Blog Tour: The Pregnancy Journal

When I received my copy of The Pregnancy Journal by A. Christine Harris, Ph.D., I was skeptical that a book with a day to day format would appeal to me. I am not someone who does well with too rigorous a routine. If I were to classify my routine, "routine" would be far from accurate. But I really enjoyed having the opportunity to review this book. And had I known about it when I was pregnant, I would have loved following the little daily facts, quips, and quotes. Of course, knowing me, I would have read the whole thing at once. And then again. And again.

The Pregnancy Journal is set up to provide information day by day throughout your pregnancy. Each day has some general information about the baby, about you, and then at least one item from a variety of categories like "Food Facts", "Childbirth Then and Now", "Childbirth in Other Cultures", and "For Your Health." The short entries are informative, interesting, and often amusing. And they are just the right bite-size amount for when you are suffering from pregnancy brain. And each page includes a relevant quote at the bottom. Here is one of my favorite tidbits, filed under Childbirth Then and Now:

"In colonial America, it was common to have the laboring woman seated on her husband's lap, he being seated on a chair. He would hold on to the woman around the top of her abdomen or under her arms. As a male writer commented in 1882:

The position was certainly not a bad one for all parties with the exception of the husband who, in tedious cases, suffered rather severely; but then this little tax on his affectionate nature was, in those days, considered the very least return he could make for the mischief he had occasioned."

That is actually one of the longer entries, but I loved the last little part about "mischief." Oh, those wacky colonials!

Having nothing to do with the great content, I also liked that the book was study and spiral bound. If a woman were to record thoughts, facts, and milestones throughout the book as it indicates, there is nothing worse than not being able to write on the left hand page because the book won't open properly. The spiral binding lets one lay the book flat and turn pages easily. Good for both writing and reading, and a great way to keep the record of pregnancy intact long after.

Other than the fact that I would never have recorded my weight or waist size throughout the journey, I fully embraced the rest of the book. Kudos to Harris for pulling together this clever book and many thanks to Mother Talk for asking me to write a review.