Product Description

Books & DVDs Workman Publishing It's the mystery of mysteries-what's going on inside a pregnant woman's belly? That's what Jennifer Davis's older children wanted to know while she was expecting the younger. So to explain, she wrote BEFORE YOU WERE BORN, n

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #42429 in Books
• Brand: Workman Publishing
• Published on: 1998-05-01
• Number of items: 1
• Dimensions: .85 pounds
• Binding: Hardcover
• 36 pages

From School Library Journal
PreSchool-Grade 2-A whimsical yet accurate look at many different aspects of prenatal development. Told from a pregnant woman's point of view, the lighthearted rhyming text begins, "Before you were born and with 9 months to go..." and counts down to delivery day. In the bottom left corner of each double-page spread is a thumbnail drawing of a baby along with an informational tidbit on a developmental milestone that each month brings. For example, readers learn that at seven months to go, "You were now starting to smile and frown." The facing page then focuses on one identifying event for that month such as hearing the baby's heartbeat, feeling the effects of the hiccups, or experiencing rapid weight gain. After focusing on the mother's perspective, a postcard-sized flap can be lifted to reveal the fetus, happily painting its growing nails or gleefully dancing, boom box in hand. Loose, jaunty, black-ink lines and splashy watercolors support the humorous tone of these anecdotal vignettes that are sure to garner laughs as the woman's belly grows out of proportion to her tall skinny face. Readers will enjoy the interactive nature of this energetic title.
Martha Topol, Traverse Area District Library, Traverse City, MI
Copyright 1998 Reed Business Information, Inc.

Card catalog description
A lift-the-flap book showing milestones in a baby's development during pregnancy and the mother's experiences as it grows.

From the Back Cover
Share the pleasure. Unveil the mystery. This joyous, innovative book about pregnancy tells the parallel story of mother and baby, from hearing the thumpity-thump of baby's heartbeat to that unforgettable first meeting.

Customer Reviews

This is great for #2
I don't have a #2 yet but I am an elementary art teacher and let me tell you that I absolutly love this book. It is done in a fun way that tells both the mom and baby's point of view and gives fun facts that kids can relate to, like you were the size of a toster and what kinds of things the baby is working on at each stage of pregnance. I buy it for all my friends who are expecting, especially if it is # 2 or #3!

Good, if you are mainstream...
... but if you are planning an out of hospital birth or a birth with midwives, it's not quite as peachy. There is an illustration of mom at the doctor's office getting checked out early on, a reference in the text to her seeing the doc when baby drops, and then she rushes off to the hospital to push and push in the final pages. No room for birth center or homebirth, the midwifery model of care or self-care.

There is also a full-page illustration of father dusting off a crib.

I also had a hard time identifying with the mother in the illustrations, who is very white upper-middle class in her dresses, make-up and workout clothing.

Parenting, lifestyle, and birth choices aside, this is definitely a book written by a mother, not a writer, and sometimes the rhymes are a bit forced. The illustrations make up for it in their jolly attitude, but are not caldecott contenders- they are quick and dirty cartoon style pen and ink, colorwash type things, with little art.

However, if you see an OB regularly, have a seperate nursery for baby, and like Martha Stewart, this book might be right on target for you!

Good for toddlers
Our 2 1/2 year old loves it. It's the only good book we've found that demonstrates what's going on during the pregnancy, as opposed to when the child is already old enough to play with the sibling.