Dr. Miriam Stoppard's New Pregnancy and Birth Book: The Classic Guide for Parents-to-Be, Revised and Updated

by Miriam Stoppard

A COMPLETELY UPDATED AND EXPANDED EDITION OF DR. MIRIAM STOPPARD’S BESTSELLING PREGNANCY HANDBOOK

Reassuring, practical, and thoroughly enjoyable to read, Dr. Miriam Stoppard’s New Pregnancy and Birth Book is the ideal step-by-step guide to every aspect of pregnancy–from prenatal care and childbirth through the first few weeks of life. Containing new color photos, this revised edition is packed with vital information on the latest fertility treatments, prenatal tests, and obstetric procedures, as well as new sections that address the needs of working expectant mothers. Inside you will find

• information and guidance for both parents through each stage, including charts and checklists to assist in planning for the new arrival
• an extended month-by-month pregnancy calendar highlighting the mother’s physical and emotional changes during pregnancy and the baby’s development inside the body
• thorough information about special health concerns and common complaints
• diet, exercise, and relaxation techniques that benefit both mother and baby
• detailed photographs, drawings, and diagrams

“A ‘winner’ that can be recommended without hesitation to any parent-to-be.”
–Journal of the Institute of Health Education

Genres: Nonfiction, Medical, Parenting

256 pages, Paperback

First published January 12, 1986

Reviews

[Tina]

I felt that this book was very helpful and interesting. Someone had made a comment about the "graphic images" and then I had to go back in the book and figure out what they were talking about. The first time through they didn't phase me. I was grateful for the realistic pictures in the book, but if you are offended by seeing naked women giving birth etc. then I guess this isn't the book for you! There are a lot of images! What I liked best about this book is the realistic views in preparation for birth and postpartum. Probably most helpful for first time moms as opposed to experienced ones.

[Book Urchin]

This was my favourite pregnancy book, I felt it told me everything I wanted to know. Unlike others, I also enjoyed the pictures, I felt at least I have something to compare my changing body to instead of googling bump pictures to see how "normal" I am.

[Tisha]

The information was okay - nothing too different from other pregancy books. However, there are way too many pictures of naked pregnant ladies in the book (not having birth, just standing up to show their profiles).

[Bianca]

An excellent reference book to read during pregnancy. Written in an easy to read style which answered a lot of my questions.

[Hillary Moldovan]

Love Doctor Mom! Read her when starting my family almost 30 years ago, now passing her on to my daughter, expecting her first. :)

[Cassidy Brinn]

Straightforward, well-organized

[Mikaela Robertson]

This was the first book I read about pregnancy. It’s a good one to have before you get pregnant, as there is some info for conceiving which is helpful.

Good points:/
• Lots of information, but not an info-dump or info overload.
• Pictures (photos).
• Info for each stage: pre-conception, conception, each stage of pregnancy, labour & birth.
• Easy to flick through to find what you’re interested in.

Bad points:
• I felt it didn’t have enough info during pregnancy, because it spaced out each stage so much. However, as a brief guide it’s really enough.
• It’s British, so some info isn’t relevant to other countries.

Recommended for:
• A first pregnancy
• Someone who wants a brief overview of everything, rather than week-by-week details

[Sarah]

I liked all the pictures in this one, plus the topical arrangement of chapters (instead of the chronological order most books on this subject seem to take). I liked it, I didn't love it. Some of it seemed a little too focused on midwives and home births (that's great if you want to do it, but plenty of us still have babies in hospitals). Also it seemed a little focused on standards in European (British?) pregnancy care. Honestly, I'm tired of browsing pregnancy books, so I didn't really get into this one in as much depth as I would have liked.

[Danielle]

For being "new and updated" this book still felt really outdated. Also, it has some very graphic pictures in it. I didn't get much new or helpful information out of it, but at least the chapters on labor and delivery were a good review for me. There are better pregnancy books out there.

[Jessica]

Lots of very visual information (pictures, graphs, etc.) but recommends Moses baskets, which are strongly discouraged by every other book I've read. It makes me suspicious of the rest of the information provided.

[Judith]

Actually, I just skimmed the book. Seems like a good picture and text book about all stages or pregnancy and delivery.
WARNING! Real pictures in there!

[Monica]

Very clear, easy to understand and has many real life color pictures. Read over the entire thing in one sitting!

[Ashley]

Lots of good information and tons of pictures (photos and illustrations). Not for the squeamish.

[Mona]

Very imformative book , should be read by first time parents.

[Sarah]

The stuff about what to expect from you doctor was not very in line with what I experienced. Did not find this book very helpful.

[Cindi Haaland]

Great book for expecting mommas. the birth part was helpful.

[Gemini Sim]

For me personally, I prefer to read forums and watch videos online from expectant mothers who are experiencing pregnancy in real time. However, this is a lovely and easy to navigate guide which I have referred to more frequently than I thought I would.

It makes me laugh how the low/average ratings for this book complain about the ‘graphic’ pictures: ‘too many naked pregnant ladies’ ??? I’m not sure what you expect from a pregnancy guide. The book provides information about how your body changes throughout pregnancy and the illustrations only enhance the text. If you find anything graphic, sexual, or disturbing about pregnancy and childbirth I’m not sure you are ready to give birth.