The Nursing Mother's Guide to Weaning, Revised Edition (ISBN 155832352X)

Why not to wean:
I also loved the Nursing Mothers Companion and am very pro-breastfeeding, but I am sad to say that this book is not what it purports to be. As pointed out in other reviews, much more time is spent telling mothers why they shouldn't wean than how they might wean. A great disappointment.

Only the Title Needs Changing:
While I really enjoyed this book, I will concede that the previous reviewers have a point: calling this book "The Nursing Mother's Guide to Weaning" makes it sound like it's just, and only, a how-to manual on weaning your baby. In fact, it is a somewhat condensed primer on weaning patterns throughout history that transitions into a breakdown of the nursing relationship by age group (under 3 months, 4 months to 1 year, 1&2 years, older than 3) and then discusses characteristics, challenges and possible solutions to these challenges other than full weaning before discussing weaning techniques. Thus, this book, in it's entirety, is for the nursing mom who is thinking about weaning and wants some things to ponder when making this decision. One point that I liked was also touched on in "Mothering Your Nursing Toddler," the fact that it's tempting to feel frustrated and tired and blame this on the fact that you're still nursing. This seems to me to be an oversimplification, however, a too-simple solution for a multi-faceted issue. For the mom who has absolutely decided to wean, as is stated in the introduction, the author has colorcoded bars at the top of the short segments at the end of each chapter that detail the weaning techniques by age group. (The setup of the book is similar to her breastfeeding book in that it contains full chapters and then important information condensed at the end, which I liked.) By skipping the chapters and just reading the pertinent colored pages, a mom could get just the info that they need very quickly. For a mom needing to wean immediately, certainly this book would be useful, though it would probably be prudent to just check it out of the library. I am glad that I bought it, though, and will be revisiting it in the next couple months as my son's and my nursing relationship winds down.

Very helpful:
While it's true that this book encourages extended nursing, it also contains useful strategies for weaning at any age. If you're on the fence about weaning, read the whole book and then decide. If you're sure you want to wean, skip the "whether to wean" sections and go straight to the "weaning ideas" pages. The book offers a variety of strategies and stories from numerous parents.

I am compelled to write my first Amazon review ever...:
...because this book is so detrimental I feel the need to warn women away from it. Anyone who is considering weaning is already full of emotions about ending the breast feeding journey. Why on earth would this author think that any intelligent mother needs 50 pages of a guilt trip about it? I bought this book for practical advice on how to wean my baby - and my hormonal self - most gently. Instead I've been feeling like a horrible, selfish mother since reading it 8 hours ago.

A Great Book:
Although I am not ready to wean my 9 month old daughter, I've read this book twice in the past month and have shared it with my husband and mother. I thought the history of breastfeeding and weaning in the US and other cultures was very interesting. I like how the book is organized and thought that it was full of helpful information. I think it would be good for someone to read who is nursing and just starting to think about when to wean.