The New Dad's Survival Guide: What to Expect in the First Year and Beyond

by Rob Kemp

The new dad's complete guide to their baby's first 18 months, combining an approachable tone with expert advice You read the pregnancy books, the nine months flew by without a hitch, the birth was wonderful, and your healthy baby arrived on schedule. Job well done, right? This essential guide for new dads describes what to expect in the first 18 months, arming you with the tools necessary to be a fantastic dad. Covering everything from how to bond with your baby and support their development to practical issues, such as how to manage your working arrangements and finances, this book gives new dads the confidence, skills, and knowledge to enjoy fatherhood—and do a great job of it. Entertaining, informative, and packed full of expert advice, this is the go-to guide for modern, hands-on dads.

Genres: Parenting, Family, Nonfiction

272 pages, Paperback

First published June 5, 2014

About the author

Librarian Note: There is more than one author in the Goodreads database with this name.

Reviews

[Istvan Zoltan · Rating 2 out of 5]

The book gives a good amount of useful info: what the typical developmental stages are, what to expect work-life-childcare balance wise, some key things concerning food, health, and safety, and peppers it with some blurbs from parents sharing their own experiences.

The style can sometimes be a bit too chummy, but nothing too tedious or insufferable, and there are some apt parts.
Don’t expect an in-depth book: you’ll probably want to look up NHS / John Hopkins pages to get good up to date info on medical questions. But for a general overview it does the job.

One assumption seems to be that most dads picking up the book will be people who are happy about becoming dads but not really wanting to engage too much. I have no idea how common this attitude is these days – for me it was obvious that I’ll help with everything, including playing, singing, nappy changes, bathtime, feeding, illnesses, shopping, and so on. But I know some people who feel that most of these are their partner’s job. Society seems to be evolving but the outdated views are still around. So, maybe for such readers the book is nice: it sells the message that you ought to pull your weight in a style that might appeal to people who have a more ‘macho’ mindset.

[Lior Alexandre · Rating 3 out of 5]

Too much of it was quite obvious. The style was also a bit too laddish.

[Doug Roehler]

rating: TBD.

[Martin · Rating 1 out of 5]

This book really isn't very helpful. The sort of advice you get at your local pub.

[Vijay · Rating 3 out of 5]

Was good to get excited about being a dad. Easy read. Later realized there were much better books that condensed the core info which was better for me.

[Ryan Gibson · Rating 3 out of 5]

Why are all books written for expectant/new dad's so patronising? Some useful info here if you can get past the laddish "banter".

[James Dewes · Rating 4 out of 5]

Useful information with a dash of humour for good measure.

[Martyn Perry · Rating 4 out of 5]

Both insightful and funny. Recommended!