Rating: 
Summary: Excellent book!
Review: ... It has been a long time since I have read this book, and it is the only one I purchased on the topic. The only reason I do not give it 5 stars is because at the time I thought I needed more of a "how-to-manual", I eventually learned that my body knows "how-to". It was far more than a book that convinced me that unassisted birth was the best and safest choice for me and my baby. It was thousands of pages of medical journals, websites, and other articles- as well as my own prior experience, and my current intuition. Routine obstetrical prenatal care and hospital birth kills many women and babies, and that is not a point to be overlooked. These days it may be safer to break out of the box and take charge of your own reproductive health.
I went on to have a very safe, healthy, and satisfying birth. And plan on doing it again.
Rating: 
Summary: Responsible and Accountable
Review: ... It has been a long time since I have read this book, and it is the only one I purchased on the topic. The only reason I do not give it 5 stars is because at the time I thought I needed more of a "how-to-manual", I eventually learned that my body knows "how-to". It was far more than a book that convinced me that unassisted birth was the best and safest choice for me and my baby. It was thousands of pages of medical journals, websites, and other articles- as well as my own prior experience, and my current intuition. Routine obstetrical prenatal care and hospital birth kills many women and babies, and that is not a point to be overlooked. These days it may be safer to break out of the box and take charge of your own reproductive health.
I went on to have a very safe, healthy, and satisfying birth. And plan on doing it again.
Rating:
Summary: The best part is the stories
Review: A great book that I lend to every pregnant woman I know. I felt that the strong point in this book is the detailed stories and experiences told "in their own words" by a number of couples who have birthed their babies together at home. I especially liked reading the accounts given by fathers, as most birth stories are written by mothers -- perhaps understandably, but it is lovely to see the other side! I don't think this is the only resource one should have on unassisted childbirth -- I like to recommend Laura Shanley's <i>Unassisted Childbirth</i> and, for those who really feel they need a how-to of some kind, Gregory J. White's <i>Emergency Childbirth: A Manual</i>, which should dispel some fears. Armed with these three books and a couple of internet searches, anyone should be ready to make a truly informed decision about this choice -- which so few are aware is even a valid option. Kudos to Ms. Griesemer for making these stories public to anyone.
Rating:
Summary: Enlightening
Review: Along with Laura Shanley's book, this book is the super nova in a galaxy of birth literature, a double star. What is most illuminative is the integration of the author's values throughout family life. Freebirth, that is, unassisted birth is the source event for this integrity. It's a practical book, at times lyrical and inspired. I hope to see many more titles on this topic for this way of giving birth without the paid paranoid is evolving into the 21st century. Thanks on behalf of the possible family to Lynn for her enlightening "Act of Love"!!
Rating:
Summary: Enlightening
Review: Along with Laura Shanley's book, this book is the super nova in a galaxy of birth literature, a double star. What is most illuminative is the integration of the author's values throughout family life. Freebirth, that is, unassisted birth is the source event for this integrity. It's a practical book, at times lyrical and inspired. I hope to see many more titles on this topic for this way of giving birth without the paid paranoid is evolving into the 21st century. Thanks on behalf of the possible family to Lynn for her enlightening "Act of Love"!!
Rating:
Summary: Empowering Views on Childbirth
Review: I am pregnant with my first child, and after reading a lot of books on the subject of childbirth, I had the feeling that the medical establishment controlled my pregnancy and birth, and that my husband was a mere bystander at the whole process. This book has shed a lot of light on how I could HAVE OPTIONS other than hospital birth, and how natural and joyful the bringing of another human being into this world could be. Without the fuss and hassle of giving a performance of good behaviour and compliance to cultural rules. A truly inspirational book for mums-to-be !
Rating:
Summary: I have mixed feelings about this book
Review: I am profoundly thankful for this book. Although it came out right after the birth of my first child, I got some of the advance copies and immediatly recognized what a valuable resource this was going to be for couples interested in birth.
My husband an I choose to birth our babies peacefully, and safely by ourselves. I am thankful everyday for that desision. As a Childbirth Educator, I hear, of woman being abused and violated in Birth, of babies being hurt and isolated, and I am so sad that more families couldn't have found and read this book. Lynn does an excellant job of shareing the joys of couples homebirth. The incredible attachment that forms in the family when only the family participates in the rite of passage of birth. When the baby only sees his mother and father and feels their loving bare hands, he is welcomed in the way nature intended. God, nature, what ever, did not make latex gloves growing on trees, neither is it designed for us to have strangers at this most important time in the families life.
Lynn does the world a service when she makes this information available to the public. As Suzzanne Arms says, "Only when we change the way we treat eachother at birth, will we be able to change the violence in this world." More people would reap the benifits of a connected, nurturing, caring society if they were to read and implement "Unassisted Homebirth".
This book complete with examples, stories, suggestions, and ideas will be a valuable resource to the family seeking a connected birth and parenting experiece. I applaude Lynns work, as I'm sure It will help to change our cultural beliefs about birth being a dangerous event fraght with pain. She tells quite correctly I might add, that Birth can be perfect, safe, joyful and attainable, when we give birth in the way we were intended, simply with the one person in the world that we concieved with!
Rating:
Summary: Mother of two, both birthed unassisted....
Review: I am profoundly thankful for this book. Although it came out right after the birth of my first child, I got some of the advance copies and immediatly recognized what a valuable resource this was going to be for couples interested in birth.
My husband an I choose to birth our babies peacefully, and safely by ourselves. I am thankful everyday for that desision. As a Childbirth Educator, I hear, of woman being abused and violated in Birth, of babies being hurt and isolated, and I am so sad that more families couldn't have found and read this book. Lynn does an excellant job of shareing the joys of couples homebirth. The incredible attachment that forms in the family when only the family participates in the rite of passage of birth. When the baby only sees his mother and father and feels their loving bare hands, he is welcomed in the way nature intended. God, nature, what ever, did not make latex gloves growing on trees, neither is it designed for us to have strangers at this most important time in the families life.
Lynn does the world a service when she makes this information available to the public. As Suzzanne Arms says, "Only when we change the way we treat eachother at birth, will we be able to change the violence in this world." More people would reap the benifits of a connected, nurturing, caring society if they were to read and implement "Unassisted Homebirth".
This book complete with examples, stories, suggestions, and ideas will be a valuable resource to the family seeking a connected birth and parenting experiece. I applaude Lynns work, as I'm sure It will help to change our cultural beliefs about birth being a dangerous event fraght with pain. She tells quite correctly I might add, that Birth can be perfect, safe, joyful and attainable, when we give birth in the way we were intended, simply with the one person in the world that we concieved with!
Rating:
Summary: I have mixed feelings about this book
Review: I feel it does provide some great stories of UC births, and does address the fears that some people may have about having an unassisted birth. However, the authors bias against unmarried pregnant women and homosexuals ect brings nothing of value to the book. We don't need moral judgements about such things in a birth book. And I feel she does a large disservice to women everywhere who already have to deal with guilt from society at large about such things. The book also did not address what types of home prenatal care are of true benefit. I was really looking for that information. A chapter on possible concerns and remedys during pregnancy would have greatly increased the value of this book. I hope that we will see more books being published about UC birth and that those books will prove to be a better resource than this one. Until they come along, this one is an adequate begining for those exploring unassisted birth. The only reason I gave this book 4 stars was because it covers a topic rarely seen in print.
Rating:
Summary: I liked the book and enjoyed reading it...
Review: I have a lot of the same views. Childbirth is a natural function of women's bodies, not a crisis situation to be treated with interventions. I have seen the same situation in my state regarding midwives. I have had the same bad experiences with hospitals and doctors who do not respect women's rights in childbirth. My unassisted homebirth was by far one of the most wonderful things I have ever experienced. It was so different than my hospital births, so much more peaceful. It drew my husband I closer to each other and the Lord and we were able to bond instantly with our child. I did give myself excellent prenatal care before embarking on this journey and had one ultrasound to ensure everything was looking good. This was my 4th birth and lasted only 20 minutes. What a remarkable difference when compared to my hospital births! The only thing I did not like about the book was that it did not give more information on how to handle the more common problems at birth such as the cord around the neck, meconium, etc. For that, I recommend Spiritual Midwifery and internet research.
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