“What to Expect” is rewritten
By Danell Swim
April 16, 2008
That woman on the cover of America’s best-known pregnancy advice book doesn’t have a name — she’s only a sketch, after all. But countless women have come to know this expectant mom over the years, with her dowdy clothes and nondescript haircut, staring placidly into space from the safety of a rocking chair.
She needed an update. And now she has one: The woman adorning the just-released fourth edition of “What to Expect When You’re Expecting” sports chic long hair, hip pregnancy jeans (well, as hip as you can get in pregnancy jeans), pointy boots and a formfitting top. She proudly displays her belly. And lo, she stands!
“Pregnant woman erectus — she’s finally off that rocking chair,” quips Heidi Murkoff, author of the hugely successful series she began with her late mother and sister a quarter-century ago. “It was definitely time for a positive spin.”
Some readers would argue the same about the book. Though it remains undeniably popular — it’s been on the New York Times best-seller list for 355 weeks, with nearly 15 million copies in print — the information-packed “What to Expect” has always had some detractors, who felt certain bits of advice were unnecessarily anxiety-provoking, a little alarmist. This new edition, largely rewritten, is a chance to present a version that’s “more reassuring, more positive, more empathetic than ever,” its author says.
Despite the huge success, mothers like to debate the book’s advice on message boards, and mock titles have emerged such as “What to Freak Out About When You’re Expecting.” On urbanbaby.com one can still find references to the book’s warnings, toned down in later editions, that common fetal hiccups could signal a severe umbilical cord problem and that oral sex on a woman could in rare cases cause a fatal embolism. Also, a “Best Odds” diet for pregnant women was seen as difficult to follow.
Kane, of Parenting, who used the book religiously during her own pregnancies, says she understands those objections, but still, “there’s nothing else like this book. What I love about it is that so many things can happen during a pregnancy, and Heidi covers them all.” She credits Murkoff, who contributes regularly to the magazine, with working hard to improve the book, such as moving “a lot of the scary stuff” to a back section.
Murkoff has also changed the diet, which she says was “a little whole-wheatier-than-thou.”
“What I didn’t realize was that if we expected too much of women, it would send them straight to the nearest McDonald’s,” she says. The new book also has more realistic sketches, week-by-week updates, and more information on alternative medicine, pregnancy sex and multiple births.
“Listen, I can’t please all the moms, all the time,” Murkoff says. “Most women feel it strikes the right balance.” And she notes that she’s never once gotten a letter saying, “Too Much Information.” Usually, she says, it’s even more information that moms are asking for.
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