The Happiest Baby on the Block: The New Way to Calm Crying and Help Your Newborn Baby Sleep Longer Reviews

• Very good - but only for the first three months.

  
  By AKD1SD4I503SH on 2002-09-06
  This book is an excellent read - having a nice easy style and with some Anthropology thrown in. Be warned, this is not very good for babies over three months. I have a two month old who is fussy, and I found that I already used a lot of these techniques without knowing it! The one thing that has really been helpful so far is swaddling. It seems to help her take naps better. For 3 months and up, look at "The No-Cry Sleep Solution". It is similar to this book in that it uses a common sense approach to getting babies to calm down or sleep. Also, Healthy Sleep, Happy Child" gives a more scientific explanation of baby sleep.
  
  

• The Happiest Baby on the Block

  
  By A3LTW18ZLBTF5I on 2002-05-30
  This book saved our lives! Our little girl came home from the hospital wailing and it never stopped. She would cry for hours upon hours and nothing would soothe her--not cuddling, not feedings, not burping, not changings, not my mother-in-law (the baby soother extraordinaire), nothing...until this book!

  The horror is finally over--the technique absolutely works every time. The book is well-written, easy to follow and the examples of other parents going through this are so reassuring. I am happy to report that now, at 7 weeks, we have lots of cooing, many smiles, bonding (nearly impossible with a screaming baby) and a lot more sleeping. You can call the author Dr. Karp, but in our house he is reverentially referred to as Saint Harvey--our patron saint of babies. If you have a fussy baby I can not recommend this book enough. It truly works miracles!

  If I were the Queen of Everything I would make sure all new parents and hospital nurses learned this method. It could save so many, so much. Thank you Saint Harvey!
  
  

• Magic

  
  By A2DVJA5O3W18CW on 2004-12-02
  The advice in this book is pure magic. Our baby wasn't colicky but she was Very fussy. Everytime I did what this book suggested - swaddle, jiggle, hold sideways, and shush - she would stop crying instantly. Yes, Instantly. It was like pure magic. Nothing worked before this book. I encourage everyone to buy it, it is a life-saver.
  
  I agree with a previous review, in that it is most helpful the first three months. That's what it's geared towards. The author calls it the fourth trimester and focuses on that. After I started swaddling her (as the author clearly isslustrates how to do) my daughter started sleeping through the night. I no longer need this book because I was able to be so responsive to her needs in the first three months, that she is now secure enough to sleep on her own without being swaddled.
  
  This book is also very well organized. As a matter of fact, you don't even have to read the whole book! He has helpful summaries and bullet points along the way. Just reading one page where he clearly and succinctly summarizes everything can save your life the first three months and get your baby on the road to being a trusting, self-suffient child.
  
  This book did more than just help me soothe my infant. It increased my self-esteem as a parent. I knew that jiggling my baby soothed her. But the horrified looks on people's faces when you start jiggling a baby! Oh my! At least after reading this book it helped me know that it was indeed ok to do what intutively worked.
  
  Also, the author is right - there's no spoling a baby. I "spoiled" my daughter like crazy. And what do I have now? A clingly baby who is addicted to jiggling and swaddling (as many people predicted when I followed the author's advice - "she'll be addicted and you'll have to swaddle her FOREVER!"). No! I have a happy baby who goes to sleep on her own and sleeps through the night. By the way, she's 4 months old. She Never needs to be jiggled anymore, or swaddled. I still put white noise on in the background for her though. But I hear many adults sleep that way too.
  
  This book is also very sensitve and kind to the needs of our precious little babies. He says that the first three months are the fourth trimester. That the baby was in you for nine whole months and got used to there being sound and movement and confinement. And when they're born it's unnatural (and, in my opinion, cruel) to leave them to their own devices and figure out how to be a human being in the world right away. They need our help while they get their bearings. They're so tiny and the world is so big.
  
  As a matter of fact, many book I read suggest not swaddling past the second month, or even past the first month. But the author recommends doing it for as long as the baby needs it. All babies are different and need to take their own time! And not only for as long as the baby needs it, but also as much as the baby needs it. That's right, swaddle the baby as often as the baby wants it. Some books say this hinders development but the author points out that if the baby needs it, it calms the baby down enough for the baby to be a ble to pay attention to the world and learn. My baby wanted to be swaddled for many hours out of every day. I felt guilty becuase so many other resources say not to do that. But this book helped me see that it was only natural. The author asked - doesn't your baby seem happier this way? YES!! She was So much happier when she was swaddled. And this did not make her addicted to it, as I said before - she went from being swaddled most of the day to not being swaddled Ever quickly and effortlessly.
  
  I know this is a long review. I just have to strongly recommend this book. It's usefuleness and help go so much beyond sleeping issues. I love this book. It is the single most useful book I have ever read.
  
  

• Not for older babies

  
  By on 2002-08-01
  After reading these reviews I rush-ordered this book. I was disappointed to find that the entire book is for newborn babies only. Once your baby is too old to swaddle this book isn't for you. I purchased several others at the same time and found that The No Cry Sleep Solution has great ideas for all babies and even toddlers.

  The ideas in this book cannot be applied to a baby that is over about 3 months old. If you look at the main points you'll see they are: swaddling, placing on his side or stomach, saying Shhhh, Swinging, and Sucking. I also suspect that if you always do this with your newborn you may create sleep problems for when you can't do them any more.

  Beware! If your baby is over 3 months this isn't the book you are looking for.
  
  

• The Most Important Purchase for New Parents

  
  By on 2002-07-31
  I have read just about every major book that purports to explain why some babies are fussy and how to calm them. None of them can hold a candle to Dr. Karp's book. Forget about gas and all the other theories -- this book clearly and easily explains what newborns are experiencing. And the best part is the technique for calming that is based on cutting edge medical research. The book's explanation of the "calming reflex" is pretty fascinating, but if you really want to calm your baby, buy the accompanying video with the book. It is an eye-opener! When you see Dr. Karp take a dozen different babies and calm them in a matter of seconds, you finally see what the book can't stress enough -- it's a calming REFLEX, just like swallowing, and anyone can learn how to trigger it. The video is a surefire way to assure yourself that you are mastering the technique. It shows the technique again and again, with helpful tips and trouble-shooting. This is the ticket to new parents' peace of mind.
  
  
• So much hype, so little help
  By A1XAYSI96X8YVH on 2004-04-02
  I asked for this book for my shower because a lot of moms on a discussion forum I read raved about it. Just a few pages into it, I wondered if there was really any need to read the entire book. The other mommies assured me it was worth it.

  I am not convinced.

  There is absolutley nothing in this book that is in any way a breakthrough in the area of baby care. Swaddling, swinging, shushing, sucking, and stomach positioning to calm a baby are all as old as the hills. Some of these have fallen in and out of fashion at one point or another, but none of these tips are so unique that they can't be found as helpful suggestions in other parenting guides or by asking older parents... (I can't even begin to count the number of times my mother or father has suggested I calm my extremely fussy baby by "Try putting him on his belly" or "Why don't you give him a binky?")

  This book suffers from a number of flaws.

  1. I can't even begin to say how irritated I am that the author claims to have found a "new" way to calm fussy babies.

  2. This book would be nice as a PAMPHLET handed out at the hospital to new parents... it should NOT be a book. My original impression that this book is extremely repetitive was correct. It's not so much that none of these methods work, it's just that all can be explained very quickly. It does not take a full length book. Luckily, I read this book before my baby got here - any parent already dealing with a fussy or colicky baby would be at their wits end trying to read this entire book. (Therein lies the irony of childcare help books... those who need them the most don't have the time or ability to read them!!!)

  3. The methods do NOT work for all babies and despite Karp's claim that colic does not even exist in some cultures due to parents using his methods... Colic does NOT always respond to these methods. Living with my baby was agony for the first few months. It didn't matter what I tried - days and evenings were horrible. Anyone who claims to have a cure for colic has clearly never really dealt with colic! What seemed to matter more to my baby was the clock... once 11pm hit, swaddled and nursed, he would sleep well at night. Between 6am and 11pm, though, it didn't matter WHAT I tried, he was fussy and needed to be held and nursed constantly. I could nolt put him down no matter what I tried. There was no magic "off switch," despite Karp's claims.

  In short, this book was a waste of my time. Skim it in a bookstore if you wish, but do not spend your money.

  In response to others claims that babies can become hooked on the methods in this book... I don't think this is a serious issue. We swaddled at night until my baby was big and strong enough to weasle his way out of his wrappings, no matter how many diaper pins I tried to fasten him with. Once he was too big to swaddle, he had no problems sleeping at night. (I mean, at 4 1/2 months he has yet to sleep through the night, but he sleeps no differently unswaddled than swaddled...)

  Maybe some babies require the calming methods a little longer than others, but sooner or later they should all outgrow them... I hope!
  
  

• Karp gives it a five star but... I don't!
  By A2SGP3NTWG5J5N on 2006-03-24
  I read this book cover to cover, not knowing how to deal with my colicky baby. We tried everything and nothing worked. We saw Dr. Karp and he demonstrated his famous shooshing sound while pounding my then 6 month old baby's back real hard. My son looked at him like "what are you doing to me?" His suggestion at the end of our appointment was "Read my book and call me and tell me what you think, will ya? I need to know if I am brilliant or not." He also thought our son was 6 weeks old (normal healthy well-developed 6 month old!). My husband and I were shocked. We were so unimprssed by both Karp himself and the book! Besides there's nothing new in this book and is extremely poorly written!!
  
  
• The worst book on the shelves
  By AVLPZ0E5T4N5R on 2008-03-13
  Let me save you some money and disclose the amazing secret of Dr. Karp's technique right here and now: swaddle your baby, put your baby on its side/stomach (but never let the baby sleep on its side/stomach), shush the baby, swing the baby, stick the pacifier into your baby's mouth, all in this strict order -- and presto! You are done. Does one really need 267 pages in order to recite this? Dr. Karp feels he does, or at least his wallet tells him so.
  
  What a horror. First of all, there is enough information in this book to fill a 5-page brochure at the most, 10 if you would like to be generous. The rest if fluff, empty fill, incessant repetition, inane pictures, unnecessary and insulting stories about "primitive" people and Dr. Karp's own patients (see more below on that).
  
  Second -- the language. That Harvey Karp has a God Complex is evident from page 1; the reason for that is still a mystery to me. Well, I do admit that to write a fairly long book about nothing, and to make a lot of money by publishing and successfully marketing this book (and now, heavens help me, I see there is a DVD out) -- that does take a particular kind of cunning and intelligence. To solicit at least a couple of good reviews from accredited pediatricians also must have taken some work. But does it really justify the language of fantastic condescension that Harvey Karp uses throughout his book? One imagines the world full of lobotomized idiots unable to read a complex sentence, but popping out babies as if there is no tomorrow; and yet, I bet that even a semi-literate teenage mom of five would still find this book incredibly patronizing. Repetition -- ostensibly to help the new parents remember the simple truths, but clearly used to a) make the reader feel stupid, and b) fill more pages of the book -- are sure to drive anyone halfway intelligent absolutely insane.
  
  Finally, let us return to the "primitive" people. You think Dr. Karp consecends to you? Wait till you read stories about backward cultures, and, still worse, about Harvey Karp's own patients who hail from such far-away places as Russia! Let's take a look at page 109, and read a heart-warming story about Karp's patient who emigrated from Russia to Los Angeles. A confused foreign moron that she is, she is having trouble understanding the wonderful doctor, struggling to make sense of his words of wisdom. But then, when the doctor shows her how to swaddle her baby, she erupts in a wonderful monologue, whereupon we learn that in her village, mothers swaddle their kids and put belts around them -- yet another piece of ancient primitive folk wisdom that we in America forgot! The most insulting thing is that the young woman's accent is actually replicated in the book, and the offending words are underscored -- lest you decide that it is Dr. Karp who cannot spell "village." Interestingly enough, Karp chooses very carefully whose accent or manner of speaking he dares to replicate: for some reason, not a single Ebonics phrase is transcribed in the book -- perhaps because Karp doesn't accept African-American patients, or perhaps because he is smart enough not to insult them. But Russians are a fair game (there are others). If his patient, named Elena (of course -- isn't every Russian?), even exists, she ought to be rather angry; but I doubt she is real. Russian villagers rarely find themselves consulting UCLA pediatricians -- not to mention that the accent rendered by Karp is utterly wrong. Russian alphabet doesn't have the letter "w" -- therefore, the lucky Karp-treated villager would be replacing "when" with "ven", and not "village" with "willage."
  
  I am not sure whether Dr. Karp still has a title of assistant professor at UCLA because he is a practicing pediatrician, and cannot therefore go up for tenure, or because he hasn't come up for tenure yet. I hope the latter is the case: this book alone is an ample reason why the said tenure should be denied.
  
  If you must, go to the library and photocopy pages 94-99; you will learn nothing new (any pediatrician is likely to give you the same advice), but you will have a handy reference on Karp's methods. These 5 pages are still full of fluff, but they will cost you close to nothing.
  
  
• Peace at last!
  By APXO8LFSFHKRK on 2002-05-30
  Dr. Karp was a Godsend when we needed him most. His superb advice helped us calm our twin boys and enabled them and us to sleep. Up until reading his book, we had very fussy baby boys who would not sleep for prolonged periods of time. The first time we used the 5 S's, the boys slept 3 hours. Prior to that they would only sleep an hour at most because their gas pains would wake them up. It's obvious that Dr. Karp researched his methods and delivers a succinct method that can help all parents. Out of all the books that I've read, this one has made a significant difference in my childrens' lives and is a MUST HAVE!
  Thank you Dr. Karp.
  
  
• Great for newborns
  By A1O3ONM1MJM7EM on 2002-08-22
  Well, Dr. Karp's methods have worked well on my newborn, and I stress newborn. He presents some interesting facts about other cultures where crying babies are rare and colic doesn't exist. These cultures mostly have their babies at their sides in a sling, and unlimited access to suckle at mother's breast. With baby in a snug sling, constant body contact, the feeling of constant motion and breast milk access, Dr. Karp states this mimcs conditions in the womb: tight fit, constant movement, and lack of hunger from being fed via the umbilical cord while in utero. He goes on to say that months 0-3 of baby's life are the missing "fourth trimester", hence his methods of the following 5 S's work well since they imitate the womb environment.

  The 5 S's are as follows:
  1. Swaddle - he describes and illustrates an excellent swaddle technique, the tighter, the more womb-like
  2. Side / Stomach - laying baby on side or stomach. He reiterates that when laying baby on stomach, baby should NEVER be left unattended. Positioning in this way is most comfortable for baby, when he's on his back, he has the sensation of free-falling, and thus feeling insecure.
  3. Shush - baby was used to hearing your blood flow for those 9 months, so a loud shushing will calm baby down. Ever notice how he quiets when you turn on the vacuum? I've used a white noise machine, all the loud shushing got me blue in the face and most nearly passed out!
  4. Swinging - rhythmic, jiggling motion. You don't necessarily have to use a swing for this one. He describes the motion as being a very nervous person holding a baby. You use very tiny shaky movements, movements must be tiny, other wise shaking baby with long, hard jerks may result in shaken baby syndrome. This movement imitates the constant movement he felt while in-utero.
  5. Suck - sucking on a pacifier, nipple, your finger, etc...

  These 5 S's will initiate the calming reflex when done in that order and in the correct way. We've all used those methods to try to calm baby, but we've likely used them as separate entities. Much like the knee-jerk reflex works only when your doctor hits your knee at the exact location, the calming reflex works only when the S's are done in an exact manner. He describes in detail how to do this.

  So far it's worked for my daughter. My huge concern is, what happens after she passes her three month mark? Dr. Karp states that after three months, baby will start self-calming and will rely on the 5 S's less and less. Judging by all the "How to Get Your Baby to Calm and to Sleep" books out there, I have my doubts. He does well in calming a newborn, but beyond the newborn stage, he offers very little. He really needs to consider changing the title to "The Happiest Newborn on the Block" to better reflect the content of the book. So if your baby is less than three months, this may work for you, if your baby is older, look elsewhere.
  
  

• revisiting an old, old topic
  By A1JL74SF56ENCY on 2002-10-22
  Good info, an easy read, works most of the time. What more could a new parent of a fussy baby want?
  But what troubles me about this book is that the author has written and is selling information that has been available to parents here and abroad for generations. What is all the fuss about? Nothing Dr. Karp writes of is new information or information difficult to obtain. I read all of it when I was pregnant l5 years ago (Spock, Leach, Brazelton, 'Mothering' magazine all contain this information) and, long before I was pregnant, I had heard about or seen most of the methods used (I grew up with 3 sibs). Further, some of the info or 'methods' are instinctive for most new parents, eg nursing a fussy baby.
  So, the question arises, are new parents today somehow more tuned out of this age-old info and know-how than earlier generations? Do they perhaps have the info they need to calm a fussy baby but need to be 'reminded' of it in a new format? Or is Dr. K. simply doing what is often done: remarketing very old formulas in shiny, new packaging?
  Buy the book and you decide. It can't hurt. But if, like most new parents, you are concerned about mounting expenses, you might want to first recheck your stack of parenting guides and interview a wiser, older parent or two before you fork over the bucks for yet another book telling new parents how to parent.
  
  
• Wonderful for the first 3 months, but then the magic ends...
  By on 2003-10-21
  Dr. Karp's book is extraordinary for dealing with newbornes and his advice is sound and such a relief for parents of a new baby. We followed his advice completely, and our baby never cried more than 5 minutes EVER. The problem is that he is now 3 months old and we still have to use Dr. Karp's methods to get him to sleep. We still have to swaddle him or else he won't sleep. The reason I did not give this book 5 stars is b/c Dr. Karp does not tell the reader how to ween their baby off his 5 Ss. He simply says they won't need them, but it is not true in our case. I am now disappointed b/c I think we will need to teach our son how to sleep unswaddled. Bottom line, it is a great book for the first 3 months, but remember the honeymoon is over after 3 months and you will eventually have to deal with unswaddling your baby.
  
  
• THIS DOES NOT WORK WITH EVERY BABY!!!
  By AUS6DCY8S2E0O on 2002-06-21
  At least it didn't work with my son. Please don't do what I did, & read the reviews & buy this book and think it will be a cure all for your baby. You'll only drive yourself insane. I read all the reviews & the People magazine article & thought this technique would calm my colicky 6 week old, who cries 12 hours a day. While this book is interesting at times, all of the steps do not work all of the times. Swaddling worked twice (yes, I did swaddle him correctly. I even went back to the hospital & had the nurses show me again to make sure I was doing it right.) "Shhhhing" has worked once or twice (I've done it so much sometimes I feel like I'm going to pass out). Swinging hardly ever works and "sucking" doesn't work either becaues my son refuses to take a pacifier. It actually aggravates him & makes him more upset if I try to give it to him.

  I have done all these techniques together and also seperately time & time again, and have found that some of the things work some of the time, but it is NOT a cure all. If your baby is anything like mine, it will be hit or miss with a combination of Dr. Karps and some of your own.

  As I said, some of this book is interesting, and some of it is very repetitive. For example, on about every third page or so, Dr. Karp reiterates over & over again that other countries have almost no instances of colicky babies. That's great if your a member of the !Kang tribe in Africa and can carry your baby every waking hour and breastfeed every 10 minutes.

  Also, Dr. Karp states that colic babies go through their crying spells in the evening and that colic stops after the "fourth trimester" when your baby is 3 months old. I find fault with that, because my son is wicked from 5am to 11am, sleeps most of the afternoon, and then is inconsolable again from 4pm to about 11pm. Also, I have heard from numerous mothers that colic often lasts longer than the average 3 months. I know one mother who's daughter was colic for 8 months.

  So please don't do what I did & pin all your hopes on this book, and then fall into a deep depression and feel like a bad mother when, after weeks of trying this book's techniques over & over again, your baby still screams for hours. I kept thinking I was doing something wrong until family & friends reassured me that sometimes there is nothing you can do to stop your baby from crying. Even the no-fail car ride doesn't work with my son all the time. Just keep in mind that it is hit or miss, some days one thing will calm your baby and other days it will be something totally different. What calms your baby today may totally aggravate him tomorrow, at least in my experience anyway.
  
  

• Not a single idea to help my 10 month old
  By A33KZ0XYRV9BQT on 2002-06-22
  This book should be titled The Happiest NEWBORN on the block. I would have loved this book when my baby was a few weeks old since the ideas sound reasonable for the newborn stage. However, the suggestions don't work for an older baby. The 5 S's are: Swaddle (like my active 10 month old would go for this!) Put baby on his Side/Stomach (at 10 months you don't PUT him anywhere!) Shhhhh (he thinks that's funny) Swinging (I think every mother sways with a fussy baby, it's natural) Sucking (Oh, he does plenty of that, thank you!) I had to keep searching and luckily found a book for with plenty of answers, it's The No-Cry Sleep Solution, a great book for babies of any age since it also has a newborn section, maybe not as structured as this one, but lots of the same ideas. (Another thing that's rather weird, the endorsements for the Happiest Baby book come from Michelle Pfeiffer (actress) Pierce Brosnan (actor) plus lots of other actors and movie directors. I like movies, but when I want advice about baby-care I don't get why these endorsements mean anything.)
  
  
• The most helpful book re: infant sleep I've found yet!
  By on 2003-01-10
  This book saved me! This is the only book that thoroughly addresses sleep and comforting fussy babies during the first three or four months. Most books offer only a cursory discussion, and little helpful advice. Dr. Karp gives helpful tips, whether you co-sleep or put your baby into a crib at night. His tone is completely non judgmental; he doesn't make you feel like a bad parent for not wanting to carry your baby around all day - an impossibility for a mom of twins.

  I bought this book 2 days ago. One of my 2 1/2 month old twins was sleeping through the night, the other was up every 1 or 2 hours. After following the suggestions in this book, especially swaddling, my poor sleeper slept from 11 to 2 the first night, and went right back down after she was swaddled again at 2 - without a snack! Last night she went until 4:30, and again went right down until 6, without eating or fussing. I am a new woman! I will be giving this book to all my newly pregnant friends.
  
  

• There is a better solution
  By A2H9NAGVFFZ14F on 2006-11-29
  While the recommendations (5 s's) can be helpful, has anybody thought WHY they are helpful? They work to calm a fussy baby because your baby misses being inside of you! They miss the warm, tight, curled up feeling, and they miss your smell and the sound of your heart beat. If that is what they miss, then give it back to them! The 5 s's are "good" suggestions....but there is an answer far superior. Hold your baby. Nurse your baby on cue. Sleep with your baby. Carry your baby close to you (wrapped in a maya-wrap sling, for example, which frees your hands while keeping your baby happy and nurtured). Instead of a swing calming your baby, YOU be the one to calm your baby. Studies have shown that when a crying baby is being comforted by human touch, the crying is far less harmful to their emotional-psychological development (as opposed to a crying baby being "soothed" by a rocking swing or other non-human device).
  
  This is how we have chosen to parent our baby. She is now 10 months old, and from the very beginning we have received numerous comments from friends and strangers about how happy she is, even as a newborn. By trusting our instincts and my natural mothering ability to hold my baby and nurture her by my own touch, we truly had the "happiest baby on the block."
  
  I highly recommend books by Dr. Sears ("The Baby Book," "The Attachment Parenting Book," and more) as well as a book called "The No-Cry Sleep Solution," if you need help with a crying baby who has trouble sleeping at night. These books are far more helpful then this one, because they build on our natural mothering ability.
  
  Thanks for taking the time to read my input. Happy Mothering!
  
  
• IT WORKS
  By AAW7LY73XE5R5 on 2002-05-29
  Forget the vacuum cleaner and the hair dryer. Dr. Harvey's here!

  Leave iffy folk remedies behind and try a little science, courtesy of Harvey's study of medicine and...International Folk Remedies!

  As the parent of a sometimes inconsolable baby, Dr. Harvey's techniques worked instantly and amazingly.

  The book, and the peace of mind that comes with it, would be a bargain at any price.

  Hey, every once in a while something lives up to its billing.
  
  

• Perfect baby soothing technique
  By A2X3I9LOOU3LRU on 2002-07-24
  Review by Elizabeth Pantley, author of The No-Cry Sleep Solution: Dr. Karp clearly loves babies and respects parents. His soothing technique brings together all the pieces of baby-soothing knowledge into a 5-step pattern that works to help even the fussiest newborn stop crying. His system is especially valuable for parents of colicky babies. All of Dr. Karp's ideas are loving and respectful to babies, and encourage bonding between baby and parent. He gives parents the tools they need to feel confident caring for their new baby. The 5 S calming technique should be taught to all professionals working with newborn babies: it's effective!
  
  
• Finally a Book I can Recommend!
  By A2HYHLVJNUJGV5 on 2002-12-11
  As a mom of 20 years, a nurse of 23 years, a birth/ parenting educator of 6 years, and a lactation consulant of 5 years.... I have waited a long time for this book! I am now including "The Happiest Baby on the Block" in my "Intuitive Parenting" classes, and recommending it to my clients. Why?

  Well, for one, it is research based. As far as I can tell, the only book of it's type that is based on more than just a few anecdotes, or a compilation of the work of others. HBOTB draws it's wisdom from actual research on what helps colic. Until now, colic has defied medical and, at times, intuitive management. It has been the great baffler for which we parents have taken alot of blame... but no more!

  Second, it works! I am always reluctant to recommend any parenting book because in 23 years, I have found few that actually do what they say they will. This book delivers! In every situation where I have helped parents implement Dr. Karp's strategies I have seen improvement. Improvement in baby's ability to calm, improvement in parent outlook, and.... to top it off, improved feeding! What do I mean by "improved feeding?" I mean calmer latching, less fussing at the breast, and fewer spit-ups. I mean good weight gain!

  I will continue to observe for the downside to this book (there has to be one, doesn't there?) But for now, I am encouraging moms and dads to read the book, try the 5 S's and enjoy their babies!

  Sincerely,

  Susan Keith-Hergert RNC, MS, IBCLC
  Holistic Natal Care
  Cincinnati
  
  

• Swaddle, swaddle and,.... oh.... swaddle
  By A2PK8WOWLTHIM9 on 2006-04-18
  As 'owner' of a fussy baby, I was inspired to buy this book upon seeing the large number of 5 star reviews here. Quite how this book is so universally regarded is a mystery to me. I think that anxious parents are judging the book by their results after following its advice, and not by the writing of the book, which is really quite dismal.
  
  As some reviewers have said, this book could have been summarized into about 5 pages. When it comes down to it, the only content is the suggestion of the '5 S's' (suck, swaddle, shush, side position, swing) which are repeated ad nauseum throughout. And of those 5, how many are innovative and non-obvious: I would contend none of them.
  
  An example of the frustrating nature of this book is the explanation of colic. In a chapter entitled 'what is colic', Karp tediously explains by means of his example patients, what colic is not, and incredibly never actually answers the question in the title.
  
  Very poor. Save your money and use your instincts of swaying, shushing and pacifying your baby, that you new anyway... didn't you?
  
  
• Not bad, but there are better
  By on 2002-06-18
  My wife and I recently entered the world of the sleep deprived with the birth of our son. Thankfully those days are already almost behind us due to the recent publication of a few books, Dr. Karp's and the No Cry Sleep Solution, by Elizabeth Pantley. We own both, and while both are good, personally we prefer the No Cry Sleep Solution. Perhaps its the fact that the book is written by a mother of four and parent educator, not a doctor. Her approach and writing style make you rightfully feel as though you're being taught by a learned friend who wants nothing more than to see you and your baby healthy, happy, and above all, rested. The Happiest Baby was useful, but it simply didn't grab us the same way. As an analogy, No Cry is like taking a stain from shirt with the advice from the Queen of Clean, as opposed to the head of the New York Department of Sanitation. On a completely different matter, almost every customer book review here originates from Santa Monica or LA, where Dr. Karp resides and practices. I think that is a little too coincidental.
  
  
• The baby book that you MUST read
  By A2S5GERRQ48ITS on 2002-05-28
  Dr. Karp's book is a lifesaver. After working with him to calm our daughter, we were able to enjoy her and not have to worry each day as we got closer to "the fussy" part of the day. Having the tools to calm her made us confident and in turn made her "The Happiest Baby on the Block!" I will be handing this book out at baby showers from now on. If you buy only one book about babies, this should be it!
  
  
• Thank you Dr. Karp! This really works!
  By on 2002-07-07
  We have a 5 week old that I would consider a pretty good baby. He was sleeping between 2 1/2 and 4 hours between feeds at night but, consistantly fought his nap during the day. We knew he was tired but, he couldn't figure out how to put himself to sleep or back to sleep. My husband and I were really starting to doubt ourselves as parents. We didn't want to fall into the trap of rocking or walking our son to sleep.
  I read the parts of Dr. Karp's book that applied to our problems and within one day my husband and I had our baby sleeping during the day after every feeding without more that a minute of tears. Now our baby is waking one time only during the night to eat and then goes right back to sleep. Dr. Karp's 5 S's plan works like magic.
  With Dr. Karp's book we helped our son show us he is not just a good baby; he's an angel.
  
  
• Not for older babies
  By on 2002-08-01
  I was disappointed to find that the entire book is for newborn babies only. Once your baby is too old to swaddle this book isn't for you. I purchased several others at the same time and found that The No Cry Sleep Solution has great ideas for all babies and even toddlers. The ideas in the happiest baby book cannot be applied to a baby that is over about 3 months old. If you look at the main points you'll see they are: swaddling, placing on his side or stomach, saying Shhhh, Swinging, and Sucking. I also suspect that if you always do this with your newborn you may create sleep problems for when you can't do them any more. Beware! If your baby is over 3 months this isn't the book you are looking for.
  
  
• pretty darn happy family
  By A3SAJKSSN3Q9JQ on 2002-08-01
  Love the book and the skills he teaches. I am a family physician and I agree with Dr. Karp that these skills are not taught in medical school or residency. His wrap (swaddle) is infinitely superior to the one we are generally taght on the wards. It had been frustrating to have very little to offer parents for inconsolable babies who were just fed, burped and diapered- yet they were still crying. Now I will recommend this book.
  Some people may be concerned that he advocates a Side/Stomach position for comfort, when the pediatric advice says that babies have to be put to sleep on their backs. However Dr. Karp's recommendation for these comfort positions are for when baby is awake or you are awake with your baby to keep an eye on their face. You wouldn't want to fall asleep with your baby in this position, or put baby down and leave them unattended in one of these positions.
  Also some people may be concerned that pacifiers can be used for the Sucking comfort measure. I believe that pacifiers are OK if the baby is breastfeeding well, and if you can hold off until they are one month or so old. One month old is about the age that "colic" often starts anyway. If your baby really likes to suck, and breastfeeding isn't yet well established, you can try your finger. Also, the sucking part often isn't even needed, as the other 4 S's work so well to calm your baby.
  Overall, highly recommended. I plan to give it to my other friends when they start their families.
  
  
• The best and most sensible book on the subject
  By A2ODBHT4URXVXQ on 2004-01-28
  My kids are grown up, but as a midwife I've delivered about 3000 of the little critters, and some of them are now having babies of their own. This new generation of young parents all seem to swear by this book, and I really think they're on to something. Honest-to-God, these babies are calm, happy, relaxed, and contented during the period in their lives when we would expect at least 25% of them to be fretful and colicky.
  Author Karp offers a common sense method of soothing babies during their newborn phase, a period he calls the Fourth Trimester. Essentially it involves reducing stimuli and introducing the baby very gradually into our chaotic, noisy, and brightly-lit world. It feels right, slowing the transition for these tender little souls so their circuits don't get overloaded. It speaks to some cultures' traditional period of quiet and privacy for approx 6 weeks after the birth before new mother and baby, by then in tune with each other's rhythms, are introduced to society. When I was a public health nurse in LA, I learned their term for this magical and therapeutic period of time: La Cuarenta Dias: The Forty Days. It's an old technique, older than any childcare book ever written, but there's real wisdom in these ancient traditions.
  If you're expecting a baby or a grandbaby, buy this book. Now.
  
  
• Loved it now HATE it!!
  By on 2004-03-01
  AS others have said the first 3 months the 5 S's seem like a life saver. Here I am now with a 4 month old that has become addicted to the 5 S's and we now have some habits to break. I honestly wish I would have never heard of this book let alone buy it and follow it's advice. I JUST WANT MY BABY TO SLEEP UNSWADDLED!!!! It would be nice to be able to have others care for her as well but unless I make any care taker read the book they can't get her to sleep. AUGH!!!!! I hate this book!!
  
  
• I don't know how to rate this book...
  By A3CG06IPG8XPET on 2006-03-24
  This book is one of the best books on babies I've ever read, and one of the worst written, and I think you should buy it.
  
  Now don't get me wrong. I love the information in this book, and I'm fond of the author's voice. Our first baby was fussy, fussy, fussy, and screamed for hours each night. 8 years later, we had our second baby and a copy of The Happiest Baby on the Block and life was so very different. I regularly amazed family and friends with my ability to instantly calm our screaming little girl. Everything our culture told me about how to calm our first baby was wrong, and everything Dr. Karp told me about babies the second time was right.
  
  But the writing is incredibly bad. Dr. Karp babbles, there's no other way to put it. He takes 10 times as many words and pages to say anything than he really needs. If I were his English teacher I would give him a C-, hand him back his paper, and tell him he could raise his grade by making it one quarter the length. Of course, then he wouldn't have a book long enough to publish...
  
  By all means buy this book if you have a newborn, or are expecting, or have a friend with a baby. The ideas are so useful and sensible that they are truly revolutionary for a culture that has lost so much knowledge of how to raise truly happy babies. But when you read it, think of it as spending a long evening with your old uncle, who never tells a story straight through, but has nuggets of true wisdom you can't get anywhere else.
  
  5 stars for content, 1 star for form, bonus star for being so likeable.
  
  
• Waste of money and time, plus...
  By A1HIG7JE740FAA on 2005-03-05
  OK, this book is:
  
  A waste of money because it is common sense. Take it from the world's most clueless first-time mom, me. It is common sense to Shhh, and swaddle and rock.
  
  A waste of time because he has about 5 points to make that take him way too many pages to get out. SO MUCH REPETITION of junk like how other cultures keep their babies swaddled and close for months, blah, blah, blah. Maybe it was interesting the first time he said it but by the 12th time, it was old and my baby was still fussing. And despite what anyone says, you can't wear your baby in a pouch and wash bottles at the same time.
  
  Plus, what he leaves out is that you can do the technique and it will calm your baby...for like a minute or two! Then, you have to keep rocking/shhhing, etc. for hours on end, unless your baby, like mine, gets wise to your ways and refuses to be distracted for long.
  
  As for advice, well, the vacuum worked OK but mostly it's a grin and bear it kind of thing and your baby will grow out of it. Mine did. Oh, and also don't believe him when he discards gastrointestinal problems as the cause of the fussing. My baby was allergic to milk proteins and soy, even though he did fine on regular formula for the 1st 2 weeks of his life. It took about a month on Nutramigen for him to stop being a monster and become just high-maintenance! But I love him!
  
  
• AWESOME book-- but get it from your local library
  By A33A7F3PVUNMW6 on 2007-06-02
  This book should have been a pamphlet. The information is GREAT-- and specific, but the book repeats itself in every single chapter. Successive chapters are more-or-less the same thing in different words. There is a two page spread at the center of the book that summarizes the whole thing. If you skim the entire book and photocopy the center pages, you have more than enough to practice the technique. If I knew this, I would not have purchased the book, but would have just picked it up from my local library.
  
  However, don't let this deter you from reading it-- the author gives EXCELLENT advice on how to make a crying baby happy. he basically argues that "colicy" infants are a product of how we tend to raise babies-- and have nothing to do with any physical ailment whatsoever. He claims that almost NO other cultures have anything like "colic" and he answers the question "why" with a series of steps that restrict, soothe, and make your baby happy!
  
  

• The Happiest Baby on the Block - The New Way to Calm Crying and Help Your Baby Sleep Longer (DVD)
• Healthy Sleep Habits, Happy Child
• Secrets of the Baby Whisperer: How to Calm, Connect, and Communicate with Your Baby
• What to Expect the First Year, Second Ed
• The Happiest Toddler on the Block: The New Way to Stop the Daily Battle of Wills and Raise a Secure and Well-Behaved One- to Four-Year-Old