The Simplest Baby Book in the World: The Illustrated, Grab-and-Do Guide for a Healthy, Happy Baby

by Stephen Gross, Jeremy F. Shapiro (Contributor), Gabriella Terhes Karlsson (Contributor)

The Simplest Baby Book is a game changer for first time parents.

The Simplest Baby Book in the World is the illustrated grab-and-do guide that helps today's moms and dads gain confidence in their ability to be great parents. 700+ playful, yet instructive, illustrations make learning faster and easier.

It makes the first year of raising a baby easier by curating and distilling down to their essentials the best-of-the-best advice on topics like:

· Sleep training and sleeping through the night

· When and how much to feed

· Everything you need to know about bath time

· How to be safe and stay sane when going mobile with your baby

· Preparing the nursery

· Solutions to the most common ailments

· Helpful experience and best practices of the community of those who know best—moms, dads, pediatricians, nurses, lactation specialists, nannies, and educators

You will quickly and easily find simple solutions and have proven techniques at your fingertips when you need them most whether it's 2 a.m. or 2 p.m. Every chapter starts with the essential list of products, providing a handy checklist for everything you will need. Don't miss recommendations for the must-have products that make parents' lives easier while saving them time and money.

The Simplest Baby Book is the baby-care solution for all of today’s parents—both moms and dads. At a time when the role of men in providing childcare is increasing, and families come in all shapes and sizes, it is important that parenting reflects this new reality. The Simplest Baby Book does just that.

Genres: Parenting, Nonfiction, Family, Reference, Childrens, How To

292 pages, Paperback

Published November 16, 2021

Reviews

[Kate · Rating 3 out of 5]

Over all this is a pretty decent parenting book. It’s organized well and concise with check lists and a wide variety of generally good advice. I would have given it 5 stars but as a health care professional I was pretty disappointed about outdated medical advice for a 2021 publication. (Example: he recommended putting your child in a car seat while you get tasks done—the risk of a car accident outweighs the risk of suffocation from a car seat harness when use in a car, but at no other time is it safe to leave your child in a car seat. He recommended waiting several days to introduce new foods when that isn’t medically necessary.)

I was also irritated that he used slang such as “his equipment” when discussing post-procedure care for circumcisions. It’s just weird and inappropriate when giving medical advice and I’d be equally appalled if my OB referred to my pelvic exams in such a way.

[Kenzie West · Rating 5 out of 5]

I'm a first-time mom who is due Feb. 13th and this book is a life saver! I've avoided reading any baby/parenting books my entire pregnancy because they are so wordy and hard to digest. This is coming from a librarian! I stumbled across this book and almost immediately ordered it. I LOVE how easy to understand this book is. Everything is broke down in a simple yet informative way. The graphics are actually usefully and easy to comprehend. I could not recommend this book more. I even requested that my library system order this book for circulation. Truly amazing.

[Alanna · Rating 5 out of 5]

Last minute cramming while in hospital…..

[Nick Parker · Rating 4 out of 5]

Great baseline baby info and reference guide. Doesn’t get hung up on fads, philosophy, or edge-cases.

[Terri · Rating 4 out of 5]

An easy to read book on different tips for baby care. My husband found the layout helpful to access information.

[Samantha L · Rating 5 out of 5]

im counting this lol

[Jasmine · Rating 5 out of 5]

All I wanted was one book that gave me a general overview of everything I needed to know and that’s exactly what I got with this book! It doesn’t go too in-depth on each topic, but it feels like a great starting point/reference guide.

[Nicole · Rating 5 out of 5]

Bought this for my Husband and I. We are expecting our first child in 3 months and it was an eye opening read. I wanted to get it because it had great reviews as a book that was super informative but also not a thesis on raising children. Something that my husband and i could grab and reference at any time. we Read through the entire thing together over this week and it was super helpful for things we had no idea to consider.

[Niki · Rating 3 out of 5]

I liked the fact that it was concise, organised into sections and also illustrated. There were some outdated theories inside like putting all the foods in a blender, did not include baby-led weaning as an alternative. The part that I really didn’t like was the sleeping part. No alternative was given than leaving your child to cry. There were many alternatives as to how you could do that etc but it didn’t mention anything about not leaving your baby crying as psychologists suggest nowadays.

[Callen · Rating 3 out of 5]

This was okay. Lots of easy to digest diagrams. He does pick certain philosophies that he puts forward as “truth” making them seem like that is the only way to do things. That’s why I’d give it 3 stars instead of 4.

[Rachel · Rating 4 out of 5]

This feels like a picture book for adults who are insecure about becoming parents, and I really love it for that. :) My husband and I read a few pages of this before we went to bed during the last trimester and felt more equipped as it’s a high-level review of every part of newborn care. If baby/parenting book intimidate you, this would honestly be a great place to start.

Overall 3.75

- Originality: 3/5
- Intellectually engaging:3/5
- Spiritually/Emotionally enriching:3.5/5
- Plot rich/page turner:N/A
- Depth/Well Researched: 4.5/5

[Kyle McFerren · Rating 5 out of 5]

4.5 stars

This is perfect for first-time or soon to be first-time parents who are asking themselves "what are you supposed to do with a baby to keep it alive?" Very to-the-point, lots of diagrams, and all the basics are covered. There is the occasional questionable suggestion (i.e. gratuitous use of tablets for entertainment) hence the not-quite-5-stars rating.

[Victor Porras · Rating 4 out of 5]

Pretty solid, much better than some other wordier books. The tone was down-to-earth and practical. I still think it could be further simplified though. For example, the section on sleeping describes multiple different methods and it was a bit confusing to figure out what the author actually recommends. I would prefer if he just picked one. Also, the shopping lists also are a bit too long and complicated. Nobody needs a bottle warmer.

[Chelsea · Rating 5 out of 5]

My husband and I have been reading this every night before bed. It is very user friendly, and we learned a lot! It’s also nice to see diagrams and pictures of how to do certain things instead of just reading.

[Paige Otterson · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book is a good guide to the basics of having a baby, which I appreciate and bought for both me and my husband to read. I think it’ll be nice to have as a resource once baby comes too! It’s a great overview to just get an idea about certain topics

[Ethan · Rating 4 out of 5]

I liked it! I felt like reading it helped me feel like I was more capable of jumping into this new stage of life! Didn't love the occasional swearing haha, predictable me and I feel it could have said more positive things at the end. But overall a great read with good illustrations

[Sarah · Rating 3 out of 5]

This book really is quite simple and would be easy to refer back to for quick answers to common questions. Lots of pictures. Also lots of opinions… so many recs aren’t exactly evidence based (some are), but sometimes personal experiences can be helpful. Very surface level type information. There are certain topics I’d like more information on, so I will be reading more books that go deeper into those topics.

[ruby · Rating 4 out of 5]

i bet you thought you’d seen the last of me

[Sara Compton · Rating 4 out of 5]

Very different from my usual reads… 😅🤭👶🏼 but for any first time expectant parents this was wonderful.

[Jenell Bakey · Rating 4 out of 5]

Comprehensive, quick parenting guide. Great for the early postpartum weeks when you have a ton of questions and very little brainpower. I think there are some things they simplify a little too much, but worth a skim.

[Dave · Rating 5 out of 5]

Seeing as how I have 2.5 months before I will have the opportunity to put most of this to use, I can’t say with any definite confidence how valuable this will be; however, I can say that the directness and simplicity, the tone, and all the visuals and lists combine to helpfully relieve some anxiety for me at this point in my preparation to become a father. I think I give it 5 stars? 🤣🤷‍♂️🤞

[Kate Kiriakou · Rating 4 out of 5]

Exactly as advertised—super simple and covers a broad range of topics. Some of the suggestions seemed a bit outdated given what I've heard and read from medical professionals, but a great foundational book nonetheless.

[Taylor Taylor · Rating 5 out of 5]

Nice overview of a wide variety of topics. Provides "obvious" details that a lot of other baby books leave out which I liked. Didn't get too detailed where not needed, which I also liked.

[Elizabeth Saavedra · Rating 3 out of 5]

good, almost too simple, what To Expect when Expecting is better

[Agapi Nikolaou · Rating 5 out of 5]

Ολες οι πληροφορίες που χρειάζεται ενας νεος γονέας ..συγκεντρωμενες σε αυτο το βιβλίο! Για εμένα αξιζει.. πολυ περισσότερο απο τα σεμινάρια που πληρωσα για φροντιδα νεογνου κλπ.

[Serena · Rating 2 out of 5]

If you are someone who wants to be told what exactly to do to feel in more control about having a baby, this is probably a good resource for you. As other people have said, the advice in the book sounds prescriptive, which can come across as ‘this is the only way to do it’.

Advice is also American based, as it talks about checking with your health insurance on what equipment can rent and not. I’m unsure about the advice it gives on breastfeeding (especially with the diagrams as it shows a diagram of a shallow latch - which leads to nipple trauma - than secure latching) - this conflicts advice I received from UK-based health professional sources.

However, it is a great visual guide for preparing what you need for baby’s arrival (eg diagrams and lists of what to prepare and look out for when preparing the nursery, diaper bags etc), plenty of lists and resources. It is prescriptive which is great for its purpose.

[Kerry beerz · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is a great, quick reference book for first time parents. I personally love charts and infographics so this helped me understand milestones, sleep scheduling, feeding quantities, immunizations by months etc. easily.

Some parent books can be verbose and conflicting; because, every kid is different…. This was concise, direct, and covers the main topics. I was able to quickly find a topic and immediately have an answer instead of speed reading back through weissbluth’s text book. Or googling images and then doing a source check because I’m crazy.

I would suggest reading this before baby arrives, or even use it as a guide for building a registry. There are items listed as essentials for each topic (i.e.) setting up a changing station, age specific clothing quantities, or how to baby proof and what equipment it entails.

Overall, it’s exactly as the title states and when you’re sleep deprived, you need a picture book and an answer not a lecture.

[Maya Osseiran · Rating 3 out of 5]

I had decided to stop reading baby books since I realized that there is no 'right' way to take care of bebas and most of the advice shared is pretty subjective, but when a friend mentioned an illustrated baby book I was interested. I think this is one of the better baby books I've read, there were notes on travel and diaper bags which other books rarely touch on. However, some points are ridiculously subjective and put forth as universal truths. For example, why should you wait 15 minutes before picking up a crying baby? I can't even handle 30 seconds. Or that you are supposed to follow a recommended schedule to the dot. If I read this before having a baby and tried implementing that, my stress levels would have been insane. Maybe these tips work for some but it is always good to remember, they aren't truths.

[Loretta · Rating 5 out of 5]

Basically The Idiot’s Guide to Babies. It doesn’t go into any parenting philosophies or the latest cutting edge research on how to make sure your kid goes into STEM or any of that other stuff—but that’s great! There are so many other books that do that.

Instead this book is a fantastic resource for first time parents, teaching you all the basics of how to keep the little ones alive in those first few months. You forgot how to swaddle? There’s a diagram for that. Your baby isn’t responding to your attempts to burp her? Well here are three other methods you can try. Worries about the color of your babies’ poop? There’s a detailed full page illustration explaining all the colors!

This was a great, reassuring read. And I’m sure I’ll put it out time and again those first few months.

[Nicole · Rating 5 out of 5]

As a first time expectant parent, I kept searching for easy/manageable books to get me feeling more ready for baby. While there are a wealth of them out there, now I finally see why this one kept coming up! It really is super simple (not the actual process of child rearing, of course) but this book makes things feel tangible and doable! The author really breaks things down into bite-sized, easy to read pieces without feeling condescending at all. The illustrations are an added bonus! I truly feel more prepared and ready to go at least in the first few months. I love that it includes resources to print and/or use digitally, and that the index can just point me in the right direction of where to seek support. Definitely recommend!