Diaper Dude: The Ultimate Dad's Guide to Surviving the First Two Years

by Chris Pegula, Frank Meyer

Dude, you're a dad now!
Picking up where "From Dude to Dad" left off, author and founder of the popular Diaper Dude parenting brand Chris Pegula dives into the first two years of parenting and furthers his deeply held belief that you don't have to lose yourself when you become a father.
Once again written in Pegula's everyman voice and filled with humorous takes on fatherhood from the front lines, the book is an easy-to-read resource for new dads, combining hard-won lessons learned, pitfalls to avoid, and practical advice from a dude who hasn't lost his identity (or his sanity).
Filled with useful information, hilarious stories of dad madness, a little psychology and science, and engaging sidebars, "Diaper Dude" covers everything from bonding, babyproofing, and when you'll have sex again to toddlerhood, tantrums, and tag-teaming with your partner to cover all the bases while staying (somewhat) sane."

Genres: Parenting, Nonfiction

224 pages, Paperback

Published May 9, 2017

Reviews

[Andrew · Rating 1 out of 5]

I was hoping this book would have some more formal guidance, but it’s ultimately just the authors’ advice—heavy on anecdote and platitudes, but light on expert testimony or research. Amateurish, overly casual writing (referring to the reader as “Dude” over and over is grating, not endearing).

The advice itself isn’t necessarily bad, just generic. And as a former book editor, I don’t know how this book made it through to publication as is—the structure is a mess, with little to no continuity between ideas.

[Josh · Rating 2 out of 5]

"Infantile" encompasses all aspects of this book: subject matter, writer's competence, target audience, etc. Just infantile. But because of this it made me feel awesome, smart, and that I have this dad thing in the bag. We'll see.

[Dennis Peirce · Rating 4 out of 5]

Perfect for new dads!

Chris Pegula does a wonderful job of guiding us new dads through the first two years of becoming a parent. He has so much good advice about personal space and allowing our child and ourselves room to grow. Even thought this book is a “Dad’s” guide, I’m lending it to my wife and recommend it to all new moms and dads.

[Jennifer Colvin · Rating 3 out of 5]

This book is probably best for young fathers. I’m not the demographic for this book, but since my husband is finishing college and we were gifted it I thought I would read it and highlight the important bits. I am in my 30s and he in his 40s. To be honest, I’m glad my husband did not waste time reading this. While there are some decent hacks and some advice, the whole book seemed to talk down to a new dad. As if he wouldn’t understand the basics of life in general: communication, patience, general new baby stuff, etc...this is the only “daddy” book I’ve read...I have to assume there are WAY better ones out there. I only give this book more than 2 stars because I commend the author for supporting new dads out there.

[Douglas Lord · Rating 1 out of 5]

This book sucks. It talks down to readers, contains inaccurate information (hey, co-sleeping DOES NOT CAUSE SIDS), and has only the most rudimentary advice (e.g., “watching your language around the family is always in your best interests” or “[establishing] a bedtime ritual is smart and recommended”). Does the author really think readers are that stupid? With “advice” that comes in the form of “be careful letting them into bounce houses,” Pegula sounds like a grade-A asshole. VERDICT Future/new parents should stick with any other rookie dad book, including Susan Fox’s Rookie Dad: Fun and Easy Exercises and Games for Dads and Babies in Their First Year; Kevin Nelson’s broader-in-scope The Daddy Guide, with chapters on birth, childcare, cooking, money, and more; and Gene B. Williams’s New Father's Panic Book, which covers the same time line as Bradley G. Richardson’s Daddy Smarts: A Guide For Rookie Fathers, sans that title’s compressed format.

Find reviews of books for men at Books for Dudes, Books for Dudes, the online reader's advisory column for men from Library Journal. Copyright Library Journal.

[Jeremy Jones · Rating 4 out of 5]

My wife bought this for me months ago when we first learned we were pregnant and, like a good, supportive husband, I put it on my 'to be read' pile and kinda forgot about it. That is until she was admitted to the hospital and the little bastard was on his way.

Overall, it is as advertised. A basic book about taking care of an infant for guys who have no idea what they are doing. Which... you know, is me. The language has a distinctive 'broy' feel but... you know... it's kinda what's on the tin.

But there are helpful ideas contained within and was a good jumping-off point to think about the philosophy of raising a child. And, strangely enough, while huddled on an uncomfortable bench next to my wife waiting in anxiety for my baby to show up, it did provide some comfort. Plus it was written well enough to read cover to cover during our hospital stay.

[Katilyn · Rating 1 out of 5]

I am not the target demographic for this, but I picked it up to pre-read it for recommendation for my husband. This was not good. This book is for men who have never seen a child in their lives and have no desire to learn more about them. This is for, like, the brother of the soon to be dad. There are plenty of great books for soon to be dads out there that actually provide helpful and in-depth information. This barely skims the surface.
And while it might be considered a good starting place, there's no way that this should be considered THE book to read.

Skip it!

[Andrew Myers · Rating 3 out of 5]

An enjoyable, if brief and slight, sojourn though fatherhood. Lots of anecdotes and an overly American narrative style make this less successful than the first book in this series detailing what to expect during pregnancy, but it was still a decent read. Even if I didn’t learn anything, at least I had fun along the way.

[Sara Beth · Rating 3 out of 5]

I felt that it was like a mans version of what to expect when expecting for women. It gave very basics on the stages of life of a newborn through two years old. There main focus was on being there for your newborn and their mother, not so much as to what to expect or how to handle the challenges of parenthood.

[Molly · Rating 4 out of 5]

I read this before passing it off to my husband. It was like reading all of the pregnancy/maternity books from the opposite perspective. All in all, good advice for dads. Worth the read for first timers.

[Jose Jimenez · Rating 4 out of 5]

Quick easy read on Parenting for dads.
Offers practicle but foundational advice on not only parenting but being a loving partner/husband.
Reccomemd this to all new dads and as a refresher for those with more children on the way.

[Patrick · Rating 3 out of 5]

Nice guide to getting used to the idea of becoming a father. I wish there were a few more scientific and clinical references, but I appreciated the websites and books suggested by the authors. Overall, a good start to get to-be-dads in the mindset.

[Carver · Rating 3 out of 5]

This book isn’t the “ultimate” guide for the first two years. It really just skims most of the topics. It was a really quick read, which was nice. This is mostly to get your ideas pumping and the “dad” senses tingling

[Marcelo · Rating 4 out of 5]

Interesting take on parenting for XXI century dads. Fluid and light reading. Maybe it was me, but I expect more actual informations, since is the "ultimate dad's guide", nevertheless it gives a sincere and heart guided account of a loving father.

[Daniel Rodríguez · Rating 3 out of 5]

It was ok, I will not call it an ultimate guide

In general it is an entertaining book, but I was expecting more based on the title 😕. However I got good tips from some of the chapters.

[C K P · Rating 4 out of 5]

Entertaining, useful and somewhat condescending.

[Lisa · Rating 2 out of 5]

Quick, easy read. Nothing groundbreaking.

[Ben Woods · Rating 5 out of 5]

Great info, and easy to read. Likeable author who tells it like it is. Way to go dude!

[Vaibhav Khare · Rating 1 out of 5]

A very average book with not attention given to details.

[KJ · Rating 3 out of 5]

I say 'dude' quite a bit in my day to day vocabulary, and this person manages to use it in just about the most inorganic way possible. Content is fine.

[Phil Rapa · Rating 4 out of 5]

A great, quick read that helped me feel equipped to deal with what is to come. Not all the humor landed, and sometimes I think more detail was needed, but in general these were rarely issues.

[Leo · Rating 3 out of 5]

Some good bits. Seems like it comes down to good sense, patience, and communication.

[Jonathan Manheim · Rating 2 out of 5]

Platitude, surface level genetic statement, advertisement, platitude, repeat. What a waste of time

[Lucas Williams · Rating 1 out of 5]

If you’re a new dad to be, I definitely don’t recommend this book. The guy who’s writing it is a good guy, but NOT a good author. If it weren’t for my obsessive desire to finish every book I start, I would have dumped it after the first chapter - had to pound the rest of the book down like some cold medicine.

He does provide some(?) helpful info. Which was what I really wanted.

Sorry bro. Keep making diaper bags though!