Two Great Books for Future Dad

Many books on pregnancy and birth can be rather overwhelming to digest–not so with these two books designed for Daddy’s preparation. My husband and I fully enjoyed the following two titles, full of wonderful insight and practical new parent education.

(Click either book cover image above for more details, reviews, or to purchase.)

Be Prepared: A Practical Handbook For New Dads is clever and entertaining. Amusing illustrations and a good sense of humor are the sugar that makes the medicine go down. Suddenly, the prospects of diaper changes and (gasp) #2 in the bath tub seem less daunting and more of an exciting rite of passage.

At times, the sports analogies and macho references make a stereotypical assumption that all American dads love football and power-tools. My husband is a musician who couldn’t begin to guess who Brett Favre is. Nonetheless, the casual tone and lightheartedness of the book captured him enough to read it cover to cover, with enthusiasm. He seemed ecstatic to offer new tips he’d picked up from the text, most of which I didn’t find elsewhere in my endless reading of pregnancy and parenting guides geared towards moms; such as cutting the feet off of footie pyjamas when Baby’s grown out of them to get months more wear. That kind of stuff is really helpful (!) and to this day, I practice a variation of that advice by cutting off the bottom of onesies once they are outgrown, so that they can be worn another month or two as an around the house t-shirt.

Best  Things Fathers Do: Ideas and Advice from Real World Dads focuses more on the psychological and emotional aspects of fatherhood: inspiring your child, building character, self esteem, confidence and emotional intelligence. Its a compilation of essays from many different fathers from all walks of life, including insights from the author’s own personal experiences.

In this day and age, fathers are more involved than ever in the rearing of their children and this book celebrates the vital roles a father plays, with wisdom and encouragement.

I highly recommend both titles, as a pair. They make a great gift for any new or expecting dad–not to mention: the more prepared Dad is, the better the experience not only for him, but for mama and baby as well.