Book Review: Beyond the Sling

Beyond the Sling: A Real-Life Guide to Raising Confident, Loving Children the Attachment Parenting Way by Mayim Bialik

My rating: 4 of 5 stars

I really loved this book. I have a seven month old son, and we have been using attachment parenting principles thus far. Not intentionally at first; initially we followed our instincts and our hearts. After he was born I started wondering if how I was doing things was normal, so I turned to books to see how things are usually done. Through my research I found that we were using attachment parenting techniques, which makes sense since attachment theory basically says to follow your heart and trust your instincts. I only know a handful of people who are really doing attachment parenting; most of the moms I know are following a more traditional parenting style of having their baby sleep in a crib and stuff like that. I don't judge these moms AT ALL, I know that no one knows their baby like they do and I am sure they are doing what is best for their family. But sometimes its tough being the oddball. I have a hard time relating to some of their problems, and at the same time I only have one or two friends who can really relate to how we do things. One of these friends sent me an article that featured an interview with Mayim Bialik discussing her new book, Beyond the Sling. As a huge fan of the Big Bang Theory television show (this woman plays one of the main characters in the show), I was excited to see that she does attachment parenting. Not only that, but she has a PhD in neuroscience, which is awesome. Coming from a biology background, that just makes me respect her and her choices even more. I decided to preorder the book.

This book did not let me down. She does not lecture you. She does not tell you what to do. Instead, she tells you her story and what she has been doing and what has and hasn't worked from her. She begins right at pregnancy and continues through breastfeeding, bed sharing, up until gentle disciplining techniques and how to take care of yourself. What was most helpful for me in reading this book was simply having another person I could relate to. It's nice to see someone else doing what you are doing and seeing it be successful. This book has been reassuring. This book also gave me lots of new ideas that I am excited and incorporate into my own parenting.

I would recommend this book to several different types of people. First, to anyone who is curious about attachment parenting but doesn't really know much about it and isn't interested in reading a dense parenting book about it. I read this over the course of a couple of days and it covers all the principles of attachment parenting in a real and light-hearted way. You will definitely get a great idea of what attachment parenting is all about from reading this book. Second, I would recommend this book to anyone who is already using attachment parenting. Like I said previously, it is great to read a success story and have someone to relate to. Third, I would recommend this to anyone who isn't sure about their parenting style (or the one they will use in the future), or is having trouble with their children and not having a great experience as a parent. Even if you don't want to adopt all the principles of attachment parenting, this book may help you gain some new, fresh ideas.

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