My New Baby (New Baby Series) Reviews

• Absolutely delightful for the AP family

  
  By A3BZUQXA2QHDI2 on 2005-11-17
  One of the very few books I have ever seen that shows the mom nursing, while the dad changes diapers and the little child (boy I think) helps. Then the dad goes for a walk in the Bjorn, does the cooking, and everyone looks happy, not worried or uncomfortable that a new baby has arrived like other books sometimes portray. TRULY a wonderful book. Great that it doesn't have words, much nicer to make up your own.
  
  

• Nice wordless boardbook for families with new babies

  
  By A3OF4C5JW83ZKB on 2006-03-13
  This is a short board book about a toddler experiencing life with a new baby. Most of the pictures are peaceful watercolors, a few I thought were too busy for small children to process what is happening in the story. But overall, it's a nice gift to an expectant family as it doesn't put words into the mouths of the older sibling ("I feel left out. I hate the baby." blah blah blah like so many other "new baby" books do.) but rather allows the reader to adapt to the actual child's situation. (Maybe there is a child out there that is excited to have a new sibling? What a concept!) Bonus: breastfeeding is pictured twice, discreetly. Mom nurses the baby while Dad fixes dinner and so on. My 2.5 yo found this a fun book to page through on her own as she awaits her own new baby in the family.
  
  

• This book really helped my toddler understand...

  
  By A17T9U064FLLCV on 2003-11-04
  This book really helped my toddler understand what was going to happen. He was only 23 months when his little sister was born so his language skills weren't very developed. In the last few months of my pregnancy he would look at this book over and over and over again and you could see understanding dawning on his little face. On day, he was "reading" it and then, all of a sudden, dropped it, ran over to me, and gave me a really big hug. I think that was his moment of truth, lol. Two thumbs up!
  
  

• Respectful and Realistic

  
  By A293IBH6HGTJEF on 2002-09-29
  We loved that this book depicted relationships in a respectful and realistic manner. The older boy helps out Mum and Dad, plays alone with baby, has time playing quietly by himself and at the end of the day when baby is in bed, has some quality time alone with Mum and Dad reading a book. We also liked how Dad is actively involved eg he cooks dinner while Mum nurses baby.

  Although it had no words, our 1.5 year old twins loved pointing out and naming objects that they knew and of telling us what was happening. For example:
  "poo" (baby getting nappy/diaper changed)
  "wah, wah" (baby crying)
  "shh" (baby sleeping)

  We got a number of new baby books, some good some not. This is one that we'd recommend.
  
  

• Disappointed because there is no text on pages

  
  By A9JMQ6TQNAMDZ on 2005-06-11
  This book is wonderfully illustrated and shows important scenes like mommy's doctor appointments, buying/preparing for baby at home, decorating baby's room, seeing mommy and daddy leave for hospital while older child stays at home and finally on the back cover meeting baby in hospital but it has no words. I assume the lack of text is meant to encourage discussion between parent and child but explanations aren't holding my 18 month old boy's attention. Maybe it would be better for an older child who can participate in the discussion. For now I can hope that some connections are being made in his mind.
  
  
• No words, but great concepts
  By AJRT6IJKL1R2K on 2005-08-07
  This book was a little hard to read with the lack of words! However in looking at the pictures we found lots to talk about including Daddy cooking, the baby sleeping and having to be quiet and breastfeeding (not in our other big brother type books). I find my son interacting more with this book than the other ones which he just listens to. Although he doesn't choose to read this book as often as the others I find it gives me more of a reading on how he's understanding this whole new baby experience.
  
  
• 23 Month Old Loves It
  By A241XKW9X7AAKV on 2005-08-09
  We just started to read this book (and a few others on this subject) and this is our 23 mth old's favorite. She wants to read this one and a few other baby related books a few times each day. The book doesn't have any words in it but you'll have no problem talking about what is happening in each of the pages. It's neat to listen to other people's version of the "text".
  
  
• Great book for siblings to make up their own stories!
  By A11BTXUA99541Q on 2002-04-17
  My son loves to look at the pictures & make up stories about his new baby sister. The only problem with it is it's difficult to make up a story for him when you have new-mommy brain and have been up all night with a new baby. ;o)
  
  
• I didn't like this book
  By A198D3M3VAI50D on 2006-03-08
  I ordered this book not knowing that there weren't any words and so I was quite surprised to receive a book with only pictures. And although the pictures are okay, I found each page to be very "busy". Overall, it was not what I was looking for.
  
  
• Pictures Only!
  By A31X4LUQE40R6H on 2006-03-10
  Cute book! I was suprised that there was no written story. But it ended up being nice to make up your own story using actual family names.
  
  
• Great Book for any child!
  By A397CD3J0PRA5J on 2006-03-22
  My 21 month old LOVES to read this book and see what the new baby will be doing! The baby is not gender specific so you can tailor it to fit your family. Also, I love that it shows the baby nursing two different times, and Daddy making dinner!!!! Fabulous!! No words allow you to make up the story to fit your family. I highly recommend this to anyone who is having a baby!
  
  
• My 17 month-old loves this book, and so do I
  By ARX9C2O1SR3E3 on 2006-07-13
  My daughter particularly enjoys looking at books with pictures but no words right now: I tell the story and we discuss the pictures. She brings me this book and says, "Baby!" She really enjoys pointing to the baby and pointing out other objects in each picture (bunny, ball, snake doll, frog doll, bathtub, duck, etc.)
  
  I bought the book even though we don't plan to have a second baby right away, because I really liked how the family is portrayed. Mom nurses the baby on the first page and then is shown nursing again while Dad and the older child make a salad for dinner. Dad is shown changing and dressing the baby on 2 pages, and then takes the baby and older sibling for a walk, wearing the baby rather than using a stroller! This is great for our family since we are committed to breastfeeding and babywearing, so it reflects my daughter's experience. I also like that both the baby and the older child are drawn in a gender-neutral way so you can customize your own story to be about a little boy or a little girl who gets a baby brother or sister, depending on your own family! I highly recommend this board book.
  
  
• Great for my big-sister-to-be!
  By A1QI9ZZWGWNO7H on 2006-11-03
  I'm trying to get our almost 2 year old ready for her baby brother's arrival, and I found this series PERFECT. I especially liked a few things about this:
  
  1. It shows mommy breastfeeding! Since we all know how much time nursing mothers spend doing this, it's great for my toddler to see mommy nursing in the book. I think it will help her prepare for it once baby is here.
  
  2. Daddy is helping out in the books while mommy nurses! How great. I do not want my daughter raised that childcare and housework is "Woman's work"... daddy even takes baby and toddler out for a walk in the book.
  
  The illustrations are beautiful, and there are no words so you and your little one can talk about what you see and make up your own story! It's interesting to see how they percieve the pictures.
  
  I highly recommend this for those of you with toddlers getting ready to become big brothers and sisters!
  
  
• Awesome!
  By A3AAYKRUA4EZ7P on 2006-02-25
  What a wonderful book to help ease the transition! I love the book! Daddy is a real help, it shows Mommy nursing, it also shows the baby getting presents, it shows the older sibling helping out too. The story can be told anyway you like! I really love this book and so does my 3 year old.
  
  
• Great for preparation of a young one
  By AFZ8EA821C7J2 on 2006-03-20
  This book is a perfect tool for teaching my 22 month old about the upcoming arrival. With very descriptive pictures, he can understand what's happening. Yet, because there are no words, I can narrate to suit his learning ability.
  
  
• A Picture Book
  By AUU351GZKVK46 on 2007-07-17
  I bought this and "Waiting for Baby" for my son when I was expecting his first sibling. I was unhappily surprised to find they did not have words, just pictures. That definitely should be part of the product description.
  It isn't too hard to make up a story, but if I would have known it was lacking words I never would have bought it.
  
  
• Where are the words?
  By A1A33W7BDMK67I on 2008-05-19
  I decided on this book based on the reviews. But I don't recall any of them mentioning that there are NO WORDS in this book. The pictures are cute and if you're a keen storyteller then I'd say this is the perfect book for you. I however, would rather someone else provide the words since my tired brain isn't feeling creative lately. My son doesn't touch this book but he loves the one his Nana bought for him, which is the other book I was considering..."I'm a Big Brother Now." That's the book I recommend you buy.
  
  
• Pros and Cons
  By AWN7BYNOMPK9D on 2008-06-05
  Pros:
  1) Presents attachment parenting perspectives - mother breastfeeding, father invovled (cooking dinner for nursing Mom and sibling), involved grandparents, baby-wearing by the father, etc.
  2) Presents the arrival of the baby as a happy event for the family and older sibling. Other books deal a lot with the sibling being jealous or angry about the new baby and all the things the baby can't do yet. This book avoids those topics so it's perfect if your child is happy or neutral about the new baby. Why introduce those concepts if they don't apply to your child?
  
  Cons:
  1) This book has no words - only pictures. While I like the notion of being able to present the "story" in your own way to your child, it would be nice if there were some words for when your tired...ha ha. Maybe just neutral things describing the pictures or something.
  2) The pictures in the book are very cluttered and, in my opinion, too busy for a small child. My son (just 2) is a little distracted by all the other stuff in the pictures (toys, et) and sort of hardly notices the baby in the pictures.
  3) Oddly, the Mom in the book often is seen headless...lol. Sounds strange, but often only her arms or body are pictured. Kinda strange. Same is true for his version of the book about pregnancy. Just headless Mom with a big bump! Not a big deal though. Just an oddity.
  4) The book presents a grandma and grandpa. If your child doesn't have both a grandma and a grandpa (death or divorce), this is a tough one to explain around - this also came up for us in their version of the pregnancy book. Also the grandparents are quite elderly and look nothing like what my child thinks of when he thinks of his grandma.
  
  All in all, it's a fine book. We use it and it has it's place. I love the goal of the book - attachment parenting approach - letting parents present the idea of the baby to the child in their own way. I just think it could have been executed a little better.
  
  
• Positive Family Experience
  By A1IS99BHYFRUC2 on 2007-11-23
  I agree with other reviewers...Mommy breastfeeds baby (how do I explain to my toddler about books that feature bottles when he and his new baby nurse???). Daddy helps by cooking, changing diapers, and it features "babywearing," as Daddy wears baby in a baby carrier. In addition, big brother helps, plays with the baby, holds the baby, while being very positive. Big brother is also featured dressing himself (showing that he is getting bigger while Daddy dresses baby), and it shows Mommy and Daddy reading to big brother (showing that he, too, still gets Mommy and Daddy's undivided attention at times). The lack of words allow parents and child to discuss pictures and make up their story. This is very empowering to the young child, and is necessary for "prereading". All in all a wonderful book, and a great present to big brother from the new baby.
  
  
• The best of it's kind!
  By AWLK6NSSV0YNA on 2008-01-28
  I did quite a bit of research before purchasing a book about our new baby for our 14 month old son. This book had good reviews, so I thought I'd give it a try. Our son loves it! The pictures are great. The pages display family members (mommy, daddy, new baby, and small boy) doing everyday activities like walking outside, taking a bath, playing with toys, eating dinner, going to bed, etc. The book has no text, so you can use your own words to describe the illustrations to your child. I also like that the book shows the mother breastfeeding the baby. Of the "new baby" books I've seen, this is the best of it's kind!
  
  
• We recommend it! One of our son's two favorite new baby books.
  By A364UYT78WWJAO on 2008-03-07
  Our son is 2 and preparing for the arrival of new baby. "My New Baby" and "Waiting for Baby" by Annie Kubler are by far his two favorites (out of about eight books on the topic that are written for toddlers). Illustrations are fantastic, and we are happy that the book has no words as we would most likely not use them (we don't speak English to our son, and the absence of the words leaves all members of our family open to creating the story that fits our life most). We love the fact that breastfeeding is pictured (discretely) and that the whole family is portrayed equally involved in the life with the new baby. Our son initiates the readings on his own, about twice a day, and seems genuinely excited about the baby.
  
  
• New baby for younger readers
  By A39WWOFLLOQC3L on 2008-03-19
  As a mom to a toddler and a newborn, this book has been wonderful. Yes, indeed this book has no text, but I believe the point is to open up a dialog between the parents and the toddler. I wanted a book aimed at younger babies, and that dealt with breastfeeding. My 21 month old had a hard time with my breastfeeding. She didn't understand at all. I sent my mom home for this book. We read it in my hospital bed and talked about the mom nursing. I wish I had done it before the birth to prepare her, but I don't think she would have understood. The book was a lifesaver. As said by other reviewers, most books deal with jealousy, and are really kind of brainwashy about being a "helpful" big sister, and assurances that mommy and daddy love everyone. I didn't want to introduce this concept to my daughter and to plant the idea of jealousy or doubt.
  
  
• A Sweet & Wonderful Book
  By A2UHCUU8ZYWD20 on 2008-04-09
  I absolutely adore this book! The lack of words (which my toddler rarely sits still long enough to hear anyway) means that you can make up explanations for and initiate conversations about the pictures that make sense for YOUR family.
  
  I was delighted to see the emphasis on the positive aspects of having a new baby, as opposed to the "Mommy and Daddy don't love me anymore and I hate the baby" message a lot of these books seem to bear. Why plant negative ideas in your toddler's head when you can show them what a happy experience a new baby can be?
  
  It's also wonderful that these pictures show an active and involved dad--dad takes the kids for a walk, daddy cooks dinner while mom nurses baby, dad changes baby's diaper, etc. So many other books seem to have forgotten about dad, and in my household (where dad takes equal responsibility for parenting duties), it's really important that dad be shown in a postivie light in these books.
  
  Overall, I highly recommend this book to anyone who's preparing to add a new member to the family and wants to prepare their prechooler for all the fun and love there will be in the house after baby's arrival. Top-notch!
  
  
• no words
  By A141D69Q6OTDU3 on 2008-07-01
  Not to thrilled with this purchase. No words and there is a breastfeeding mom on a couple of pages. Fine but, not what we were looking for to introduce our 2 year old to a new child.
  
  
• Disappointed!
  By A1MWFB4BCSB6A on 2008-07-21
  Maybe it's my preggo brain, but I did not realize that this was a picture book with no words. I never would have purchased a picture book for my 2 1/2 year old. The pictures themselves are okay, but some words would have been nice.
  
  
• My New Baby
  By A212FRSIENYFK0 on 2005-09-13
  It was a gift given to my almost 3 year old grandson - just before his new baby sister was born. My daughter said that he really enjoyed the book... I have not seen the book yet
  
  
• Best Sibling Book
  By A6QGWQ17D9Y2L on 2007-02-18
  I have an almost 3 yr old and he LOVES this book. Many of the other books on the market are very negative. The negativity of all the other books, I think, puts the idea of jealously in the heads of young children. My son doesn't feel jealous or left out as of yet and I don't want him to start thinking that way. Since there are no words he tells me what he thinks is going on in each picture and I can guide him with what information I feel is appropriate for his age. This book also shows the mom in the story breastfeeding which is a nice aspect, most other stories skip over that detail. Perfect book for any soon to be big brother/sister.
  
  
• Great discussion book
  By A1BEVSXXLRSBP5 on 2007-09-20
  The lack of text made this book an excellent learning tool for the arrival of our son's baby sister.
  
  It covers nearly all the situations that could happen once a new baby is introduced and puts all the attention of the big brother rather than on the new baby.
  
  After our daughter was born, our son seemed to accept her new role in the family without question and I feel much of that ease was having talked about it using this book.
  
  At one point, her crying was really annoying him and we brought out the book again to show him that this was completely normal. Worked like a charm.
  
  
• Great Book for toddlers
  By A2NJFHJ26JAO18 on 2007-10-31
  I got this for my almost 2-year old son when we were about to have our baby. Well, our baby is now almost 10 months old and my son, now almost 3, still loves to "read" this book. It doesn't have any words, so you can just talk about the pictures and what is happening on each page. It's got things like mommy nursing the baby, people coming over to see the baby, daddy changing the baby's diaper and clothes, going on a walk with the two kids, making dinner, and giving the baby a bath and going to sleep. Now that my son is older, he sees himself as the little kid and says that his baby sister is the baby in the book. It's great when we can point out that the baby has some of the same toys we have, or talk about the baby taking a bath with the big boy helping. I also love how the dad does so much to help out :)
  
  
• Lovely ideas and illustrations
  By A3VHH1NV8P8WZP on 2008-01-22
  I purchased this book as a gift for an 18-month-old with a new younger sibling. The illustrations are lovely, and I think that the lack of text is a good thing in this case. No words are necessary to convey the ideas, and it gives a toddler the opportunity to "read" to him/herself. This can be a nice distraction while parents are busy with the new baby.
  
  I also think it's great that the mother is shown nursing. It can be difficult to find children's books that portray this, but children often see depictions of babies receiving bottles.
  
  

• Waiting for Baby (New Baby Series)
• I'm a Big Brother
• The New Baby
• I'm a Big Sister
• Hello Baby!