Bibliofemme Bookclub An Irish Bookclub

When I recently discovered I was pregnant (and after I got over the shock), I did what most first time expectant mothers do – ran out and bought lots of pregnancy books. While most of these books are useful, the majority of them scare the living daylights out of me, and my ability to retain information seems to disappear as quickly as I turn the pages.

However, when given From Here to Maternity: One Mother of a Journey as my Kris Kindle present in work I gamely picked it up and started to read. As Mel Giedroyc is a professional comedian you would assume that her book should be somewhat humorous, but this is downright hilarious.

As a first time expectant mum, Mel documents the hell of the first three months, the ever increasing waistband and her state of denial brilliantly. Written in a completely self-effacing style, she pulls no punches and quite literally had me laughing out loud. So much so that, half way through the book, I started to read it aloud to my husband who also enjoyed it.

Being pregnant is pretty overwhelming and the depth of knowledge available to the expectant mother is frightening. From Here to Maternity is informative, amusing, and also makes the expectant mother feel normal – normal for craving weird food, normal for devouring the entire contents of the fridge and, most importantly, normal for feeling fat and unattractive.

Thank you Mel! You gave me a laugh and made me feel slightly less fat and frumpy. A must read for pregnant women everywhere.

“A refreshing and wholly entertaining break from all the practical and medical books that pile up ominously beside your bed during pregnancy!” 4/5