Birth Books – Recommended Reading for Birth

Choosing the right books to read about birth is so very important. Not only may the books you choose provide you with factual information, but they can also influence crucial decisions you make about birth – resulting in how you look at birth and how you remember it to be. This could be how empowered and informed you feel about birth or perhaps provide you with the confidence you need to birth the way you intend. Reading the wrong books can have a detrimental effect. Some of the top sellers you will not find on this list, but it is for very good reason.

So with all this in mind, I have compiled the below booklist, which are all great books that I and others in the birth world think are worth more than their weight in gold. I will add to the list as I come across further books. If you would like to contribute any feedback for any of these books you might have read, please email us and we’ll include your comments. All prices are approximate and correct at the time of writing this article.

Most of these books are available from Seek Books which I have found to be the cheapest place to buy books from (some books below are priced at $10+ below other bookstores) as well as stocking a massive range and shipping overseas – simply run a search and you’ll be sure to find most, if not all, of these books.

Books for Birth

New Active Birth by Janet Balaskas
Published by HarperCollins, RRP AUD$28.95

New Active Birth will help you and your partner prepare for and experience an Active Birth. Naturally, throughout time and the world over, women have chosen to walk, stand, squat, lie — to move their bodies freely and actively to find the most comfortable positions for labour and birth. It is only we in the west who have the extraordinary notion that a woman should lie on her back in a position that defies the laws of nature and gravity.

With this book you can learn to develop all your body’s resources to deal with the instinctive experience of childbirth. It is also for partners, teachers, midwives and everyone involved, to help mothers get up off the delivery table and to bring back some of the common sense which has been overlooked by modern obstetrics.

Birth After Caesarean, Unlimited Possibilities by Caroline Daniels

Caesarean Birth… Making Informed Choices (Birthrites Booklet, AUS)

25 Ways To Awaken Your Birth Power by Danette Watson
RRP AUD$29.95

A beautifully presented book and CD set created to uplift and inspire pregnant women. Full of empowering affirmations which are fantastic to remind yourself during pregnancy and labour.

Birthing From Within by Pam England
RRP AUD$36.95

This is the book of the moment for midwives, childbirth educators and pregnant women/couples. Said to be “an extra-ordinary guide to childbirth preparation”, England provides us with a challenging and empowering book: there’s lots of practical advice for first-time pregnancies including positive discussion on the benefits or otherwise of birth plans and support people. England makes good use of art therapy and creative visualisation. The book is also full of photographs and fascinating art work and illustrations.

Having a Great Birth in Australia edited by David Vernon for the Australian College of Midwives RRP AUD$24.95

Having a Great Birth in Australia is a collection of candid stories from 20 Australian women who have recently given birth. These stories tell, with honesty and insight, about the challenges and joys of childbirth. Each of these women discovered the value of being able to make informed decisions about their maternity care and with the right care, had positive and empowering birth experiences.

Obstetric Myths vs Research Realities by Henci Goer

The Thinking Woman’s Guide to A Better Birth by Henci Goer
Published by Perigee Books, RRP AUD$29.95

Henci Goer, award-winning medical writer and internationally known speaker, is the author of The Thinking Woman’s Guide to a Better Birth. Her previous book, Obstetric Myths Versus Research Realities is a highly-acclaimed resource for childbirth professionals, and she is an acknowledged expert on evidence-based maternity care.

In her book, Henci Goer covers the following topics and more:

• Breech Babies
• Epidurals
• Inducing Labour
• Episiotomy
• IVs
• Vaginal Birth After Caesarean
• Electronic Fetal Monitoring
• Doulas / Birth Attendants
• Rupturing Membranes
• Deciding On A Doctor Or Midwife
• Coping With Slow Labour
• Choosing Where to Have Your Baby

“With the help of this book, any intelligent person can obtain the information necessary to make informed choices. This unique book will provide the tools and confidence to have the best possible birth experience.” - Don Creevy, M.D., FACOG obstetrician-gynecologist, Clinical Assistant Professor, Stanford University Medical School

“The Thinking Woman’s Guide to a Better Birth puts the power of the latest scientific research of childbirth into the hands of women to help them discern the facts from the myths and make informed decisions about their maternity care.” - Maureen P. Corry, M.P.H., Executive Director, Maternity Center Association

Waterbirth by Janet Balaskas

The Natural Way to Birth and Better Bonding by Fransesca Naish & Janette Roberts

Spiritual Midwifery by Ina May Gaskin

Misconceptions by Naomi Wolf
Published by Vintage, Price AUS$22.46

Every year, millions of women have their lives turned inside out by the experience of pregnancy. This book takes a critical look at the powerful vested interests in the pregnancy business and at the social message coming at women: an amalgam of sentimentality, psychologically dangerous half-truths and conflicting ideologies.

Gentle Birth Choices by Barbara Harper
Published by Healing Arts Press, Price$32.36

Gentle Birth, Gentle Mothering by Dr. Sarah Buckley
Published by One Moon Press, Price AUD$33.26

Kelly Zantey is a birth attendant (aka doula) the creator of BellyBelly, mum to two beautiful children and has just opened the BellyBelly Pregnancy Centre in Canterbury, VIC.