Home > Categories > Books > Parenting > Oh Baby - Birth, Babies and Motherhood Uncensored review
Much-recommended by new mothers, this is the only book you'll need for the best baby advice Refreshingly honest, openly frank and candidly blunt, this book has been written by a mother for other mothers. It oozes with warm fuzzies, it reeks of mumsy terms, it exudes realism in every paragraph and it is refreshing in its guiltless honesty.
Modern first-time mothers are often alone - devoid of once traditional motherhood knowledge and practical support. Often previously self-confident women find themselves inconceivably isolated, hopelessly fumbling over everyday mothering tasks, enduring torturous levels of sleep deprivation, feeling desperately despondent and physiologically aching and leaking everywhere. This book provides supportive, caring advice - one mum to another - while at the same time serving as an encyclopaedic medical reference regarding the mother and baby.
Checked thoroughly by medical professionals, this book is a unique blend, like having access to a kind and gentle GP as well as to all the gems of wisdom of years of mothers' coffee groups. This title clearly and compassionately explains the ups as well as the downs which are perfectly normal aspects of giving birth and mothering in today's society.
Product reviews...
I'd thoroughly recommend this book to parents - particularly first-time parents. You can be overwhelmed by advice from friends, family, plunket (!) and others when you become a parent for the first time, and although there is not (and never will be!) a manual for raising children, Oh Baby is as close as you can get to a one-stop reference book for everything you may need to know about childbirth and breastfeeding, then transitioning your baby to solid foods, through to toilet training and much more, it's all here in the one book! In addition, Kathy Fray writes in a non-condescending, non-patronising way.
A lot of well-meaning advice can seem hard to swallow, negative or plain patronising when you get pregnant for the first time, and Fray is well aware that parents don't need to be talked down to or treated like idiots, but they do need to be treated with respect and sensitivity. She's also refreshingly honest about the tough parts of parenting but her tone is appropriate, knowledgeable about how the reader may be feeling and what possible insecurities the reader may have. It is not an off-putting tone, it's one that readers can relate to and feel comforted by.
Fray knows that parenthood is a roller coaster, and she helps the reader to enter the realm of parenthood with a little less anxiety and a lot more knowledge. It is definitely a book that all first-time parents should invest in.
I was given this Oh Baby book when I was pregnant with my first child as a baby shower gift. Initially I thought it would be like all the other books I had read about babies which are basically full of one specific persons opinions but this book is so much more! It given you advice and lets you know everything that could happen during pregnancy and childbirth and it also helps you to understand the newest member of your household.
This is one particular page that is written from the perspective of a newborn which I found particularly helpful in understanding what my baby wanted and why she was crying.
The author has done a great job with this book and doesn't insist you follow all her ideas but instead makes you aware of the different methods out there for you to choose what works best for you and your family. She also references other authors such as Tracy Hogg, the author of the Baby Whisperer,, and even shows you a sample routine of hers to try to get your baby into if you want to follow routines.
There is a whole chapter on helping baby sleep better. I pretty much spent every night while up feeding the baby reading this book trying to get my child to sleep longer (as most parents do when their baby isn't sleeping through the night yet) and am happy to say that by following her advice my first baby slept a good 12-13 hours at night from 3 months old.
Second time around I pulled out the book again when I got home from the hospital to refresh my sleep deprived memory and by the time my son was 8 weeks old he was sleeping a solid 8-10 hours a night which is fantastic!
All in all, I would definitely recommend this book to anyone who is pregnant or has a new baby. From experience, it also makes a great baby shower gift!
Random listing from 'Books'...
Join in with all your favourite animals in this amazing mask book.
With four touch-and-feel masks, just press out and play for hours of fun!
All trademarks, images and copyrights on this site are owned by their respective companies.
KIWIreviews is an independent entity, part of the Knock Out News Group. This is a free public forum presenting user opinions on selected products, and as such the views expressed do not necessarily reflect the opinion of kiwireviews.nz and are protected under New Zealand law by the "Honest Opinion" clause of the Defamation Act of 1992. KIWIreviews accepts no liability for statements made on this site, on the premise that they have been submitted as the true and honest opinions of the individual posters. In most cases, prices and dates stated are approximate and should be considered as only guidelines.
"It is amazing what you can accomplish if you do not care who gets the credit."
Harry S Truman (1884 - 1972)