GIVEAWAY and Book Review: The Eco-nomical Baby Guide

This post is a review of The Eco-nomical Baby Guide: Down-to-Earth Ways for Parents to Save Money and the Planet by Joy Hatch and Rebecca Kelley.

Top Ten Reasons to Read
The Eco-nomical Baby Guide

1. Helps you save the planet AND save money
There are many books about how to be greener with baby.  But do any give more than a cursory nod towards thriftiness?  Other books that help you save money have little to say about earth-friendliness or avoiding toxins.  Learning new ways to save green and be green works for me!

2. Not another judgmental, all-or-nothing parenting guide
If you have read any parenting books or infant care guides, you know that many of them try to persuade you that if you do not follow their advice, your child will be emotionally scarred and/or mentally impaired.  These overbearing self-important books made my insecure, impressionable, new-parent self even more stressed out and overwhelmed.  This book is not like that!  One of the book’s mottos: progress, not perfection!  They even admit their own eco-sins.

3. Full of awesome information
I spent the first months of my first child’s life obsessively researching greener alternatives.  I have also read the Green Baby Guide (the authors’ blog) pretty faithfully for a few years.  I still learned many new things from reading this book.

4. Options, options, options
Their green product recommendations include “Heirloom Picks,” “Midrange Options,” and “Economy Picks.”  I like that.  They also give advice on where to splurge and where to save on baby gear, baby food, and other stuff.  They also present a huge range of options on each topic.  On the topic of diapering, for example, they discuss the cheapest disposables to the easiest cloth diapers to infant potty training!

5. Easy to browse
You could read this book in little snippets and get a whole lot out of it.  As a parent of young children, I appreciate this.

6. If you are frugal, this book validates your cheapness by telling you why being frugal is also greener
If someone accuses you of being a tightwad, cheapskate or miser, after reading this book you will be able to explain to them how really you are just doing your part to save the earth.

7. If you are green, this book shows you how greener can also be cheaper
Does your mother-in-law thinks you’re ridiculous for worrying about Mother Earth or environmental toxins?  After reading this book you will be able to explain to her how really you are just being frugal so you can deposit more money in her grandchild’s college fund.

8. Avoids TMI on toxins
I’ve read several books on how to be a greener parent when I had my first child.  These books tell you all about the horrible stuff in everyday household products, toys, bedding, etc.  As a new parent, there was no way I could immediately make all the changes these books recommended due to a lack of money and time.  Thus, the information mostly tended to make me overly paranoid and anxious about the evil toxins lurking all around my children.  This book addresses some of the worst toxins (in a non-scary, practical and frugal manner) and then points you towards additional information if you want it.

9. A taste of reality
This book is by 2 moms with young children.  It includes tales from the authors’ lives, many humorous asides and comments from regular folks who are readers of the Green Baby Guide.

10. Additional resources at the end of each chapter
Additional information on baby gear, cloth diapers, disposable diapers, crafts, green companies, breastfeeding, recipes for cleaners, household toxins, and more.

8 Ways to Enter the Giveaway

You can enter more than once! Each way listed below gets you one entry.  All comments have to be posted by May 31, 2010.  This contest is for U.S. Readers only.  The winner will be randomly selected and announced June 1, 2010 on the Eco-novice homepage.

1. Leave a comment to this post.
2. Does your library have copies of The Eco-nomical Baby Guide?
     If not, request a purchase, then leave a comment.
3. Email a friend about this giveaway, then leave a comment.
4. Become a follower or subscriber of this blog (see left sidebar).
5. Post this giveaway on Facebook, then leave a comment.
6. Go to Eco-Novice’s Facebook page, click on "Like,"
     then leave a comment here.
7. Add Eco-Novice to your blogroll,
     then leave a comment with the link.
8. Post this giveaway on your blog,
     then leave a comment with the link.

Full disclosure:  I was sent a free copy of this book (which I am now offering to YOU in this giveaway) by the publisher.  I am also a devoted fan of the authors' blog, Green Baby Guide.

This post is part of
Top Ten Tuesday
Works for Me Wednesday
Thrifty Thursday