Book Reviews: Belly Laughs, by Jenny McCarthy

Shortly after I found out I was pregnant, a friend of mine lent me a buttload of books to read. I was excited to get started, but I was also a little overwhelmed. I decided to start with Belly Laughs because it was the shortest of all the books so I figured it'd be a good way to ease me in to all the catch-up reading I'd be doing this summer.

Everyone told me to read this book. I don't think there's a pregnant woman or mom in my circle who didn't say, "You should read this book! It's sooooo funny!" So I figured, "Jenny's from Chicago. Hell, we lived in the same neighborhood and attended the same church! Surely her sense of humor will be one I can relate to and we'll have a few chuckles at my expense."

Sadly, that was not the case. Jenny prides herself on being crass and upfront and no-holds-barred, but I wasn't impressed. She made a name for herself by being all those things, and she takes it upon herself to say, "Hey! I'm pregnant! Let me get in your face and tell you what's really going on down there!" It comes off like she's a pregnant high school or college student telling all her friends about pregnancy at Starbucks.

This book is just a bunch of stories from Jenny, and they all start out basically the same way, "This one time, I got pregnant, and ca-RAZY things happened to me!" I'm not impressed, Jenny. She tries to be funny, but I didn't laugh. Not once. And it's pretty easy to make me laugh!

If you want a book that has anything important or vital to the health and well-being of your gestating child, this isn't it. But, if you're the rare woman who is all alone in a sea of non-breeders, a book like this could be your only clue to the "extra" stuff that happens to your body. But if you're like me, just ask your friends and family to be extra honest about things and save yourself $8.99 and 2 hours.