I feel honored when friends ask me for pregnancy and parenthood book recommendations. And there are so many good ones out there that it’s hard to narrow the list. But when it comes to the can’s and cannot’s of pregnancy, I have a top favorite: Expecting Better by Emily Oster
Oster’s subtitle pretty much says it all: Why Conventional Pregnancy Wisdom is Wrong – and What You Really Need to Know.
Oster is a an economist, and as such she brings her analytical brain to parenthood, using data to debunk many pregnancy myths, including the oft-contested question of alcohol. As an economics major myself, I was sold by the amount of research she did. Not only does her job involve digging into the data, but interpreting it correctly.
Ultimately Oster’s goal is to create a world of more relaxed pregnant women and parents. I found that this book, in combination with many others I read, empowered me to question my health practitioners, to make and share my own decisions with questioning family and friends, and allow me to fully enjoy and appreciate pregnancy as it’s own stage of motherhood.

 

Here are some other recommended pregnancy reads (if you are a “studier” like I am):

Childbirth:

Pushed by Jennifer Block

Ina May’s Guide to Childbirth by Ina May Gaskin

The Birth Partner by Peggy Simkin
Birthing from Within by Pam England
Parenting:
Cribsheet by Emily Oster
Bringing Up Bebe by Pamela Druckerman