cover image 100 Things I Wish I Knew in My Baby's First Year

100 Things I Wish I Knew in My Baby's First Year

Randy Dean, Lorri Gorno. Paragon House Publishers, $12.95 (250pp) ISBN 978-1-55778-843-6

This collection of notes from two experienced parents (Dean and Gorno have three children together) does not have an expert's stamp of approval, but that doesn't mean that its advice isn't valuable. The book might be best used as a supplement to the numerous--and important--guides on parenting from physicians and other credible sources. Dean and Gorno (who work in sales/marketing and healthcare, respectively) cover everything from the joys of jogging with your baby, to letting your baby cry her or himself to sleep, to teething, to eliminating pacifiers. Most topics get one page, and Dean and Gorno employ the""we"" perspective quite often. A considerable amount of their advice addresses partner relationship issues, such as what to do when parents have conflicting views on childrearing. Although this should by no means serve as a parent's only guide to raising a child--lines like""recent research shows"" mingle with more credible sourcing--it's a personable book that could quell new parent anxiety.