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indigowolf's review against another edition
funny
informative
fast-paced
4.0
Second time reading this one. While I may not agree with all of her findings, I like the way she thinks critically about these decisions.
deagaric's review against another edition
funny
hopeful
informative
lighthearted
reflective
relaxing
medium-paced
5.0
"There is no shortage of opinions, but there is a definite shortage of agreements."
Emily Oster's Expecting Better is an excellent and light-hearted primer to pregnancy that every mom-to-be should read. She concisely covers topics starting from pre-conception up to what vaccinations your baby will receive following the birth.
The overall aim seems to be to provide information free from over-interpretation, which a breath of fresh air compared to most self-help and parenting books. She does occasionally step in and provide more structured advice, such as very handy figures about knowing which types of fish are the safest and/or most beneficial, as well as a guide to understanding drug classifications for common over-the-counter prescriptions. Each section ends with bullet-point style summaries, which are excellent for future reference. I’m glad I was gifted a hardcopy of this book rather than just relying on the library copy because I imagine it will be helpful to look back on certain sections again and again.
While some of her opinions are controversial (drink a few cups of coffee and finish your night with a glass of wine if you so choose), she provides interesting data-driven reasoning. I loved the numerous graphs and the deep discussions about empirical studies that have found conflicting results. She mixes all of that up with personal anecdotes from her pregnancy and the experiences of people close to her. Overall, 5-star read, very approachable and empowering.
"This book is very specifically not about making recommendations; it's about acknowledging that if you have the right information you can make the right decisions for yourself."
Emily Oster's Expecting Better is an excellent and light-hearted primer to pregnancy that every mom-to-be should read. She concisely covers topics starting from pre-conception up to what vaccinations your baby will receive following the birth.
The overall aim seems to be to provide information free from over-interpretation, which a breath of fresh air compared to most self-help and parenting books. She does occasionally step in and provide more structured advice, such as very handy figures about knowing which types of fish are the safest and/or most beneficial, as well as a guide to understanding drug classifications for common over-the-counter prescriptions. Each section ends with bullet-point style summaries, which are excellent for future reference. I’m glad I was gifted a hardcopy of this book rather than just relying on the library copy because I imagine it will be helpful to look back on certain sections again and again.
While some of her opinions are controversial (drink a few cups of coffee and finish your night with a glass of wine if you so choose), she provides interesting data-driven reasoning. I loved the numerous graphs and the deep discussions about empirical studies that have found conflicting results. She mixes all of that up with personal anecdotes from her pregnancy and the experiences of people close to her. Overall, 5-star read, very approachable and empowering.
"This book is very specifically not about making recommendations; it's about acknowledging that if you have the right information you can make the right decisions for yourself."
msloan23's review against another edition
fast-paced
4.0
I appreciated all the data and how easily digestible it was, but found Oster's choices about her own pregnancies...interesting.
kelseyruby's review against another edition
informative
lighthearted
medium-paced
5.0
When you’re pregnant, virtually everyone is an expert in what you should or shouldn’t do. And most will share their opinions—frivolous and unsolicited. There’s a wild amount of stigma and misinformation with pregnancy (even reiterated by doctors), and Emily Oster’s book gave me what I was looking for: the data. If you’re looking for some autonomy in your pregnancy, I recommend this read. No persuasion; no judgment. Just the research told through a smattering of Emily’s experience with pregnancy. If the research and data is a bit much for you, I recommend picking and choosing the chapters that interest you the most. Plus, each section has a summary breakdown with the highlights. This is my go-to gift for new parents!
margymatson's review against another edition
informative
medium-paced
3.5
I have mixed feelings about this book. I started off turned off in the starting chapters - it seemed her recommendations of it being ok to drink alcohol, coffee, etc. were justifications for her not wanting to give it up. Her reasoning (throughout the whole book) felt based on hand selected random studies (ex: a study of 90 women in Thailand in 2011 - just too random for me) and too data-based. I wanted to bring in more medical reasoning as to why those recommendations were/were not made. I did enjoy the book more when it came to the birthing section to learn about the data of epidural, c-section, etc. It helped to provide background to me about frequency, what situations, & common risks. In the end, I take everything with a grain of salt because she is an economist with no medical history- I would rather take advice from a medical professional.