Feed the Baby Hummus

February 5, 2018
This reassuring childcare volume offers a wealth of basic information, as well as useful tips and “secrets” from 40 countries. Though pediatrician Lewis includes chapters on breast and bottle feeding, a recipe for Lebanese hummus, and an assortment of other recipes from a handful of countries, feeding represents just part of her focus; she also shares invaluable advice on topics ranging from sudden infant death syndrome to selecting the right kind of diaper. The well-traveled pediatrician peppers her book generously with tidbits from other cultures: in Holland, for instance, where regular routines are prized, six-month-olds generally sleep two hours more than their American counterparts; babies in Malaysia enjoy a warm-water ladle bath with soothing oil, and babies in Nigeria are not allowed to “cry it out” and are consoled immediately. Lewis lavishes particular praise on the “baby box,” a cardboard box packed with baby supplies that the Finnish government, since the 1930s, gives to expectant mothers (the box, once unpacked, doubles as a baby’s first bed). Throughout, Lewis’s tone is invariably evenhanded: when it comes to deciding when to stop breastfeeding (a fraught issue in various cultures), for instance, Lewis notes that no two babies, or mothers, are alike. Her book is a treasure trove of childcare tips, and a clever cross-cultural journey.