Great Expectations: Best Baby Gear

by Sandy Jones, Marcie Jones, Ann Brown (Foreword)

Not all high chairs and car seats are created every year, product-related accidents send nearly 70,000 babies and toddlers to the hospital emergency room. To protect their children, parents need the facts. And that’s the mission of this comprehensive, evidence-based A-to-Z guide by Great Expectations authors Sandy and Marcie Jones. Here is the only book that gives moms and dads actual brand-by-brand comparisons of real merchandise to help them choose the very best, safest, and most comfortable bathtub, breast pump, crib, diaper bag, and all the other baby items in between. Starting from pregnancy and going right up to a child’s second birthday, it provides state-of-the-art information, along with tips on how to shop, pictures of the most popular brands, and ?Blue Ribbon Awards” winners in each category. All the choices are unbiased and based on a wide range of the authors’ own hands-on experiences; written reviews by nearly 1,000 parents; and reports from the Consumer Product Safety Commission, the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety, and other major child safety organizations and agencies?as well as the findings of medical studies and injury prevention centers. Plus, it’s just the right size to tuck into a purse, backpack or diaper bag to take along to the store!

369 pages, Paperback

First published August 5, 2007

About the author

Sandy Jones is an American author and pregnancy and parenting expert. She has written, and co-authored, a dozen books since 1976, including the "Great Expectations" series, focusing on a baby's first years. She has been a lecturer at several events, including La Leche League conferences, an organization that educates women on breast-feeding.
Jones has a Bachelor's degree in psychology from Furman University in Greenville, South Carolina and a Master's degree in psychology from Appalachian State University in Boone, North Carolina. She is divorced, and has one daughter, Marcie Jones, who she has co-authored two books with.

Reviews

[Lisa · Rating 1 out of 5]

This was given to us as a gift. Having picked up a couple other baby product guides, I found that this was completely lacking in substance. They would highlight 2 or 3 of a certain type of product and ignore a lot of other choices. It was also judgemental... i.e. recommending against strollers because they create distance between you and your baby? Please!

[Angela · Rating 4 out of 5]

Nice to have some of this info. Like the baby bargains book... A good reference! The only thing is... if I don't buy the BEST RATED thing, I fear that I'm doing some sort of harm to my baby. Keep in mind, everything on the market is tested. Stuff gets recalled. I feel like the drama that comes with making the "right" decisions about baby gear is training for parenthood.

Lesson: Read the info, then go with your gut.

[Olga V. · Rating 2 out of 5]

Maybe it was a good book in 2008, but its outdated now. :(