Childbirth
1. Ina May's Guide to Childbirth
- I love this book! It was such an empowering, informative, and comforting read when I was struggling to decide on natural birth.2.The Best Birth: Your Guide to the Safest, Healthiest, Most Satisfying Labor and Delivery
- I know a lot of natural birth advocates don't like this book because of how much it feeds into some of the standard medical practices that make a natural hospital birth difficult. I agree with those concerns, but when I was dealing with figuring out if a natural birth was for me, this book did a good job of breaking down some of the polarization of the discussion, and I appreciated that.3. Pushed: The Painful Truth About Childbirth and Modern Maternity Care
--An eye-opening account of some of the standard medical practices surrounding U.S. childbirthHaving this information helped me know what to question and research further.
Equally Shared Parenting
1. Halving It All: How Equally Shared Parenting Works
--A thorough look at some of the complications of equally shared parentingIt's accessible and includes interviews with equally sharing couples, so it's not just presented as an idealized hypothetical.
Parenting
1. Operating Instructions: A Journal of My Son's First Year
--A beautiful memoir about the first year of parenting from the endlessly talented Anne Lamott2. Our Babies, Ourselves: How Biology and Culture Shape the Way We Parent
--A fascinating examination of cross-cultural parenting practicesThis book was a huge help when I started to feel crazy for making some parenting decisions (like occasional bed-sharing and breastfeeding past six months) that were different from most of the people around me.
Children and Media Influence
1. Cinderella Ate My Daughter: Dispatches from the Front Lines of the New Girlie-Girl Culture
--A look at the pervasiveness of "girly" culture, princesses, and a sea of pink2. The Mouse that Roared: Disney and the End of Innocence
--A sometimes terrifying look at Disney's marketing practices
