11 Best Books for New Parents to Read

So many parents recognize the "What to Expect" books from their pregnancy journey, but they do continue into babyhood and toddlerhood. The same way What to Expect When You're Expecting gives a month-by-month look at the body's changes during pregnancy, What to Expect the First Year takes a similar approach to the development of growing babies. You can get a leg up on what behaviors are coming down the pike, what milestones the baby should be hitting and what symptoms are red flags you should bring up to a doctor. And, if you really like the approach, there's also What to Expect the Second Year.

It's not just the baby who goes through tons of changes in that first year. If you've been pregnant, given birth and are adjusting to new motherhood at home, Becky Vieira offers the raw, unvarnished truth that is often glossed over by those who just want to focus on the magic of being a new parent. No topic is too taboo, and Vieira covers everything from getting past that first postpartum poop to dealing with unsolicited advice from relatives.

A parenting book written by an economist? Here's why that's a good idea: With so much conflicting advice out there, Emily Oster approached the parenting info as a data project. She culled studies, crunched numbers and cut through the noise of parenting guides to present what science can back up. (She did a similar thing with her pregnancy book, Expecting Better.) Now you can find out, based on studies, whether or not breastfeeding will make your kid a genius (it will not) or what the best time to potty-train is (it depends on how quickly you want it to be over with). Her most recent book, The Family Firm, which came out August 2021, delves into how to frame your own decision-making models when you're in a family with older kids.

For something a little different, in this book journalist Angela Garbes notes how the coronavirus pandemic shed light on just how important caregiving is, and puts that in the context of the history of care work and how it should be valued more. (See also: Screaming on the Inside: The Unsustainability of American Motherhood by the New York Times's Jessica Grose.) Garbes previously trained her journalistic eye on pregnancy and the postpartum period for Like a Mother, which debunks a lot of oft-repeated myths about things like breastfeeding or drinking while pregnant.

Because that's the ultimate goal, right? Science writer Melinda Wenner Moyer discovered there are plenty of studies and research behind things that parents often find vague and fuzzy, like how to develop compassion, generosity, anti-sexism and anti-racism. She demystifies some of the hardest pain points of parenting and tells parents what works to get through them.

If you see a well-rested new parent, they might pull you aside and say that this book is their secret. Harvey Karp, M.D. — child expert and inventor of the much-loved, Good Housekeeping Institute-recommended SNOO bassinet — gives parents what he calls an "off switch" for baby crying. He teaches them to use what he famously calls the "5 Ss" (swaddling, shushing, swinging, sucking, and putting them in a side-stomach position) to tame those tears so the whole family can get more sleep. For those who like Dr. Karp's methods, you can move on to The Happiest Toddler on the Block for help with tantrum-elimination and other toddler woes.

Some parents swear by the insight that The Wonder Weeks gave into their baby's brain and behavior. It details the developmental "leaps" that babies take in their first year-plus — and the challenges that come with them. A newly revised edition released in 2019 gives even more in-depth coverage to the first 20 months of a baby's life, and in 2022 co-author Xaviera Plooij released The Wonder Weeks: Back To You for recovering after pregnancy.

If you've ever wanted to crack your kid's mind open and figure out just what the heck is going on inside, this book basically does it. It tells you what's going on with your kids' brain development, and how that can help you get through your day-to-day struggles like tantrums. If you like the authors' mindset, you can also try their No Drama Discipline techniques.

This one has been around so long that it's possible your own parents read it when you were a kid. But, in an age where parenting trends cycle in and out rapidly, there's a reason this one has stuck around: It helps decode child-language so you can better communicate with your kids (and therefore stop yelling or repeating yourself a million times — no one's favorite part of parenthood).

We wouldn't dare leave the dads out: The author of the From Dude to Dad pregnancy guide returns with a dispatch from the front lines of fatherhood. The ethos of this book is that guys don't have to lose themselves when they become fathers — there's even a line of Diaper Dude-branded diaper bags that look like regular-guy backpacks and messenger bags.

Eventually, if you do it all right, you'll launch those little birdies from the nest (but, you know, not too far). Julie Lythcott-Haims, a former dean of freshmen at Stanford University, shows parents how to curb their most helicopter/lawnmower-ish tendencies and raise autonomous beings who can fend for themselves. (Though they'll always need their parents, we promise.)