Canada’s baby care book. A complete guide from birth to 12 months old

OVERALL RATING Very good

STRENGTHS Clearly written; thorough; easy to navigate

WEAKNESSES Despite Canada being in the title, the book always lists the American information first (the US food guide, nonmetric units of measure, etc)

AUDIENCE New or expecting parents and caregivers

There are many guidebooks geared toward a baby’s first year. This book stands out in large part because of the lovely photographs, many of which are of the contributing authors’ children and patients. The pictures add enormously to the information. The authors are pediatricians at the Hospital for Sick Children in Toronto, Ont. Many of the contributing authors are young mothers.

The book has chapters on child development, feeding, sleeping, child safety, and illness. There is a Frequently Asked Questions section at the end of each chapter, which provides unbiased information about things not covered in the body of the text. This section is informative and offers a fair perspective on issues that are sometimes contentious for parents, such as circumcision, adoption, and breast versus bottle feeding.

The book lists good references and helpful websites (eg, the Motherisk site at www.motherisk.org). A table of contents at the beginning of each chapter and an excellent index at the back make finding information especially easy. The book also includes an author’s diary entries, which I do not think add to the book.

The chapter “Caring for Your Sick Baby” is excellent. It has an index at the back, directing readers to other areas of the book to find more information. This chapter also includes great pictorials in which a mannequin is used to demonstrate managing infant choking and performing cardiopulmonary resuscitation.

I think parents and caregivers will find this book easy to read and informative. I would highly recommend it to new and expecting parents.

• Copyright© the College of Family Physicians of Canada