The Best Parenting Books

Tata Harper, Rosie Pope, and other moms tell us which parenting books they refer to on the regular.

Parenting books: can’t live with them, can’t live without them. They have the power to put moms entirely at ease or make them feel completely out of their element. It’s always good to have someone blaze the trail before you pick up the tome, which is why so many people choose their favorite parenting books based on recommendations from friends. Not friends with other moms? No problem. Elizabeth Street moms like Tata Harper and Rosie Pope have all recommended their favorite parenting books. (Turns out, Elizabeth Street moms read everything from the classic What To Expect series, to Lenore Skenazy’s sometimes controversial book Free Range Kids.) It’s always good to know as much as you can about the most important job you’ll ever have, even if you don’t agree with everything you read