[.ca] Gentle Baby Care (ISBN 0071398856)

A thoughtful, reliable resource:
This helpful resource has a lot of heart and a friendly tone. Though hefty, the book's appealing format, well-organized material, supportive writing style and clarity make it inviting and accessible. Readers need only look inside to appreciate the author's positive attitude and notice how practical and thorough the information is. Each of about 125 brief chapters uses a similar pattern designed to provide quick factual direction and encouragement for its intended audience of parents of normal infants. A wide selection of topics, from health issues to overzealous grandparents, swimming, test driving strollers, developing a read-aloud family culture, and teething, is arranged alphabetically with labels that, for the most part, make sense. The table of contents and extensive index are well-conceived. Lots of white space, attractive type, and logical layout make skimming for specific advice easy. Reading the book straight through is pleasant and informative too. Comparative parenting philosophies are not covered. Pantley is forthright about concentrating on attachment parenting. She supports her preferences well and discusses many approaches in a broad context. Breastfeeding, for example, is assumed, yet she doesn't belittle readers who opt for formula. Curiously though, homeopathic medicine is suggested a few times with no further explanation about it. In general, Pantley speaks sensibly to hands-on, involved parents interested in natural ways to rear secure, strongly attached children safely. Development itself is covered here only as a minor topic with lists of normal milestones. Helping parents understand particular issues and evaluate their best options is Pantley's focus, so her sound advice includes tips with developmentally appropriate variations throughout the book. She is adept also at sharing pertinent considerations for each subject without prescribing, except for certain definite procedures or emergency requirements, what choices a family should make. Her presentation of current knowledge and research is concise and responsible. She provides additional websites and resources for further interest and respectfully leaves the outcomes up to her readers' values and decisions. Gentle Baby Care has a more developed style than Pantley's earlier Perfect Parenting. The same sensitive logic in her No-Cry Sleep Solution is in her writing here. She considers each topic thoroughly with particular awareness of safety issues, and cogently presents, with the utmost respect for parents and their babies' well-being, the practical information and thoughtful opinions they will find useful. Expectant, new and experienced parents will all find this book a handy and reliable reference.

A book for AP parents:
If you support the attachment parenting philosophies of Dr. Sears and Katie Allison Granju, you will love this book. If, however, you're after a book that is a little bit more mainstream, this may not be the book for you and you may wish to stick to a less AP-oriented baby book. This book assumes you will be opting for extended breastfeeding, co-sleeping, and that you will be using the night-time parenting strategies spelled out in the author's other book. If you're not making these particular parenting choices, this book may leave you feeling a bit guilty for the parenting choices you have made.

THE Book for us gentle parents:
I just love Elizabeth Pantley's books and this book is no exception. Have a question about preparing your own baby food? It's in there! Independant play? It's in there! Baby Massage? It's in there! She also has covered many health issues such as immunizations, febral seizures, and teething, as well as developmental "issues" such as tantrums. It's just PACKED with wonderful tips that anyone can use. That is, of course if you're interested in the gentle baby style that she's famous for. I have used her tips from previous books with my 4 year old, and she is a wonderful, confident child. This book comes just in time to help me with my 7.5 month baby. I'm learning so many new ideas for being a better, kinder parent. Thanks again, Elizabeth!

Baby Love and Respect:
Every parent is different, and what is so wonderful about this book is that no matter what your parenting style, you can take the facts outlined and discussed in the book and apply them to your own parenting style and value system and make your own decision. The author is wonderfully fresh by accepting that all parents are different, and her message is one of love and respect for babies and the families they are born into. She starts out her first paragraph on every topic with the words: "Learn about it." It's a helpful and valuable addition to anyone's bookshelf and I think a great shower gift!

Useful guide for the sleep deprived:
This is the book my husband and I turn to at 2:00 am. When you've had next to no sleep, and you suddenly have to make a decision about the severity of your child's illness, it's extremely useful to have a book that's arranged in alphabetical order (no hunting through a poorly designed index printed in tiny typeface)! The amount of information is just enough for a quick intro to a topic, and illness-related topics always have handy point-form lists of symptoms that require immediate medical attention. The book also offers solutions for a range of problems that plague new parents--from how to bathe a baby, to how to engage disinterested grandparents. Very useful stuff, especially for new parents.