The Best Books to Buy for New and Expecting Parents

Published by Dan Orkin, November 16, 2023

The experience of having kids brings with it a lot of stuff. From strollers and teething toys to highchairs and plushies, your house quickly starts to fill up with gifts and gear which will undoubtedly include quite a few books. The books on your bookshelf will grow more colorful and varied in size, as copies of the sophisticated literature you were assigned in college are joined by thought-provoking titles like Cars and Trucks and Things That Go (one of my son’s personal favorites). 

Whether you’re a new parent expanding your library or someone looking to get the perfect book as a gift for another family, you’ll find all kinds of suggestions on this page. Many Pango sellers are parents themselves and there are always excellent deals to be found on books their kids have outgrown. If you see a book you’re interested in, try clicking into the seller’s shop page, where you’ll likely find other relevant kids or parenting books you can buy as a bundle. 

Books on pregnancy and childbirth

Perhaps the most obvious place to start as far as books for expecting parents is any number of titles about pregnancy and childbirth. Some of these titles are more medical in nature, such as the popular Mayo Clinic Guide to a Healthy Pregnancy. Books like these are essentially reference books, offering an easy way for pregnant people and their partners to look up symptoms, guidelines, and more. With these sorts of books, there are often multiple editions floating around and it’s usually best to seek the latest version. 

For something a little less formal, Bumpin' by Leslie Schrock is an approachable and encouraging title with advice on all sorts of topics related to pregnancy. There are also lots of books that look to reexamine conventional wisdom from broader, more holistic perspectives. One interesting example is Expecting Better by economics professor Emily Oster. While somewhat controversial in some circles, this popular book takes a critical eye to prevailing advice for pregnant people holding the data up to scrutiny. 

Other options in this category include books aimed at dads and other birthing partners, pregnancy cookbooks, as well as journals and activity-based pregnancy books. You could even try making the latter of those yourself as a touching and super personalized gift.

Early childhood classics

As many experts will tell you, it’s never too early to start reading to your kids, and the classics of early childhood literature have usually earned that status for good reason. There’s something truly magical about reading a book you loved as a child to your own kid, and seeing their minds develop and expand as you share in their earliest reading experiences. Goodnight Moon is one of the most classic examples of all and was truly revolutionary when it was first published for emphasizing perceptions and sounds over storylines and whimsy. No nursery would be complete without a book or two by Eric Carle such as that iconic hungry caterpillar or Brown Bear, Brown Bear (or its spin-offs, Panda Bear, Panda Bear, What Do You See, and Polar Bear, Polar Bear What Do You Hear). 

There are tons of other examples of timeless books for babies and toddlers, and whether or not a title ranks in the boardbook hall of fame, simply thinking back to the books you associate with your own childhood can be a powerful and rewarding experience. 

Books on parenting

Like the pregnancy and childbirth books mentioned above, books on parenting can take a wide variety of forms. For one, there are popular guidebooks on navigating the complexities of parenthood such as the bestseller, How to Talk So Kids Will Listen and Listen So Kids Will Talk. Other books examine the effect parenthood has on parents themselves, such as All Joy and No Fun by Jennifer Senior, or hone in on specific topics like being a parent to siblings (see Siblings Without Rivalry by Adele Faber and Elaine Mazlish). Or maybe consider something a bit quirky and fun like Bringing Up Bebe which examines parenting practices in France from an American perspective. 

Another approach is to opt for something more inspirational than instructional, like a biography that showcases a noteworthy parent-child relationship, or even a novel that showcases the deep nuances of the parent-child relationship. For a good example of the former, check out The End of Your Life Book Club by Will Schwalbe. This memoir lovingly depicts the bond between Schwalbe and his mother, Mary Anne, as they form a "book club of two" while she undergoes cancer treatment.

Books to escape into and take a break 

Being a new parent isn’t all about training yourself with scientific know-how and other advice. At the end of a long day, sometimes you just need to take a break and escape into a fantasy world or engrossing storyline. For this, we recommend books like cozy fantasies or mysteries, lighter beach reads, and other sorts of fiction that can help new parents take a much-needed break.

For a read about as cozy as cozy can be, consider Legends and Lattes by Travis Baldree, a heartwarming fantasy about a retired warrior orc named Viv who wants to open the first coffee shop in her city. Another book that’s perfect for escapism is the American classic, Little Women, by Louisa May Alcott. Tired parents will love the heartwarming antics of the March sisters and may even shed a few tears as the girls become women in the post-Civil War United States.

More awesome books for babies and toddlers 

The all-time classic board and picture books mentioned above are great options for new parents and make fantastic gifts. But as great as the classics can be, you’d be missing out on a huge range of fantastic kids books if you just stick to the more recognizable titles. In close, here’s an assortment of books that our family loves, even when we’re forced to read them a dozen or so times in a row.