The 25 Best Parenting Books That Every First-Time Parent Needs to Read

Every new parent should have this book. It's a clear and simple go-to that'll help you digest a lot of new info when it comes to caring for your baby. It's especially helpful to have on hand during pregnancy, so you'll know what you're in for once your little one arrives.

This book is packed with helpful infographics that demonstrate important lessons, like learning how to swaddle a baby.

More: Every Parent Needs to Know the Truth About Crib Bumpers

The same trusted advice that you depended on for 40 weeks of pregnancy will also help you navigate the 52 weeks of your baby's first year. Heidi Murkoff's reassuring month-by-month guide follows a Q&A format, answering the most common questions that seemingly all new parents have.

We understand that this is technically a children's book, but let's be honest: E.B. White was onto something when he said that we all learn when we read books for children. 

Ibram X. Kendi teaches children and parents the root structure of becoming an antiracist, and it's truly essential learning for everyone. 

No one is harder on themselves than mothers. We constantly worry if we're doing enough, if we're doing it fast enough, what we could be doing better, and what we could jam into our schedule to make our children that much more successful. 

What Rebekah Borucki does in this book is help moms take a step back and see their accomplishments, accepting that parenting isn't always newborn baby smell and endorphin rushes. Sometimes, it's frustrating to the point of making you want to pull your hair out, and you need focus and perspective. Borucki gives you tools for that. 

Affectionately known as the “baby bible,” this comprehensive guide by pediatrician Dr. William Sears is the instruction manual all newborns should be born with. That is, if you would consider delivering a 750-page book in addition to your baby!

Breastfeeding is a triggering topic. There's so much judgment surrounding it that finding a book that strikes the balance and gives good advice feels impossible. Until now, that is. 

This book gives simple, straightforward, judgment-free advice about everything from pumping to plugged ducts in a fun-to-read style accessible to most. 

Here's a handbook for Daddy-o that'll give him a boost of confidence when it comes time to bring the baby home. Not only does the book give Dad info about how to care for his child, but it also provides insight into how the new mama is feeling, too. 

Featuring New Yorker cartoons and modern research, this is a must-have for any new dad.

Parents who swear by Dr. Harvey Karp’s methods call him “the baby whisperer” for good reason. His patented 5-S system has helped hundreds of thousands of sleep-deprived parents get their babies to sleep. Read his chapter on the fourth trimester and prepare to have your mind blown!

The fully revised and updated version includes new information about parenting today: topics like bed-sharing, SIDS, breastfeeding, and swaddling.

Giving your kids “the talk” doesn’t have to be a dreaded event. This book makes incorporating body and sex talk with your kids a more everyday thing. It'll totally take the pressure off when your kids hit puberty and hormones make everything more complicated.

Talk to Me First helps parents arm their kids with knowledge about everything from consent to appropriate behavior in a way that makes the whole thing so much simpler. 

Challenge: Name one mom who can't relate to this title! There are plenty of laughs tucked behind the cover of this book. 

It features essays by 37 hilarious and honest mom bloggers, including the minds behind Insane in the Mom-Brain and People I Want to Punch in the Throat.

Your baby is suddenly having hour-long crying fits at the same time every day — is that normal? If this is your first parenting rodeo, it can be hard to understand the reasons behind your baby's changing behavior.

The Wonder Weeks guides you through the first year as a new parent. Based on years of research, this book can help to decipher your baby's mood swings and learn how to stimulate their brain development.

Where to begin with this book? It's aspirational, inspirational, and extremely necessary. We are parenting in a time when it feels like the whole world is undergoing a revolution, and parents are looking to each other to figure out what our place is in this storm. 

This graphic novel asks the big questions, and instead of giving simple answers, it frames things philosophically and educationally. It challenges parents to look at their own biases and motivations and explore what it means to be raising a human when the world is burning.

Pick up this invaluable guide if you’re a breastfeeding mom heading back to work. Jessica Shortall’s tips and tricks on preparing to pump, finding a private place in the office, and navigating airport security (and bathrooms) with your precious breast milk will make this time feel a lot less isolating.

The reality is that parenting doesn't always happen in pairs, and that is totally OK! Being a single mom can be a beautiful, happy, and joyous experience that results in well-adjusted kiddos.

When blogger Emma Johnson found herself divorced, pregnant with a toddler, and totally lost in the new world of single motherhood, she found little to no resources out there. She wrote The Kickass Single Mom to help others navigate solo parenting on their own terms.

A man who wasn't sure if he wanted any kids fell in love with a devout Catholic and ended up with five. In a New York City apartment. He's also a comedian, traveling the country for weeks on end. Hilarity is bound to ensue, and Jim Gaffigan captures it perfectly.

Raise an individual! This parenting book is a must-read for every new mom and dad. It challenges parents to focus on their child's unique abilities and personality instead of parenting based on gender stereotypes.

This revolutionary, best-selling children's book for grown-ups by Adam Mansbach offers comic relief on those long, sleepless nights of frustration. Try reading it to your screaming baby. Despite the profanities — or maybe because of them — they may just go the F to sleep!

Parenting a newborn can sometimes feel like you're being thrown into a line dancing competition and you don't know any of the moves.

The book 50 Things to Do in Baby's First Year is the guide through your first year of motherhood milestones. The best part is that this book isn't just about taking care of your new bundle. Some of the 50 tasks are also about taking care of yourself, because your own sanity is vital! 

Silly, sad, and true tales fill the pages of this book that'll leave you completely in stitches. Go cover to cover and you'll seriously lighten up about the things that go wrong (and they will go wrong) during the early parenting years.

Dawn Dais, you had us at “Breastfeeding Is Really F’n Hard,” “Your Life is Officially Over,” and “You’ll Be Blamed in Therapy Someday.” Those are just some of the chapter names you’ll find in this hilarious book of funny real-life anecdotes that’ll give you a few chuckles amidst the chaos of being a new parent.

On social media, parenting is full of big smiles, charming messes, and tear-free dinners. In reality, children can turn from sweet baby angels into screaming wildebeests for seemingly no reason at all.

No-Drama Discipline offers parents science-based insight on how to calmly handle their child's tantrums, fallouts, and tears. Instead of reacting emotionally when your child throws a fit, Dr. Siegel and Dr. Bryson will teach you how to diffuse a situation so that everyone is all smiles again.

What happens when two economists become parents? They crunch the numbers to find the formula for more relaxed parenting. 

Using data-backed insights, Oster debunks some of the conventional parenting advice and uses this information to create more realistic solutions. Beware: There are actual graphs in this book!

For the dad who views becoming a parent with the spirit of MacGyver, then this is the only parenting book that he will need. 

From changing diapers mid-baseball game in a full stadium to staying awake during the team meeting at work despite running on three hours of sleep, he will feel totally prepared.

Your baby's sleep schedule is kind of like a brand-new kitten's: random naps throughout the day and staying up all night long. Sounds cute, right?

Dr. Weissbluth, one of the country's top pediatricians, gives parents a step-by-step guide to getting their children to sleep and form healthy sleep habits from birth to adolescence. 

Most parents want to know the secret to raising the smartest, most well-rounded, and happiest child. While every child is different — so the actual key doesn't exist — Brain Rules for Baby is close enough. 

Dr. John Medina uses science to outline how to raise a well-adjusted, happy, and intelligent tiny human from birth to 5 years old.