Adventures in Natural Childbirth: Tales from Women on the Joys, Fears, Pleasures and Pains of Giving Birth Naturally. Edited Janet Schwegel, foreword by Pam England, $20.95

Natural childbirth has the potential to empower women by reinforcing their belief in themselves and their abilities. In Adventures in Natural Childbirth, editor Janet Schwegel delivers a wonderful collection of empowering personal stories from women on their journey through pregnancy, labor, and natural childbirth. Whether they birth with the help of a midwife, doula, physician or in some cases — unassisted — these women relate tales that capture the full range of emotions and physical sensations natural childbirth can evoke, and give readers a true sense of the joys and the hard work involved.

Baby on Board: Becoming a Mother Without Losing Yourself, a Guide for Moms-to-Be. Joelle Jay & Amy Kovarick, $22.95

Filled with practical advice and heartfelt wisdom, as well as anecdotes and hands-on exercises, Baby on Board is an encouraging and inspiring guide that helps you figure out what motherhood means to you personally. This warm and reassuring book helps you discover what will bring you balance and fulfillment as you juggle career, family demands, social expectations, and your own needs and dreams as you give birth to your new life as a mother.

Bearing Witness: Childbirth Stories Told by Doulas. Lisa Doran & Lisa Caron, Editors, $19.95

Bearing Witness is an anthology written by doulas — women working with birthing families. These stories speak of the joy and also of the frustration that comes with the job. Sometimes funny, often difficult to hear, the tales told in Bearing Witness bring a new dimension to our understanding of modern birth practices.

Better Food for Pregnancy: Nutrition Guide Plus Over 125 Recipes for Healthy Pregnancy and Breastfeeding. Daina Kalnins & Joanne Saab, $27.95

Pregnancy is not a time for guesswork about nutrition. Expecting women have specific nutritional needs and will find it useful to have a sensible guide to this vital information.

Better Food for Pregnancy is that guide. Written by experts on staff at the renowned Hospital for Sick Children, this book is comprehensive and authoritative. The first half of the book addresses:

• nutritional needs before conception and during each trimester
• how a mother's diet affects growth of the fetus
• healthy weight gains through each trimester
• nutritional supplements including vitamins, minerals, and herbs
• effects of particular foods, such as coffee, un-pasteurized cheeses & alcohol
• increased nutrient requirements needed during lactation

The second half of the book features 125 recipes ideally suited to expectant mothers. Each recipe has a complete nutrient analysis plus there are handy meal plans and Snacks on the Go that help prevent nausea and vomiting. Every page of the nutrition section is packed with tips, sidebars, recommendations, and common-sense guidelines presented in easy-to-use tables and charts.

Big, Beautiful & Pregnant. Cornelia Van der Ziel & Jacqueline Tourville, $20.50

Expert advice and information for the plus-size woman on fertility, pregnancy, birth and early postpartum.

The Big Book of Birth. Erica Lyon, $18.50

The Big Book of Birth guides women through the stages of labor, dispelling misconceptions and providing a wealth of objective information in a warm, welcoming, and well- organized format.

Bipolar and Pregnant: How to Manage and Succeed in Planning and Parenting While Living with Manic Depression. Kristin Finn, $17.95

Kristin Finn was diagnosed with manic depression as a teenager. Upon deciding to become pregnant, she and her husband had questions, concerns, and fears. Recognizing that there was no go-to guide that helps women with manic depression navigate pre-natal, pregnancy, and postpartum issues, Finn collaborated with geneticists, obstetricians, psychologists, and psychiatrists to create this ultimate support-group-in-a-book and pregnancy resource.

Birth Day: a Pediatrician Explores the Science, the History and the Wonder of Childbirth. Mark Sloan, $28.00

In Birth Day, pediatrician Mark Sloan weaves memoir, history, science, and culture into a fascinating — and often funny — tapestry of this fundamental human passage. Birth Day takes the reader on a remarkable journey, from the dawn of human history to the quiet efficiency of a modern operating room. Delightfully instructive and entertaining, Birth Day offers a fresh, sometimes irreverent take on a universally familiar topic — a meditation on the hiding-in-plain-sight marvels of human birth.

The Birth House. Ami McKay, $29.95

The Birth House is the story of Dora Rare, the first daughter to be born in five generations of Rares. As a child in an isolated village in Nova Scotia, she is drawn to Miss Babineau, an outspoken Acadian midwife with a gift for healing. Dora becomes Miss B’s apprentice, and together they help the women of Scots Bay through infertility, difficult labours, breech births, unwanted pregnancies and even unfulfilling sex lives. Filled with details as compelling as they are surprising, The Birth House is an unforgettable tale of the struggles women have faced to have control of their own bodies and to keep the best parts of tradition alive in the world of modern medicine.

The Birth Partner: a Complete Guide to Childbirth for Dads, Doulas, and Other Labor Companions, 3rd Edition. Penny Simkin, $19.95

For almost two decades, The Birth Partner has been the definitive guide for life partners, relatives, friends, and professional doulas (labor assistants) who wish to perform this role and help a woman through childbirth. These caregivers can rely on The Birth Partner for up-to-date information about techniques, devices, and medications for easing labor pain; tests and treatments of the fetus and newborn; strategies to help labor progress; potential medical procedures and interventions; how to best help the mother during the early postpartum period; and much more. The new edition of The Birth Partner also includes more information on “the 3Rs” (Relaxation, Rhythm, and Ritual) for coping with the pain and unpredictability of labor; non-drug techniques to relieve pain and enhance the woman’s sense of well-being; current medications, tests, technologies, and interventions and how, when, and why they are used; and the rapidly increasing rate of both first and repeat cesarean deliveries. It’s a must-have for every labor companion.

Birth Stories. Katrina O’Brien, $26.95

Compelling stories, each unique and intimate, of the drama, joy and beauty of birth.

Birthing Fathers: the Transformation of Men in American Rites of Birth. Richard Reed, $25.95

Anthropologist Richard Reed takes a fascinating look at men’s roles in childbirth and the ways in which the birth of a child transforms a man’s identity and his relations with his partner, his new baby and society. Drawing on the feminist critique of the medicalization of birth, he argues that the clinical nature of medical interventions and a medical model of childbirth distances fathers from the birth — despite the fact that fathers are welcomed into the birthing unit.

Body, Soul and Baby. Tracy Gaudet & Paula Spencer, $17.00

In a culture that rarely sees pregnancy as a journey to self-discovery, Body, Soul and Baby offers a fresh perspective on this transformative life experience by showing women how to tune in to the cues offered by their bodies and souls—as well as by the babies growing within them—for a healthier pregnancy, a more fulfilling birth experience, and a deeper bond with their baby. Drawing on the best of both complementary and conventional medicine, Body, Soul and Baby is an innovative guide that is empowering, inspiring, and respectful of the wisdom of the female body and spirit. This unique book also includes advice on physical and emotional health, birthing choices and on alternative approaches to pain relief in labour.

Born In the USA: How a Broken Maternity System Must be Fixed to Put Women and Children First. Marsden Wagner, $22.95

In this rare, behind-the-scenes look at what goes on in hospitals across the country, a longtime medical insider and international authority on childbirth assesses the flawed American maternity care system, powerfully demonstrating how it fails to deliver safe, effective care for both mothers and babies. Written for mothers and fathers, obstetricians, nurses, midwives, scientists, insurance professionals, and anyone contemplating having a child, this passionate exposé documents how, in the most expensive maternity care system in the world, women have lost control over childbirth and what the disturbing results of this phenomenon have been.

Born in the USA examines issues including midwifery and the safety of out-of-hospital birth, how the process of becoming a doctor can adversely affect both practitioners and their patients, and why there has been a rise in the use of risky but doctor-friendly interventions, including the use of Cytotec, a drug that has not been approved by the FDA for pregnant women. Most importantly, this gripping investigation, supported by many troubling personal stories, explores how women can reclaim the childbirth experience for the betterment of themselves and their children.

Brought to Earth by Birth. Harriette Hartigan, $35.50

This stunning collection of black and white photographs by one of the world’s master birth photographers celebrates giving birth and being born.

Calm Birth: Empowering Preparation for Childbirth CD. Robert Newman & Dara Knerr, $24.95

Calm Birth is a safe, noninvasive, and drug-free childbirth method, based on meditation and mind/body medicine, which has been used in hospitals for more than 10 years. Supported by many highly respected childbirth specialists, including Jeannine Parvati Baker, Ina May Gaskin, and Ruth L. Miller, it encourages natural childbirth, but is effective even when medical interventions are necessary, as it helps heal the side effects of medications and invasive procedures. The three narrations on this CD guide mothers-to-be and new mothers through the main relaxation and meditation practices detailed in the author’s book Calm Birth: a New Method for Conscious Childbirth.

Calm Birth: a New Method for Conscious Childbirth. Robert Bruce Newman, $19.95

Beginning with a history of the repression of women as midwives and healers and a look at the lingering legacy of that time, Calm Birth shows how to restore childbirth to its sacred status. Calm Birth combines three proven practices that together create a powerful new approach. These practices — relaxation, meditation, and healing — combine with current scientific knowledge to nurture the expectant mother’s natural ability to give birth in true harmony with her body and with her infant. The book contextualizes the multilayered Calm Birth method within the existing literature of mind/body medicine and meditation science, as well as the meditation traditions from which two of the methods originate.

Canada’s Pregnancy Care Book. Mount Sinai Hospital Toronto, Michèle Farrugia, Jacqueline Thomas & Paul Bernstein, $34.95

Written by three leading obstetricians and researchers, this balanced, practical and informative  guide to everything related to pregnancy takes readers from preconception through to the birth of their newborn.

Choices in Childbirth. InJoy Videos, $149.95* (3 Volume DVD Set)

Choices in Childbirth guides parents step-by-step through three different childbirth interventions and provides an even-handed presentation of benefits and drawbacks.

Volume 1: Epidural Anesthesia 20 minutes. Compare and contrast two birth stories: an epidural and a non-medicated birth. Understand the epidural procedure and how it may affect labor and birth. The merits and drawbacks of this most common pain relief option are explored thoroughly.

Volume 2: Induction & Augmentation of Labor 15 minutes. This DVD offers balanced information on induction/augmentation, using actual birth footage and an obstetrician's candid discussion. Parents gain a clear understanding of when induction or augmentation may be medically indicated and when they are not. Possible effects on labor, pros and cons, and non-medical alternatives are offered.

Volume 3: Cesarean Birth 22 minutes. With first-of-its-kind, 3D cesarean animation, intertwined with one couple's unplanned cesarean birth story, viewers will have a better understanding of the procedure than ever before. (An actual surgery is included at the end to be shown at your option).

(*Home Use price only. Please contact Parentbooks for Performance Rights prices for professionals)

The Complete Book of Pregnancy & Childbirth. 4th Edition. Sheila Kitzinger, $29.95

Out in paperback for the first time, this is a completely revised and updated version of the hugely popular, comprehensive and authoritative classic guide to pregnancy and childbirth. Accompanied by beautiful photographs, this week-by-week, month-by-month resource addresses the issues of greatest concern for expectant parents. Also available in hardcover, $53.00

The Complete Guide to Everyday Risks in Pregnancy & Breastfeeding: Answers to Your Questions about Morning Sickness, Medications, Herbs, Diseases, Chemical Exposures & More. Dr. Gideon Koren & the Motherisk Program at the Hospital for Sick Children, Toronto. $24.95

Recognized throughout the world, the Motherisk program at the Hospital for Sick Children provides counseling based on the most up-to-date information on substances or environmental factors that can cause birth defects. It's the largest program of its kind worldwide and has counseled over half a million women and their families and health professionals. Now this information has been compiled in a single, easy-to-understand volume that offers authoritative descriptions of the risks during pregnancy and breastfeeding. It is an invaluable and comprehensive reference for expecting and lactating mothers and their health care providers.

The Complete Organic Pregnancy. Deirdre Dolan & Alexandra Zissu, $18.95

In this exhaustively researched book, the authors (calmly) talk parents-to-be through everything from the safest laundry detergent to which crib mattresses contain toxic flame retardants. You'll find out how to choose the right face cream, plastic water bottles, household cleaners, types of fish, and much more—all with an eye toward keeping you and your baby safe and healthy.

Creating Your Birth Plan: the Definitive Guide to a Safe and Empowering Birth. Marsden Wagner with Stephanie Gunning, $21.00

Maternity specialist and former director of Women’s and Children’s Health for the World Health Organization, Dr. Marsden Wagner believes that you need clear and current information in order to make well-informed decisions during pregnancy and childbirth. As an expectant mother, you needn’t be dependent on pharmaceutical and surgical procedures to ensure a healthy and happy delivery.

Creating Your Birth Plan reveals the available options, and the possible risks, you need to know in order to make informed decisions. Designed to encourage collaboration between you and your caregivers, this essential resource includes information on:

• How midwives and physicians differ in their training and approaches during labor
• What to expect when delivering in a hospital, in a birthing center, or at home
• How to select an advocate to ensure your wishes are honored by your caregiver
• The natural stages of labor in a problem-free birth
• Explanations of various medical or surgical interventions and the potential complications and benefits of each
• The safest laboring practices

Darn Good Advice: PREGNANCY. Susan Warhus, illustrated by David Hitch, $21.99

Healthful eating habits, moderate exercise, and a generally healthy lifestyle are important first steps toward motherhood. Darn Good Advice: PREGNANCY covers these details and advises on coping with body changes during pregnancy, getting the dad-to-be involved and locating hospitals and essential support groups. The book features a step-by-step countdown to the day the baby is born.

A Deeper Shade of Blue: a Woman's Guide to Recognizing and Treating Depression in Her Childbearing Years. Ruta Nonacs, $27.50

Depression affects women almost twice as often as men and while depression may strike at any time, studies show that women are particularly vulnerable during their childbearing years. Dr. Ruta Nonacs, a senior member of the Center for Women's Mental Health at Massachusetts General Hospital and mother of two children herself, confronts the issues of pregnancy-related depression, including:

• Becoming pregnant while being treated for depression and depression during pregnancy
• Pregnancy loss
• Infertility-related depression and the effects of fertility treatments
• Understanding the effects of maternal depression on spouses and family
• Postpartum depression and anxiety

Dr. Nonacs also looks at many of the complicating factors that occur during the span of a woman’s childbearing years including education, career, marriage, and child rearing and discusses how depression often takes hold during potentially stressful times. Honest and compassionate, A Deeper Shade of Blue gives women who are experiencing a pregnancy-related depression the information and support they need to realize the best possible outcome.

Deliver This! Make the Childbirth Choice That’s Right for You … No Matter What Everyone Else Thinks. Marisa Cohen, $19.50

A woman’s decisions around childbirth reflect her identity, personality and values as much as they do her understanding of the availability of different options. This smart, informative book looks at the choices women make and why they make them, as mothers and mothers-to-be explore traditional and alternative birthing methods. From home birth to elective Cesarean section, Marisa Cohen gives thoughtful consideration to how women find the birth choice that makes the most sense for them.

The Disabled Woman's Guide to Pregnancy and Birth. Judith Rogers, $38.95

This comprehensive and useful guide is based on the experiences of ninety women with disabilities who chose to have children. In order to bring an intimate focus and understanding to the issues involved in being pregnant and disabled, author Judith Rodgers conducted in-depth interviews with women with 22 different types of disabilities and with a total of 143 pregnancies. Thoroughly researched and informative, this book is a practical guide both for disabled women planning for pregnancy and the health professionals who work with them.

Don’t Just Stand There. Elissa Stein & Jon Lichentstein, $14.95

How to be clued-in, supportive, engaged, meaningful and relevant in the delivery room.

The Doula Book: How a Trained Labor Companion Can Help You Have a Shorter, Easier and Healthier Birth. 2nd Edition. Marshall Klaus, John Kennell and Phyllis Klaus, $25.50

Expectant parents are increasingly choosing the help of a trained labour assistant, or doula, to support them during the birth of their children. The Doula Book is a completely updated edition of the authors' earlier classic, Mothering the Mother and is a warm, authoritative guide to helping families plan for the best possible birth and postpartum experience. Full of informative material including the research on doulas and their effect on birth, this is a terrific read for anyone considering hiring a doula.

The Doula Guide to Birth: Secrets Every Woman Should Know. Ananda Lowe & Rachel Zimmerman, $20.00

The Doula Guide to Birth is a comprehensive guide to every major pregnancy and delivery issue – from the perspective of experienced doulas and labour support professionals.

Doulas’ Guide to Birthing Your Way. Jan Mallak & Teresa Bailey, $24.95

Knowing what to anticipate and having a birth vision will help you take control of your birth and make educated decisions should the need arise. Doulas’ Guide to Birthing Your Way leads you step-by-step through the birth process so you’ll know what to expect.

The Everything® Father-to-Be Book: a Survival Guide for Men, 2nd Edition. Kevin Nelson, $18.50

Advice and tips from dads who’ve been there — this useful guide gives you everything you need to be a perfect partner and super dad.

The Everything® Pregnancy Book, 3rd Edition. Paula Ford-Martin, $18.95

Updated, redesigned, and packed with even more information, this month-by-month resource walks expectant through the different phases of pregnancy and offers trusted information on every important topic from conception to delivery and beyond. The Everything Pregnancy Book promises to answer all of your questions and more!

Expect the Best: Your Guide to Healthy Eating Before, During & After Pregnancy. Elizabeth Ward, $18.95

Expect the Best shows you how a healthy lifestyle from preconception to post-delivery will help you and your baby to flourish. The book offers practical, easy-to-follow tips for healthy eating and activity, including 50 delicious, nutritious recipes for the entire family.

The Expectant Parents’ Companion: Simplifying What to Do, Buy or Borrow for an Easy Life with Baby. Kathleen Huggins, $14.50

More than just a guide to baby gear, The Expectant Parents’ Companion outlines all the practical issues you will face during pregnancy and your baby’s first year. Kathleen Huggins, author of The Nursing Mother’s Companion, gently guides you through your preparations with an emphasis on simplicity and practicality.

Feed the Belly: the Pregnant Mom’s Healthy Eating Guide. Frances Largeman-Roth, $15.99

From pre-conception to morning sickness and beyond, Feed the Belly offers nutritional guidelines and easy recipes for a healthy — and tasty —– pregnancy.

Feeding the Bump: Nutrition & Recipes for Pregnancy. Lisa Neal, $21.95

Feeding the Bump is an essential resource that offers trimester-by-trimester advice on nutrition, shopping, cooking and eating as well as over 100 delicious recipes ideas for meals and snacks.

Finding Your Way: the Road to a Healthy Pregnancy. Ken Murch Productions. DVD format, 18 minutes $21.50

The choices a woman makes during her pregnancy will have a lifetime effect on her baby's health. Pregnancy is a good time to develop healthy lifestyle habits that will carry forward to parenthood.

From the Hips. Rebecca Odes & Ceridwen Morris, $27.95

A comprehensive, open-minded, uncensored, totally honest guide to pregnancy, birth and becoming a parent. From the Hips includes a wide range of voices and approaches and reflects the many ways of being pregnant and parenting without suggesting that there is one right way.

Gentle Birth, Gentle Mothering: a Doctor’s Guide to Natural Childbirth and Gentle Early Parenting Practices. Sarah Buckley, $21.99

Sarah Buckley might be called a third-wave natural birth advocate. A doctor and a mother, she approaches the question of how a woman and baby might have the most fulfilling birth experience with respect for the wisdom of both medical science and the human body. Using current medical and epidemiological research plus women's experiences, she demonstrates that what she calls "undisturbed birth" is almost always healthier and safer than high-technology approaches to birth. Her wise counsel on issues like breastfeeding and sleeping during postpartum helps extend the gentle birth experience into a gentle parenting relationship.

Gentle Birth Method.  Gowri Motha & Karen Swan MacLeod, $29.95

This complete, holistic program takes women from preconception through to the postpartum period. Taking care of the physical, mental and emotional needs of the mother throughout, Gentle Birth Method provides a framework that celebrates pregnancy and explores the potential for a calm, intimate birthing experience.

Gestational Diabetes: What to Expect, 5th edition. American Diabetes Association, $12.95

This newly revised and comprehensive guide for women with gestational diabetes explains what it is and how it might affect the baby, mother and the birth. This new edition includes numerous sample meal plans as well as information on exercise, insulin therapy and on monitoring blood glucose levels.

The Girlfriends’ Guide to Pregnancy, 2nd Edition. Vicki Iovine, $19.99

Four-time delivery room veteran Vicki Iovine talks to you the way only a best friend can. Now, in this newly revised and updated edition, get the lowdown on all those little things that are too strange or embarrassing to ask, practical tips, and hilarious takes on everything pregnant.

Healthy Beginnings: Giving Your Baby the Best Start, from Preconception to Birth. Nan Schuurmans, the Society of Obstetricians and Gynecologists of Canada, $16.95

Healthy Beginnings is a uniquely Canadian handbook that guides the reader through pregnancy, from preconception to birth. An all-inclusive resource, this handy guide will be especially useful for its Canadian resources.

Healthy Eating During Pregnancy: Your Guide to Eating Well and Staying Fit. Laura Riley & Stacey Nelson, $17.99

Sometimes eating well during pregnancy can be hard — some days you fell too nauseous to eat, others you feel ravenous or want to give in to every craving. Healthy Eating During Pregnancy offers great advice and information for a healthy diet before, during and after your pregnancy. Over 200 recipes focus on different needs — recipes for high iron, calcium and fibre intake; small mini-meals for the days your stomach feels too small or the heartburn is too intense; on-the-go foods and satisfying sweets. The book also offers current information on diabetes and pregnancy, morning sickness, allergies and nutrition basics.

Homebirth in the Hospital: Integrating Natural Childbirth with Modern Medicine. Stacey Marie Kerr, $17.95

Homebirth in the Hospital is a wonderful blend of birth-stories, compassionate and inspiring ideas and woman-centered care. This book demonstrates what is possible when caregivers and clients work together to honour the birthing process.

I’m Pregnant! A Week-by-Week Guide. Lesley Regan, $30.00

This informative guide offers current, practical information on what to expect at each stage of your pregnancy; including the physical and the emotional changes and challenges. This edition has been fully adapted to include up to date Canadian guidelines and practices.

In the Womb. Peter Tallack, $33.00

Based on National Geographic’s acclaimed television presentation, In the Womb offers a stunning look into the world of the developing human. In the Womb was created by a team of obstetric and imaging technology experts using 3-D ultrasound and the remarkably beautiful and award-winning models of David Barlow. Compelling and extraordinary, it captures both the science and the magic of reproduction.

It’s My Body, My Baby, My Birth: a Film about Natural Childbirth. Wisewoman Childbirth Traditions, $12.50 (DVD format, 27 minutes)

An educational birth film that tells the story of seven mothers and their emotional journeys to natural childbirth. Beautifully filmed, the DVD presents the views and experiences of mothers, their partners (including one lesbian couple), midwives, an obstetrician and a childbirth educator. Each woman’s story is unique and powerful. Pain, safety and fear are all addressed in this compelling film.

Laboring Under an Illusion: Mass Media Childbirth vs. the Real Thing.  Vicki Elson, $55.95 DVD format, 50 minutes

Anthropologist Vicki Elson explores media-generated myths about childbirth and how our culture influences our birth experiences. Using over 100 video clips from television and film, Elson contrasts fiction with reality and the result is hilarious, engaging and enlightening.

Life’s Greatest Miracle DVD. PBS Home Video, narrated by John Lithgow, photography by Lennart Nilsson, $28.95 DVD format, 60 minutes

It takes countless milestones to turn an undifferentiated clump of cells into a baby and normally it’s a process that happens in the dark. Lennart Nilsson brings it beautifully to light, taking us into the mysterious and beautiful world of conception, through to birth.

The Mama Bamba Way: the Power and Pleasure of Natural Childbirth. Robyn Sheldon, $21.95

The core tools offered in this peaceful book are meditative awareness, relaxation and deep exploration of the unconscious mind — so that no matter what unfolds birth is a satisfying experience.

Miracle of Birth 3: Five Birth Stories DVD. InJoy Videos, Home Use $49.99 (51 minutes/5 segments)

Candid interviews, real labor footage and a diverse collection of mothers and birth experiences will keep viewers entertained and informed as they prepare for their own birth experience. For information on Public Performance Rights (PPR) prices please contact Parentbooks

The Mocha Manual to a Fabulous Pregnancy. Kimberley Sears-Allers, $17.50

The Mocha Manual to a Fabulous Pregnancy is a straight-talking handbook about pregnancy. Kimberly Seals-Allers offers candid advice on specific health concerns affecting black women such as high blood pressure, sickle cell disease, diabetes, and low birth weight, as well as information about how to get your finances in order, how to cope with pigmentation and hair texture changes, single-parenting, maternity fashion, how to deal with demanding jobs and hormone-induced meltdowns.

My Pregnancy and Breastfeeding Calendar. Janet Rourke, $12.50

My Pregnancy Journal. $25.95

A beautiful keepsake book for recording a mother’s thoughts, experiences and plans during pregnancy.

The Official Lamaze Guide: Giving Birth with Confidence. Judith Lothian & Charlotte DeVries, $14.99

The Official Lamaze Guide: Giving Birth with Confidence presents childbearing as an elegant, simple, healthy process instead of an experience fraught with danger.

The 100 Healthiest Foods to Eat During Pregnancy: the Surprising Unbiased Truth about Foods You Should be Eating During Pregnancy but Probably Aren't. Jonny Bowden & Allison Tannis, $28.95

Backed up by the latest nutritional research, this guide uncovers a number of surprising and food choices that expectant moms should be eating. However, many women find the nutritional guidelines and menu plans they get from their doctor to be a complex, confusing, and oftentimes uninspiring list of things to eat for the next nine months. Jonny Bowden and Allison Tannis make pregnancy nutrition easy with the top 100 foods expectant moms need to eat during their pregnancy.

100 Questions & Answers about Your High-Risk Pregnancy. Elizabeth Platt, Betty Campbell, Andrea Tetreau, & Michael Pinette, $21.95

100 Questions and Answers about Your High-Risk Pregnancy provides authoritative, practical answers to the most common questions posed by at-risk expecting parents. The text covers topics such as testing, mother's health, fetal health, complications, prevention and treatment, and physical and psychological coping. This book is an invaluable resource for anyone coping with the physical and emotional turmoil of high-risk pregnancy.

100 Things I Hate About Pregnancy: What You’ll Detest When Expecting. Kate Konopicky, $10.50

Being pregnant isn't for sissies...Are you pregnant and peevish? Between morning sickness (you feel awful and you're not even drinking anymore); all those strangers who want to touch your belly and give you terrible advice; deeper exhaustion than you've ever known; plus what passes for fashion in maternity underwear it’s no wonder your delicate condition is driving you crazy … Also includes some really good advice, factoids, and cool resources.

Whether you have type 1, type 2 or develop gestational diabetes, 101 Tips for a Healthy Pregnancy with Diabetes is a comprehensive and practical guide to pre-conception care, pregnancy, nutrition, medications, diabetes care, labour, postpartum and much more. 101 Tips for a Healthy Pregnancy with Diabetes answers your questions so you and your baby can be healthy throughout the pregnancy.

This unique interactive workbook is a fun, safe and effective way to maintain fitness during the childbearing year and beyond.

Playskool Guide for Expectant Fathers. Brian Lipps, $17.95

The best information, action plans and expert advice for your new life as a father.

Positions for Labor: Maternal Movement and Optimal Fetal Positioning DVD. InJoy Vidoes, Home Use $55.00 (19 minutes)

This program uses state-of-the art 3-D  animation of fetal rotation and descent, to show moms and their support people the benefits of walking, sitting, forward leaning, side-lying and more throughout labor and birth. For information on Public Performance Rights (PPR) prices please contact Parentbooks

Prenatal Tests: the Facts. Lachlan de Crespigny & Frank Chervenak, $22.95

In order to make informed decisions about the sometimes bewildering array of tests offered during pregnancy, parents need clear and relevant information about the purpose, the timing and the risks, as well as details of how the test will actually be performed. Prenatal Tests: the Facts is arranged by stage of pregnancy, giving parents-to-be the information they need in order to make informed decisions for themselves and their baby.

Pregnancy & Birth: the Essential Checklists. Karen Sullivan, $15.95

More than 100 checklists to help you anticipate everything you need to do in pregnancy, during the birth and with your newborn. Pregnancy & Birth: the Essential Checklists tells you what to prepare, what to buy, what to ask, what to do and when to do it.

Pregnancy and Birth: a Guide to Making Decisions That Are Right for You and Your Baby, 2nd Edition. Teresa Pitman & Joyce Barrett, $27.95

This fully revised edition provides reliable and current evidence-based information on pregnancy, prenatal care and prenatal tests, birth and the early postpartum.

Pregnancy, Childbirth and the Newborn: the Complete Guide, 4th Edition. Penny Simkin, Janet Whalley, Ann Keppler, Janelle Durham & April Bolding, $19.95

This highly accessible and authoritative new edition of Pregnancy, Childbirth and the Newborn presents research-based information on all aspects of childbearing – from conception through early infancy. Well organized, it includes engaging photos, illustrations and boxed features that highlight important information and advice to help you make informed decisions about your care. With appendices that include footnotes and research references as well as a glossary and summaries of pain relief methods for labour, this is tremendously complete resource for expectant and new parents.

Pregnancy Day by Day, Canadian Edition. Elaine Herer, MD, Canadian Consultant & Maggie Blott, Editor, $22.00

An illustrated daily countdown to motherhood — from conception to childbirth and the early days of parenting.

Many women now participate in all types of exercise and during pregnancy they want to continue to work out and keep fit. But along with pregnancy come a lot of questions and concerns about exercising and what is safe for mom and baby. Women are often given conflicting advice and are left unsure or confused over exactly what they can or cannot do. Pregnancy and Fitness is written for the expectant mother and will give women the confidence to exercise throughout their pregnancy, to make them stronger for birth and fit enough to cope with the demands of new motherhood.

Prenatal Massage: a Textbook of Pregnancy, Labor, and Postpartum Bodywork. Elaine Stillerman, $51.95

Authored by a well-known expert on prenatal massage, this comprehensive text helps you understand the intricate physiology of pregnancy so you can confidently apply appropriate massage techniques for each trimester, and throughout labor and postpartum. You'll find clear, colorfully illustrated explanations of a wide range of techniques and procedures, including Swedish massage, acupuncture points, myofascial release, trigger point therapy, lymphatic drainage, and reflexology. A companion DVD packaged with the book enables you to watch demonstrations of techniques. Contraindications and precautions are also provided where necessary to help you provide safe and effective care for every client.

Raising Baby Green: the Earth-Friendly Guide to Pregnancy, Childbirth and Baby Care. Alan Greene, et al, $19.99

In this illustrated and easy-to-use guide, noted pediatrician Dr. Alan Greene, a leading voice of the green baby movement, advises parents how to make healthy green choices for pregnancy, childbirth, and baby care—from feeding your baby the best food available to using medicines wisely. Consumer advocate Jeanette Pavini includes information for making smart choices and applying green principles to a whole new universe of products from zero-VOC paints for the nursery, to pure and gentle lotions for baby’s delicate skin, to the eco-friendly diapers now in the marketplace, as well as specific recommendations for hundreds of other products.

Real Food for Mother and Baby: The Fertility Diet, Eating for Two, and Baby's First Foods. Nina Planck, $18.50

Food activist Nina Planck has never been one to blindly accept common wisdom, so when she became pregnant, she decided to look at the nutritional advice recommended for pregnancy. What she found was surprising: advice that is occasionally inaccurate and often impossible. In Real Food for Mother and Baby Nina explains why commonly held ideas about pregnancy and infant nutrition are misguided and how real food is good for growing minds and bodies. The general rules aren't surprising but some of the details might be.

Filled with reassuring advice for parents who want to grow their children on a diet of whole and natural foods, Real Food for Mother and Baby is a must-have.

The Simple Guide to Having a Baby is short, simple and easy to follow. It holds your hand and walks you through pregnancy and childbirth, covering what you need to know about being pregnant, giving birth and taking care of your baby. It includes advice on what to do and what not to do during pregnancy, easy exercises to help you stay healthy and feel better, information on what to expect during labor and birth, coping skills for childbirth pain, and helpful hints on breastfeeding and being a parent.

Strategies for the C-Section Mom: a Complete Fitness, Nutrition and Lifestyle Guide. Mary Beth Knight, $18.95

Whether your Cesarean section is planned or unexpected, you need to know about the risks, the recovery and realities of being a mother post-surgery. Mary Beth Knight, the founder of StrollerFit® has developed a program especially designed for women recovering from a C-section. Starting with the first day after surgery, Knight offers nutrition, fitness and early parenting guidance to help you recover faster and get the most out of your experience.

Sexual abuse and the reactions to it affect mothers' whole lives—from thinking about having children all the way to being grandmothers. These effects are far-reaching and deeply felt. Survivor Moms shares narrative excerpts from interviews with women who have survived abuse; along with the clinical perspectives of midwives and contributions from other healthcare professionals. Whether you are a survivor, a midwife, a mental health provider, or you know a survivor who is on this path, you will learn from this book about mothering and the ongoing journey of healing and surviving.

Tried and True: a Collection of Labor Techniques. InJoy Videos, DVD format, 32 minutes

If a picture is worth a thousand words, then this video is priceless. Tried & True is a visual encyclopedia of labor techniques, all clearly demonstrated using actual birth footage. Parents will learn in a whole new way, as they see moms, dads and support persons work with labor pain using a variety of comfort measures appropriate for each of the stages of labor.

Home Use $49.99; Single Site Public Performance $129.99; Multi-Site Public Performance $251.99

Understanding Birth: a Comprehensive Guide, 2nd Edition DVD. InJoy Videos (2 DVDs, 135 minutes and 48 minutes) $149.95 home use (agencies, clinics and institutions, please contact Parentbooks for pricing and information on Public Performance Rights)

The second edition of this award-winning program includes current, evidence-based information, all new footage, and an overall fresh look. As viewers follow the featured families from pregnancy through postpartum, they see a variety of labor experiences, including a natural birth, interventions, and an unplanned cesarean section.

 2 DVDs are included with the purchase: Understanding Birth 2nd Edition Express condenses the full-length program and provides the most sought-after topics in less than an hour. The package includes a Facilitator Guide that provides discussion questions and information about the featured families.

Lucy Puryear is a practicing psychiatrist and a pioneering expert in women's reproductive mental health. Through engaging personal stories reflecting her own practice, she illuminates the little-discussed feelings that are virtually universal for pregnant women and explains exactly what is happening to your hormonal system. Understanding Your Moods When You're Expecting gives readers the knowledge they need during this emotionally demanding time in their lives.

Each summer day Mollie wakes up, waits for the prairie sun to rise, and hopes that today the baby will be born. Waiting for the baby is like waiting for the sun to come up in the morning—it takes its own sweet time. Finally, in the middle of the night, the midwife comes over and soon after, the baby arrives! Mollie races to her parents’ room see her new brother. His eyes are squeezed shut and his face is wrinkled and red.

"He's ugly!" Mollie announces.

But when she holds her new brother he opens his eyes and looks right at her. Mollie can't help but smile. Together, they watch the sun come up, and Mollie decides this is quite enough for now.

What to Eat Before, During and After Pregnancy. Judith Brown, $21.95

What you should know about eating right to ensure a healthy pregnancy as well as lifelong benefits for you and your baby by maternal nutrition expert Judith Brown.

Yes, You’re Pregnant, but What About ME? Kevin Nealon, $17.99

Comedian Kevin Nealon takes on the mysteries of pregnancy and parenthood.

Yoga for Pregnancy and Birth. Uma Dinsmore-Tuli, $24.95 (includes CD)

Yoga for Pregnancy and Birth offers you an effective guide to maximizing your health and wellbeing throughout pregnancy and beyond. Use the principles of yoga to give you a deeper insight into the process of pregnancy and follow our simple exercises to create a yoga and breathing program that works uniquely for you. Read it straight through or dip in and out – however you like to learn. You’ll soon have the skills to approach your labour with confidence. The enclosed CD guides you through breathing exercises and offers handy advice for postnatal recovery.

YOU Having a Baby: the Owner’s Manual to a Happy and Healthy Pregnancy. Michael Roizen & Mehmet Oz, $32.00

YOU Having a Baby: the Owner’s Manual to a Happy and Healthy Pregnancy CD Audiobook. Michael Roizen & Mehmet Oz, $36.99

Filled with recipes for nutritious, satisfying snacks and meals, safe exercises for staying fit, and tons of tips that will help you stay comfortable, YOU Having a Baby is the ultimate guidebook for what to do from the moment of conception to the weeks after your child has arrived home. From morning sickness and food cravings to choosing a caregiver and changing a diaper, YOU Having a Baby will give you the real scoop about what's in store for you during this amazing time in your life.

Your Best Birth. Ricki Lake & Abby Epstein, $25.99

Expectant and birthing mothers are often left feeling powerless, as their instincts are replaced by drugs and routine medical procedures. In Your Best Birth, advocates of informed choice Ricki Lake and Abby Epstein inspire women to take back the birth experience. You have a choice, and you have the power to plan the kind of birth that's right for you — whether it is at a birth center, a hospital, or at home.

The book includes inspiring birth stories and is packed with crucial advice from childbirth professionals, all delivered in a down-to-earth, engaging voice. Your Best Birth is sure to renew your confidence and put the control back where it belongs: with you!

Also Available: The Business of Being Born. Ricki Lake & Abby Epstein, $35.95 DVD (84 minutes)

Entertaining and hugely informative, The Business of Being Born offers insight into childbirth in North America today and what women really need to know about in order to make informed decisions about their pregnancy, labour and delivery.