The Baby Book: Everything You Need to Know About Your Baby from Birth to Age Two (Revised and Updated Edition)
by James Sears, Martha Sears, Robert Sears, William Sears
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Book Summary Information
Author: James Sears, Martha Sears, Robert Sears, William SearsEdition: Paperback
Format: Bargain Price
Published: 2003-02-28
ISBN: N/A
Number of pages: 704
Book Reviews of The Baby Book: Everything You Need to Know About Your Baby from Birth to Age Two (Revised and Updated Edition)
Book Review: Lots of Info, Heavy on the guilt
Summary: 3 Stars
First I will say that Dr. Sears sincerely loves kids (he has 8, I think) and that I really believe that he and his wife think they are giving the best advice available. And, no one can deny that they have a lot of usful information in their books...everything from feeding your infant/toddler, to nighttime issues, to medical issues, and beyond. They also cover the birthing process to a point (and make it clear that they feel anything but a natural birth is bad parenting).
They are heavy on Attachment Parenting (in fact, I think they may have been the first to call it that). In fact, I follow I myself follow many of the philosophies of Attachment Parenting (baby-wearing, co-sleeping, holding when crying, etc.)But just because I parent that way doesn't mean the rest of the world will fail at being parents if they don't. Unforunately, while the book does talk about 'other ways' to raise your child, they leave no doubt that they think anyone who does something differently then they preach is doing wrong. I think crying-it-out is a dangerous practise, but, things like babywearing and co-sleeping shouldn't be pushed as they are in this book. I do them, but I do them because they work for me and my little one, I don't do them because of the guilt trip Sears puts you on.
I get, literally, panicky every time I pick up the book, because all too often my baby isn't quite on track with what they say she should be doing, and because I was unable (and I mean unable) to breastfeed. They make it sound like I should understand every whimper and every look from my baby...and I don't. We are very close, but I don't always know why she's crying, and they make you feel as if you are a bad parents for that. Also, parents of special-needs babies beware...according to the Sears if your baby has to spend time in the NICU (as mine did) you are loosing bonding time that you will never be able to replace. This is not so. My little girl and I are very, very close, even though her first week was spent hooked up to machines and being cared for by nurses. (I was in the NICU as much as allowed).
Another problem was pointed out by my husband, who is a very invovled and caring father...the Sears make it sound like the father's job is primarily looking after the mother, and don't leave much room for him to bond with his baby, because they want the mother to do all that. Yes, I am the primary nurturer of our baby, but my husband is far more invovled then the book suggested. I think that father invovlment is very important!
They mean well, but unless you are prepared to be served a huge helping of guilt with a side of impossible standards for parents, I wouldn't get this book...or, at least, I would get it with the thought in mind that you are going to do your best, but realize that your best is all that you can do.
Like I said, I certainly don't believe in crying it out or anything like that, but the Sears make it sound like you will cause severe damage if you don't allow your child to swallow up your being in their cause. I agree that breastfeeding is best, that crying-it-out is unhealthy, and that the baby should be loved on as much as possible...I also know as a mother of a four month old that there is nothing wrong with taking pain meds while in labor (I mean, come on, how many women have died because they didn't have that option?), occasionally taking a break, that bottlefeeding is not going to kill your child (mine is thriving and not overweight), and that not sleeping with your child isn't going to cause them to think you don't care. Anyway, there are good things, but be careful if you tend to take baby-care books seriously.
More The Baby Book: Everything You Need to Know About Your Baby from Birth to Age Two (Revised and Updated Edition) reviews:
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Summary of The Baby Book: Everything You Need to Know About Your Baby from Birth to Age Two (Revised and Updated Edition)
"The Baby Book" covers every aspect of infant care - from newborn bonding to toliet training. William Sears, M.D., and Martha Sears, R.N., pediatric specialists and parents of eight children, write clearly and authoritatively from their vast professional and personal experience. Emphasizing the basic needs of babies - eating, sleeping, development, health, and comfort - they provide specific, up-to-date information on issues of concern to every new parent:In their excellent (and hefty) resource guide, The Baby Book, attachment parenting specialists William Sears and Martha Sears have provided new parents with their approach to every aspect of baby care basics, from newborns to toddlers. Attachment parenting is a gentle, reasonable approach to parenting that stresses bonding with your baby, responding to her cues, breastfeeding, "wearing" your baby, and sharing sleep with your child. For those parents who worry about negative effects of this attention, the Sears say, "Spoiling is what happens when you leave something (or some person) alone on the shelf--it spoils."
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