The Baby Owner's Manual: Operating Instructions, Trouble-shooting Tips and Advice on First-year Maintenance (Owner's and Instruction Manual)

Straightforward advice without the waffle of so many baby books. I'd recommend it as it's fun and quick to read, with lots of diagrams, so effective at helping you absorb a lot of information quickly. Which is a huge plus point!While it seems to be marketed at dads, the advice is for both parents (e.g. lots on breastfeeding), and the straightforward, practical approach will appeal to mums too. That said, I can see it would help dads in particular to feel more informed and of more help.Lots of simple advice and diagrams about preparing the home, feeding, sleeping, changing nappies, bathtime, first aid and common medical complaints - really useful stuff.However, as it's an American book, some of the advice doesn't apply to the UK. In some cases this doesn't really matter - e.g. you know you don't need to worry about finding a paediatrician or obstretrician and what services they provide, as we have the NHS; and you aren't realistically going to find a non-compliant cot on sale in the UK, so you can ignore the bit about (US) cot design regulations.In other cases, it does matter: for example, the information about strollers and car seats isn't much help - there is no mention of the fact that newborns should only lie flat for the first few weeks, and there are UK safety regulations about car seats that you have to abide by. This means you will have to look elsewhere for this information. If you're a first-time parent, you may well not realise this (although I'm sure you'll find out once you start looking into buying travel systems).One piece of advice included in 'childproofing the baby's environment' is to 'remove or secure any guns in the home' !!!!Would be great to see a UK version, but that said, the great majority of the advice is universal, so I would still recommend this book as it is. Just keep the NHS website to hand as well.

This book is obviously more for the dads rather than the mums. My fiance has a number of books and I tried to read them but as good as the infromation and advice was they did not really appeal to me.I bought this book for my brother in law as he has the same problem with his wife but having had a little read through I quickly ordered another one that he could have as I kept this for myself.It's great, it's done in a handy manual format, more like articles in a magazine than a book. I found I could just go to different sections and come up witht he same info the other books give but actually enjoy the language of it.It is mildly humorous and that is enough to keep me interested, I'm not after a comprehensive indepth breakdown of things or a hugely amusing read I just want the simple facts presented in an easy to read manner and it does that. I don't treat it as a bible on all things baby but it does give me a resource I can turn to and not feel like I'm in a boring stuffy book.If you're a first time dad, get it.If you know a first time dad, get it for them, they'll appreciate it and helps us 1st time dads feel like we are included.

I really love this book actually its DEFINITELY great if you are an IT guy like me as it is so funny and easy to read its actually entertaining the way it explains the various tips for bringing up your baby.Definitely recommended! Grab yourself this as its just brilliant!

Had a good laugh when reading it! But it's also full of good info.

Funny little book! I bought this for my husband when we found out that we were expecting our first child and it is a handy manual for those basic bits and pieces. Some of the sections are not as detailed as they could be but that's not really its purpose - it's designed for beginners and so takes a less complicated approach. I think a few mothers would disagree with some of what it says. It is US-specific in its language. I wouldn't regard this book as an all-purpose manual but it's a good beginner's introduction to taking care of a baby with a sense of humour to help new fathers-to-be get through it!

Purchased as a gift for a new dad. The book is written in a great style and the diagrams are both funny and useful. The information in the book is nothing groundbreaking and can all be found with a quick Google search but nonetheless is nice to have in one place and makes a great gift.

I had recently seen a similar book drawn up in the same style as a Haynes Car Maintenance Manual. It was quite funny while at the same time covering many important aspects of baby care. I bought this particular book having been able to 'look inside' and I liked what I saw. I do not think it will necessarily be the best book on the subject, but because of the style of the book it is more likely to be read IN ADVANCE, and I think for that reason alone it is a really good buy - the baby is a first baby and is not due for another 6 months.I was right! A few hours after receiving it the expectant parents were reading it on the ferry when coming to visit, and were enthused by the style - Judging by their comments I have upgraded this from 4 to 5 stars.

Sent to my brother and sister-in-law in preparation for their first baby and they said they couldn't put it down. Really useful and accessible (thought they haven't had the baby yet so nothing has been put to trial).