Just had a baby? Lie down, rest your weary womb, and muster up a rousing cheer! (Shh! Don't wake the baby!) Now, from the author of The Girlfriend's Guide to Pregnancy, comes the book all new moms have been waiting for, whether they know it or not. Vicki Iovine talks turkey ... and stitches, and weight loss, and depression, and sex (trying it for the first time after labor and delivery? "Inebriate and Lubricate"). Vicki--yeah, I know I'm calling her by her first name but after reading this book you'll be on a first-name basis with her, too--is funny, informative, and utterly (udderly?) irreverent. New mothers have never had it so good.


From Library Journal
Iovine follows up her successful The Girlfriends' Guide to Pregnancy (Pocket, 1995) with this breezy, irreverent guide to the first year of motherhood. She covers everything from labor (when you feel "like you've swallowed a bucking bronco") to "poo-poo that smells like roses" to nursing, sleeping (or not), postpartum depression, and more. The idea here is to provide insider information (girlfriends share and share alike, right?), but the tone is more often flippant than confidential. There's not much new material that is not already found in classics like Arlene Eisenberg's What To Expect the First Year (Workman, 1988), and nervous first-timers may not respond well to Iovine's approach. Not a priority purchase.?Barbara Hoffert, "Library Journal"Copyright 1997 Reed Business Information, Inc.


From AudioFile
If you need a good laugh while suffering the sleep-deprived delirium of life with a newborn, then the Girlfriends' Guide isjust the thing. In addition to being packed with important advice and insider survival tips, Iovine's terrific sense of humor separates this set from traditional books for new mothers. The recording quality is remarkably clear, and Iovine's voice is easy on the ears, though perhaps a bit too gentle for the hilarious sarcasm that balances her sound advice. Without a doubt, this tape will elicit hearty chuckles from the listener and will be passed from girlfriend to girlfriend. E.W.S. (c)AudioFile, Portland, Maine

FROM OUR EDITORS

"The sleepless nights, the crying jags, the dripping nipples--she remembers it all. Those memories are delivered with enough humor, honesty and sisterly advice to make Iovine's new book, The Girlfriends' Guide to Surviving the First Year of Motherhood, a first-time mom's must-have guide." --USA Today "The first year of motherhood brings chaos, uncertainty and great happiness. Vicki Iovine (of Girlfriends' Guide to Pregnancy fame) and her gang of galpals have just completed The Girlfriends' Guide to Surviving the First Year of Motherhood, a book this mother of a 1 year old wishes had been available when her daughter was a newborn. I laughed out loud several times while reading this irreverent paean to parenting. Iovine covers the issues that we all worry about (Am I fit to be a mother? I can't even remember where I put the car keys!), probes the unspoken fears (Will I ever have sex again? Will I ever have a navel again?) and guides the reader through the dramatic emotions we experience as we transform from pregnant woman to mother. This is not a book about baby care; it's about caring for the new mom and the new family. Chapters on what it's really like to give birth (and Iovine tells it like it is!), postpartum elation/depression, sleep deprivation, going back to work (or not) and a very frank one on sex make this book invaluable. Single moms might feel a little left out, since lovine is happily married and writes about her husband frequently, but don't let that stand in the way of enjoying this funny, honest new volume. We all need the sympathetic, real-life voices of other mothers to help us through this amazing time, and we can't have too many." -- L. A. Parent

FROM THE PUBLISHER

The author of the enormously successful Girlfriends' Guide to Pregnancy brings a mother's wisdom and a girlfriend's candor to the first book in a fresh new series of guides to motherhood. Readers will learn about baby euphoria, postpartum mood swings, salvaging one's sex life, and fitting into that favorite pair of jeans.

FROM THE CRITICS

Publishers Weekly

Following the formula that made The Girlfriends' Guide to Pregnancy a funny, honest and reassuring resource, Iovine has provided a sequel for new mothers. Women who do not have a close circle of experienced female friends to turn to for advice will find this a happy substitute, filled as it is with forthright woman talk on everything from why one's best nightie isn't right for the hospital to hiring the first nanny and going back to work. While this guide offers some pertinent child-care tips, the focus here is not on the new baby but on the new motherher body, her moods, fears and worries, her relationships. Iovine and her candid, chatty friends share their wisdom about postpartum depression, surviving on very little sleep, getting one's old body back, and resuming a sex life. Especially valuable are the discussions of breastfeeding, for Iovine takes no sides but carefully and clearly helps women sort out the pros and cons of this emotion-packed issue, and the no-nonsense advice on getting the most out of one's pediatrician. Even experienced mothers can benefit from this candid, supportive guide. (Sept.)

Library Journal