on coping with the emotional adjustments that accompany pregnancy -- adjustments that have to be made by expectant parents during the months leading up to the birth. Note: The author also includes a lot of valuable information on preparing for life after baby in the next book in this series, The Mother of All Baby Books, so if you're thinking about purchasing that book as well, you may want to pick it up before your baby arrives and read the first few chapters during your third trimester. The section on planning your "babymoon" (the early days/weeks after the birth of your baby) contains some particularly valuable advice. Some other books you may want to have on hand before your baby arrives are Caring for Your Baby and Young Child by the AAP; The Complete Book of Breastfeeding by Eiger and Olds; and Baby Bargains by Denise and Alan Fields.
Rating:
Summary: 5 Reasons to Buy This Book
Review: 1. The author has a sense of humor, something that's refreshing in the deadly serious (and sometimes deadly boring) world of pregnancy books. 2. The book covers both the obvious pregnancy topics and the not-so-obvious pregnancy topics. Because the author is a mom of four, she understands what pregnant women want and need to know. 3. The book is modern and up-to-date and contains guidance on issues that are of concern to modern moms-to-be, like hiring a doula, negotiating the best possible maternity leave, etc. 4. The book is refreshingly honest. It doesn't assume you're going to be totally blissful and euphoric for every moment of your pregnancy. It's hard to be euphoric when you're throwing up or feeling totally exhausted. 5. The book is extremely well written. Once you start reading, you won't be able to put it down. I read it over a weekend and then re-read it over and over again during my pregnancy. If you're looking for a book that you'll get a lot of use out of over the next nine months, this is the one.
Rating:
Summary: Definitely one of the best
Review: My sister passed along all of her pregnancy books to me when I found out I was pregnant. I am talking a whole stack of pregnancy books because my sister is quite the reader: What to Expect When You're Expecting, Your Pregnancy Week by Week, The Girlfriend's Guide to Pregnancy, and all kinds of other pregnancy book "classics" including books by Sheila Kitzinger, Miriam Stoppard, Dr. Sears, and others. This book showed up in the pile and originally I tossed it aside because I had never heard of it. But eventually I got curious because it had a cute and intriguing title, so I flipped it open. I'm glad I did because this book quickly became my go-to book whenever I had a really offbeat pregnancy question, like how you could tell the difference between discharges that might be worrisome and ones that were to be expected during pregnancy, and what to do if you were feeling really queasy on the job but didn't want your boss to know that you were pregnant quite yet. I was surprised how many of the other moms in my childbirth class and on my pregnancy e-mail list were also reading this book because, until my sister passed along the book, I had never even heard of it. But once I started reading it, it seemed like every other pregnant woman I knew was reading it, too. It may not be as well known as some of the other pregnancy books you hear about, but it's definitely one of the best, in my opinion, because it covers everything you need to know about getting pregnant, staying healthy, getting ready to give birth, getting ready for life after baby, and answers your questions about how your baby is developing during pregnancy. It's a very thorough, reassuring, and friendly book.
Rating:
Summary: Good reference and information
Review: I read this book after several others, so didn't inhale it like I did the earlier pregnancy books I'd purchased -- but I have found it very helpful and interesting (I must admit I haven't even read the 'conception' sections though, as that was a 'done deal' when I got the book). The information is practical and doesn't use medical jargon. Charts etc. are used to lay information out in an easily-scanned and readable format. The book is not arranged so much in a month-by-month format (although that does underlie the organization). It is *NOT* What to Expect When You're Expecting -- it's its own book, to be evaluated on its own terms. I particularly appreciated the practical medical and nutrition advice and explanations, as I work in the nutrition field - it was nice to see things explained so reasonably (I have read other books which can be frightening in their approach to the 'nutrition' question). There are practical tips, such as the best ways to take iron supplements (with a meal, and/or with citrus, for better absorption and less of the sometime side effects) .... And good descriptions of some of the common complaints of pregnancy, as well as their causes (and whether there's anything a woman can do to avoid them). I also appreciated the information in the back, about potential problems with pregnancy. Let's face it - none of us want to have a difficult pregnancy, and we all want to have healthy babies. But the fact remains that sometimes that's not going to happen. I'd far rather have some idea what the complications might be, than lie panic-stricken on the exam table several months into a 'blissful' pregnancy, completely blind-sided by something that's come up. People who don't want to read or know about that information, can simply skip that section. But I think it's a great section to have on hand, because if something troubling does come up - you'll have an extra resource to explain in layman's terms what you and your partner (and child) may be facing.
Rating: 
Summary: Great info for preconception and during pregnancy
Review: I would recommend "The Mother of All Pregnancy Books" over any other general pregnancy book on the shelf due to its thoroughness on the subject. The only reason I would not give it five stars is because of the typos in the first half of the book. I did not notice any editing problems in the second half of the book, but I saw more typos than one would normally see in a supposedly edited book, including a mixed-up chart. While these are distracting, they still do not prevent me from recommending this book. While most other pregnancy books start chapter one with, "Congratulations, you're pregnant," Douglas does not assume all readers have already had a positive pregnancy test. As a matter of fact, the first four chapters explore whether the reader is really ready to have a baby, a pre-conception wellness plan, fertility awareness methods and what steps to take when facing infertility. Douglas covers a lot of information but does so in a way that is not overwhelming. This book is actually enjoyable to read. Instead of bombarding the reader with a lot of information, Douglas uses charts and examples. She also follows the "Dummies" books' example by having callouts such as "Mom's the Word," featuring advice and insights from real moms, and "From Here to Maternity," featuring resources for more information. I found these helpful. The book covers every worry a mom can face during pregnancy, labor and delivery. Chapter 11 even covers problems during pregnancy, from how to survive doctor-ordered bedrest to grieving the loss of a baby. The appendix includes many web sites where readers can get more information on a variety of topics relating to conception, pregnancy and babies. Mothers-to-be and hopeful mothers-to-be (and fathers, too) will not be disappointed in this book.
Rating:
Summary: A reassuring guide to the craziest nine months of your life
Review: Pregnancy is an exciting but crazy time in your life, a time when you can find yourself running to the restroom every half-hour to check for signs of any spotting because you're totally panicked by a crampy feeling you've been experiencing; or flipping through the mountain of pregnancy books on your night table in the middle of the night because of some other worrying symptom that you've experienced. Ann Douglas, the author of The Mother of All Pregnancy Books, understands what it's like to worry your way through the nine months of pregnancy, and also how preoccupied you may be by the sheer excitement of being pregnant. She does a fabulous job of capturing the emotional and physical journey of pregnancy from conception through birth and everything in between, as the title of the book implies. The book summarizes the top worries for each trimester and provides practical advice on coping with the biggest pregnancy discomforts that you can expect to experience at each point in your pregnancy. But much more than that, it reassures you that you aren't the only person to be obsessing about whether it's really safe to be having sex, eating such-and-such a food, standing within so many feet of the microwave oven, using cosmetics, and so on (all the things that your pregnancy book reassures you are safe, but that we moms to be tends to obsess about regardless). Other reviewers are correct in pointing out that The Mother of All Pregnancy Books does not follow a week-by-week or month-by-month format. If you want a week-by-week pregnancy book, you may want to consider looking at the second edition of The Unofficial Guide to Having a Baby, which is co-written by Ann Douglas and Dr. John Sussman -- an excellent alternative to The Mother of All Pregnancy Books for readers who prefer a week-by-week format.
Rating: 
Summary: didn't hold its promise
Review: I bought the book based on the good reviews I had read and also on what the title promised. Unfortunately, I do not agree that this is the most comprehensive pregnancy book around. That is, I don't think just having this one book will provide sufficient information. For example, it doesn't have a week by week or by month-month account of what is happening to your body, what symptoms you may encounter, what the baby is doing etc. On some areas it's a bit vague as well, e.g. I had a fever at one point and wanted to see if it was dangerous to the foetus but there was nothing in there. A lot of the info is high-level and it's defintiely good for an overview, but I didn't feel it was comprehensive or detailed enough. 'What-to-expect...' might be the better choice (even though one could argue it goes abit overboard with all the info provided) but at least you can find just about anything you're looking for.Another book I (& my husband) really like is Dr. Miriam Stoppard: Conception, Pregnancy and Birth. It's a little bit more medical/scientific but has great pictures etc.
| 
