Recommend a good book about childbirth?

[Hobnobfanatic]

I think I should be better prepared for this birth but just seem to find straightforward biology-type books or some fairly wacky stuff that doesn't seem rooted in reality.

Any suggestions, anyone?

My absolute favourite book is Birth and Beyond - lots of useful information, Q&A sections, inspirational bits, the whole works.

If that seems too much, take a look at the NCT shop - they do lots of information sheets at reasonable prices which look at specific topics.

Excellent reviews, Piprabbit - looks like it's worth every penny. Thanks!

Sheila Kitzinger's New Experience of Childbirth gives lots of physiological information about the process of birth. She does veer into the land of wack occasionally (ignore a lot of what she has to say about hospital births - she doesn't seem to have ventured into a maternity ward since about 1973), but I found it hugely useful in terms of knowing what was going on and what I should do about it.

Thanks, Policy - I shall order this too. The upside to sleepless, uncomfortable nights is having more reading time!

This has had good reviews-
www.thebirthspecialists.com/book.html
Selina

Active Birth by Jane Balaskas is AMAZING. I read it over and over again during my pregnancy (especially chapter 6). It's a mixture of yoga positions to help prepare your body for childbirth, some really helpful physiological stuff about childbirth and also is written in a way that subtly empowers you so that by the time I came to having my baby I felt like I could face it with knowledge and power and courage. I ended up having had a fearless and ecstatic (although not painless ) birth. I have since bought it for or lent it to all my friends who have got pregnant and they have all said they found it enormously helpful.
There are some great photos of beautiful birthing ladies and their bearded men too!
Best wishes for the rest of your pregnancy and the birth!!

active birth here

Great - thanks, Selina and Randommomma. Amazon will do very well out of me this week!

Oooh, Ina mays guide to childbirth.

some of the birth stories at the start are a little hippy happy for my liking but it is a really inspirational book and gives you heaps of faith in your own body's abilities.

esp. good for anyone thinking of a natural / homebirth.

Ina May Gaskin's - Guide to childbirth is brilliant

I vote Ina May every time!

ina may gaskin.

Three votes for Ina May - I shall put it in my Amazon basket! I'm going to be the most well-researched birther ever in three months. Didn't read ANYTHING with my first - thought that ignorance was bliss, but now realise that knowledge is power!

Thanks for the recommendatioNs!

I'd also vote for Ina May. Penny Simkin's 'Pregnancy, Childbirth and the Newborn' is quite good too.

I seriously recommend you look into hynobirthing of one sort or another - please don't just cast this kind of thing off as wacky! It really makes a lot of sense. The one me and my friends found really helpful was "Hypnobirthing, the Mongan Method", which is American, but there is also a British version. And try "Effective Birth Preparation" by Maggie Howell - lots of sensible and uplifting stuff in there.