Reading recommendations

I'm a reader. This does well for me when I have a new subject to research, because taking in and digesting large amounts of information doesn't phase me. I have noticed that my free-time for reading seems to have been replaced with chasing a speed-crawling baby around the house, but I'm working on a new system. I call it 'Carrying a Book With Me.' It eliminates the situation where I find myself sitting in the middle of the living room floor wondering about the condition of my feet (note to self: lotion) while the baby tries to beaver through his Melissa&Doug blocks.

Most of what I read these days seems to fall into one of two categories:

Raising a baby/child

Pure pulp fiction

So today I'm going to give you a recommendation from each category, on the off-chance that you, too, are an avid reader.

Raising a baby/child

The Science of Parenting by Margot Sunderland: This is a book about a baby's brain. Unlike most child-rearing books that tell you what you should do to avoid spoiling/ruining your child, this book lays out what happens to your baby/child's developing brain when you, for instance, let them cry for an extended period of time, or force them to sleep separate from you in another room. Full of photos and sidebars to help break up the large chunks of information, TSoP is divided into chapters like "Crying and Separations" and "Behaving badly."
If you have only one parenting book in your library, this is the one you should invest in.

Pulp fiction

Moon Called: Mercy Thompson Book 1 by Patricia Briggs: In Mercy Thompson's world, fae have 'come out' to the general public, but there are plenty of things that still go bump in the night, including Mercy herself, a Native American skinwalker with the ability to change into a coyote. The local werewolf pack seems to be having troubles, and Mercy gets drawn into the fray somewhat against her will.

A strong female character, a believably written fantasy world, and a quick pace makes this book well worth the time it will take to read. The fact that it's book one in a series only makes it better.

Looks like that's all the free time for today. A tiny Beast has just crawled up to me and is tugging hopefully at my leg and making his 'I want to nurse!' noise.