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Babies

Baby Yoga

Francoise Barbira Freedman
Gaia, paperback, 144 pages, £10.99

Packed with simply gorgeous pictures of babies enjoying the benefits of yoga, coupled with detailed line drawings for some exercises, this book is a perfect entrance to the world of yoga for babies, mums and dads.

With baby yoga, in one short session, babies get as much physical activity as if you cradle him or her all day, say the authors, so you can look forward to a child who sleeps more deeply as a result!

The exercises inside are suitable for people who are new to yoga as well as those who have experience of it, with pointers for health professionals and teachers as well.

And although the book is aimed at starting the sessions when your child is very small, there is also guidance to help get an older baby involved.

To buy a copy, visit the Gaia website

Autobiography of a one-year-old

Rohan Candappa
Ebury, hardback, 256 pages, £9.99

Want to get inside the head of your one-year-old? Here’s your chance!

This funny book follows a one-year-old through his second year on earth, offering an insight into the madness a toddler has to cope with on a daily basis.

Who invented these cruel nursery rhymes that see Humpty Dumpty lying smashed on the ground and babies crashing out of trees when the wind blows?

Why do parents object when once a year you spot a tree, covered in shiny objects in the corner of your living room and go to investigate?

These and many other questions go completely unanswered in this diary, broken up into chunks you can read for a few minutes before chasing after your own toddler.

One answer you will find is why the wrapping is always more interesting than the present – as well as living through guerilla warfare after a listening device is discovered in the nursery!

The Contented Little Baby Book

Gina Ford
Vermillion, paperback, 172 pages, £7.99

This is a tough and uncompromising book, but offers no apologies. Repeatedly raved about by babyworld members, it places complete emphasis on routine for a happy, well-fed, sleeping baby.

Parents who already have a baby who feeds well or sleeps well may find the book’s attention to detail – a routine including when YOU should eat as well as baby is included – and unwavering certainty on every topic tough to accept.

But for those thousands of parents who find the first bleary-eyed weeks turn into bleary-eyed months because they just can’t get baby to sleep through the night, Ford’s attention to detail will offer welcome relief.

The New Baby and Toddler Sleep Programme

Dr John Pearce
Vermillion, paperback, 172 pages, £7.99

This book is subtitled ‘how to have a peaceful night, every night’ and if the tips inside live up to that claim, it must be destined to become a handbook for every parent.

There is certainly plenty of information inside, and unusually the book does not just concentrate on getting a tiny baby into a sleep pattern, it warns that even the best of sleepers may go through a resistant phase as a two-year-old and offers advice for that too.

There is great emphasis on finding a good night ‘phrase’- one that reassures your child that all is well because it is used night after night.

Packed with clear guidelines and useful tips, the book is written by an Emeritus (retired) Professor of Child Psychiatry with three children of his own so he has seen and coped with a fair few cases!

NCT Complete Book of Babycare

Edited by Daphne Metland
Harper Collins, hardback, 256 pages, £16.99

Need just one book to take you through the first three years of parenting? Then this has to be a strong contender.

As the cover suggests, it’s written by parents, for parents, with authors including babyworld’s online antenatal teacher Sue Allen Mills and our former medical editor Daphne Metland.

Baby’s development is split into useful categories, from 0-1 month, 1-3 months, 3-6 months, 6-12 months, 1 year-18 months, and so on.

There’s a clever and fascinating diary for each age range then information on basic developments and issues for each age.

With the inclusion of a childhood health a-z at the back, this book could stand alone on any parent’s bookshelf.

The Social Baby

Lynne Murray and Liz Andrews
The Children’s Project, hardback, 176 pages, £14.99

This book will be enthralling to any parent or parent-to-be, as a series of picture stories shows just how responsive tiny babies can be.

Inspired by the children of the authors and publishers, the book looks at a baby’s social world, before dealing with crying, sleeping and making a baby feel secure,

The sleeping section includes a fascinating series of pictures which sees a seven-week-old baby go from sleep to wakefulness as a phone rings nearby, then settling back into sleep, without help from a parent, when the phone stops ringing.

If you are expecting a baby or have just had one and are nervous about interaction, this book shows just how to pick up on the signs your baby is trying to give to you.

How babies think

how babies thinkAlison Gopnik, Andrew Meltzoff and Patricia Kuhl
Weidenfeld and Nicholson, hardback, 212 pages, £20.

A fascinating look at how babies gain knowledge of the world and how much is actually ingrained from the day they are born.

Using a massive range of research projects, the authors made an incredible range of discoveries, including that newborn babies know what their tongue looks like, that one-year-olds know the difference between Swedish and English and that 18-month-olds understand that some people prefer broccoli to crackers.

It’s not the easiest read – inevitably a book written by three professors can slip into too much analysis for the lay person. But it is detailed, fascinating and a refreshing look at how much your tot actually knows.

Read more about some of the experiments:

The Little Terror Series

The Little Terror guides Charlotte Preston
Metro Books, paperbacks, 64 pages, £2.99 each

Series of four books; First Six Weeks, Good Feeding Guide, Good Behaviour Guide and Good Sleeping Guide.

Charlotte Preston, who has many years of experience as a health visitor and is a mother and grandmother, offers tried and tested advice in a practical and down-to-earth way to help parents cope with problems.

 

Baby Massage

Peter Walker
Piatkus, paperback, 128 pages, £9.99

Beautifully illustrated book that covers massage for babies and toddlers and also explains ways to help them develop good posture and maintain flexibility. Also available as a video.

NCT Book of Crying Baby: simple steps to make life easier

NCT Book of Crying Baby Anna McGrail
NCT/Thorsons, paperback, 166 pages, £5.99

Helpful book which looks at why babies cry and how parents can cope with a baby that cries more than average.
There are tips here on recognising different types of cries and how feeding and routine can help. Problems, including teething and colic, which can cause a baby to cry, are discussed as well as when it is time to call in an expert, and how other parents cope.
There are no quick solutions but this book does at least offer survival strategies.

Baby It's You

Annette Karmilof-Smith
Ebury Press, paperback, 256 pages, £9.99

Fascinating account of how a baby develops from a helpless newborn into a small human being. Diaries of parents illustrate each stage. The original Channel Four programme on which this book is based is now available as a video.

NCT Book of Sleep

NCT book of sleepPenney Hames
NCT/Thorsons, paperback, 196 pages, £5.99

Excellent guide which looks at babies' sleep patterns, and managing sleep problems like frequent waking and difficult bedtimes. Sleep can be one of the biggest problems for new parents, who can face just about anything as long as they get their sleep.
Child psychologist Penney Hames looks at just about every issue, from where the baby should sleep to methods of getting your baby to sleep alone.

Your Child’s Body Language

Dr Richard Woolfson
Thorsons, paperback, 138 pages, £4.99

Child psychologist Richard Woolfson shows parents how to read a child’s body language and improve your understanding of what makes your child tick.

Three in a bed

Deborah Jackson
Bloomsbury, paperback, 312 pages, £12.99

Contemplating sleeping with your baby but not sure how safe it will be? Deborah Jackson covers co-sleeping from every possible angle; the benefits, the cot death risk – or lack of, safety, sustaining your sex life, and dealing with common objections to bed-sharing.

If you are thinking of sharing your bed with a baby on more than just the odd occasion, then this book will arm you to the teeth with all the facts you need to know.

And just to make sure all the bases are covered, it also deals with what to do when the time comes for the child to leave his or her parents’ bed.