The Working Gal's Guide to Babyville: Your Must-Have Manual for Life with Baby

by Paige Hobey, Allison Nied

Overview

You're an independent career woman suddenly dropped into the chaos of Babyville. You have a newborn to care for, three months (if you're lucky) of unstructured time to fill, a work decision to make (to go back full-time? part-time? job share?), childcare to acquire, and family finances to balance. You need someone to make you laugh during the hard times, a doctor to call in the middle of the night, and a good career counselor to boot. Never fear! Sure to become the gold standard resource during that crazy first year, The Working Gal's Guide to Babyville combines stories and sisterly advice from the trenches, infant care information and tips from a pediatrician, and career and budget guidance from a pro. From getting baby to sleep through the night to making the most of maternity leave, from weighing work options to finding childcare, from networking with new parents to emotionally transitioning from "Ms. Independent to Mom," it offers desperately needed, easy-to-execute strategies and expert solutions on all manner of Year One issues. The essential guidebook for today's busy career moms, it's every bit as hip, smart, and savvy as the women who'll be reading it.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9780786736522
Publisher:	Hachette Books
Publication date:	04/29/2009
Sold by:	Hachette Digital, Inc.
Format:	eBook
Pages:	440
File size:	6 MB

About the Author

The working mother of two children under three years old, Paige Hobey is a contributing writer for Parenting magazine and Chicago Parent. The Hobeys live in Chicago.

Allison Nied, M.D. is a board-certified pediatrician based in New York City.

Editorial Reviews

In the glut of parenting tomes, Hobey, a writer for Parenting magazine, has found a niche with this informative and practical guide on becoming a working mom. The book, which tries to be all things baby, succeeds best when it focuses on work. Moms, for instance, don't need step-by-step instructions on how to diaper a baby (with no illustrations). And sleep-deprived mothers who barely find time to shower will plunge into despair over Hobey's suggestion that they productively use their maternity leave to try something new, such as "making caramelized pear tarts with cardamom cream." However, on the work front, her manual is not just instructional but indispensable. Worksheets help moms clarify the emotional and financial aspects of working versus staying home (what she refers to as "sequencing" work and family). Concrete suggestions on alternatives to full-time (e.g., flextime, freelancing, flexplace), how to choose child care and ways to continue networking are clear and well researched. Success stories and snippets of moms' lives make potentially dry material an easy read, plus the writing is frequently jaunty, attempting to step in as a modern Girlfriend's Guide. This book should be supplemented with a true baby guide (the short asides from pediatrician Dr. Nied don't cover enough). (June) Copyright 2006 Reed Business Information.

Publishers Weekly

Offers sweeping survival strategies for every conceivable challenge.

Journal Register News