Can we ask for feedback on the Mumsnet Books please?

[JustineMumsnet]

Just had a meeting with the publisher and they are not, shall we say, flying off the shelves despite the fact that everyone who reads them says how brilliant/funny they are. Sales via MN particularly are pretty poor.

So - can you give us some pointers as to why you aren't buying/recommending these utterly marvellous books, packed full of MN wisdom please?

Have you heard about them - do we need to shout more? Or do you feel you don't need them, because you've got MN at your fingertips, or, perish the thought perhaps you just don't like the look of them?

Message withdrawn

Because I have all the answers here

Because after going through one pregnancy and one set of toddlerdom I didn't feel like I needed a book to guide me through subsequent ones

I have the todders one and while it was an entertaining read, it just seemed to cover too many areas with not enough depth for me. I found books such as 'toddler taming' more useful to help me with specific challenges, and I guess from my point of view if I want to consult a book then I'm usually looking for more than a couple of pages on a topic.

Also, as has been said already, the beauty of mumsnet for me is the range of answers you get to your question. While the books arguably have entertaining and useful anecdotes, they just can't bring the richness and fullness of the debate to life for me.

I love MN but wouldn't buy the books because I suppose I think I am already an expert on everything .

And lots of what people say on MN really annoys me.

But that is the fun of MN - that you can post back telling people they are talking a load of rubbish.

Can't do that with a book.

Also, havne't seen them on sale anywhere or referred to anywhere apart from here.

I saw the pregnancy one in sussex stationers the other day. Would love to buy it but can't justify £10 on something I don't really need.

I bought the toddler one in preparation for spending time with DP's toddler and loved it. I haven't had to use it as a practical guide so far though and am probably not in a great position to comment on how useful it is.

I would probably buy the pregnancy one but there aren't any plans for that yet so it's on a list for purchasing further down the line.

I have all the ones out and the new one on pre order for next yr - via amazon.

I think they are handy to have esp in event of non internet access.

DP has also read the books and they have helped him too

I think if they were put on supermarket shelves they would sell better tbh.

Would like MN to do a book on primary schoolers tho. As my DD is now 5 and not a toddler anymore.

Actually, there's an idea, muppetsmuggle: market them to men...

Or do a new one. Bet we'd all buy it for our DPs. Because they know we're here all the time already. And they could benefit from our collected wisdom.

Breastfeeding for Blokes, by MN
New babies for Blokes, by MN
Hormonal screaming harpies for Blokes, by MN
What not to buy for your wife for Blokes, by MN
How to carry on having sex with your wife for Blokes, by MN
How not to get sardines sewn into your curtains for Blokes, by MN

I can see this one running and running.

The pregnancy one was too late for me. Would say mumsnet is not something you get into till you have a baby though. I stumbled upon it when I was pregnant but I'm not sure if I'm usual - look ye to your demographics Justine.

The toddler one - well the paper feels a bit crap and frankly the cover is really quite dull - doesn't give me any indication of how scintillating the content is!

Also, the books are well just not very cool really in the way they are compiled (sorry) I don't like the quotes style of writing, I want to know that my parenting guide is overseen by an expert and yes some little box-out quotes are good but not too many. Certainly not two pages worth on a regular basis.

I think the books are funny but they do not come across as funny until you get into them. There is nothing about the covers which shout 'this will challenge your pelvic floor muscles' - which they do.

We have them in our Parenting Book Club in our centres and they are reasonably popular, but not as used as, say the 'What To Expect' books.

Have you got the likes of Asda, Texco's Sainsbury's, Mothercare and Boots on board?
If they were on their shelves I think they would sell better than if they are just in bookshops.

Tesco

The reason we are weird about anonymity is that mother in laws, employers et al are all here too and also because some people, particularly on a Friday, like to talk about bumsex

Because they are poorly promoted in the bookshops, so newly pregnant non-Mnetters haven't heard of them and don't recognise them easily.

Every new mother I meet has only ever heard of SheThatShallNotBeMentioned and they supplement that by running out when junior arrives to get a book with Solution in the title, and one with lots of medical info/ detail like the What To Expect range. Then they have three and think that's enough.

Plus, sorry, I think the cartoons inside were Not Very Funny, and the covers a bit generic.

Not pregnant.

Don't have toddlers.

But I probably wouldn't buy them anyway tbh. Have millions of books and after 10 years of parenting have sort of found my own way through.

If I was pregnant with PFB I would probably have bought the pregnancy book because I bought every pregnancy book going.

Best not to have bumsex with boss, puts everyone off their powerpoint presentations

This thread is depressing though. Someone who has bought them must have lots of good feedback, surely?

Well I did like the content - but then I like Mumsnet content. Had I not been a mumsnetter I'm not sure I would have got a lot of the humour though.

Maybe the covers would be better with some kind of cartoon on to show they are more lighthearted/friendly. If you look at the Kaz Cooke books or the Vicky Iovine ones they are more cartoony on the cover and look a bit quirky or different. The cover doesn't matter if people are buying it on recommendation, but if they are going to pick it up in the shop and think "This looks good" then it does, a lot.

Also I just typed in "The best friends guide to pregnancy" as a search in amazon and it comes up with both of those books and also The Rough Guide to pregnancy and birth which is another lighthearted friendly one. If I type in the mumsnet guide to babies, it comes up with that and some netmums books - the search is obviously trying to come up with related items, but the mumsnet one seems like it would be better with the rough guide type books. Maybe having "mumsnet" in the title was a bad move, maybe it should be called something funny like the title of this cookery book: "How to Feed Your Whole Family a Healthy Balanced Diet, with Very Little Money and Hardly Any Time, Even If You Have a Tiny Kitchen, Only Three Saucepans (One With an Ill-Fitting Lid) and No Fancy Gadgets - Unless You Count the Garlic Crusher..." - I bought this because I liked the idea of it and was fed up of recipe books all assuming I had a griddle pan or some ridiculous ingredients you can't even buy in a supermarket.

Also one last point (for now ) - I didn't know you could buy it through mumsnet, perhaps that is why sales are particularly low from that channel?

Agree whomoved. You have to know Mumsnet to get the humour.

I think you are appealing to the wrong demographic. I'm not sure why people who are already here would buy one, tbh. I didn't, but I've got slightly older children.

If you are relying on loyalty/charitable donations from folks on here, I think it's asking a bit much maybe? They are authors of it after all.

Maybe if you had mentioned the books more in all the interviews you've done in the papers recently, and also get yourself on This Morning or something. You are appealing to a certain audience at that time of day, aren't you?

I'm sure you know this already though, you must have PR on board.

When pregnant with DS1 i browsed the bookshop until i found one i liked. - Since DS's arrival i have discovered MNET. I wouldn't buy a new pregancy book for my second pregnancy as I have all the info i need at my fingertips or in the tome of knowledge that I initially bought.

Many people don't discover mumsnet until after their first baby arrives by which time it's too late for the preg one.

I think I just like to be able to browse books before I buy them so only make online purchases when i've already seen the book in 'real life'. Having said that, I would sometimes like to read all of the fantastic mumsnet anecdotes etc on paper rather than on a glaring screen so perhaps I could be swayed...???

I think they should be marketed as fun books and as an antedote to all the books telling you what you should be doing.

I was quite excited to see the MN toddler book on the shelf of my local bookshop out here in Dubai.

Didn't buy it though, sorry.

I didn't buy it because...

• There are other things I need to spend money on (it's not cheap).
• Because I don't buy parenting books.
• Because I'd leaf eagerly through it and feel slightly flat when I found that not one of my quotes in any of my incarnations in all the years I've been on Mumsnet had been used. It would be another 'who's your favourite Mumsnetter' thread, in book form.