Required Reading
Doula School students are asked to choose three (3) books to read prior to submitting a reading review for their certification (1 reading review per book, as per certification requirements updated in November 2020).
Students are encouraged to pick books that speak to their interests and their program but are welcome to choose books from any category.
Example: a labour doula may want to choose something related to postpartum recovery or loss, or a postpartum doula may wish to read something about fertility or sex and birth.
Have fun choosing – there are some amazing books on perinatal topics out there!
History of Birth Support
The Birth Conspiracy
Rivka Cymbalist
Canada: Curioso Books, 2011
Birth – The Surprising History of How We Are Born
Tina Cassidy
New York, USA: Grove Press, 2006
From Midwives to Medicine: The Birth of American Gynecology
Deborah Kuhn McGregor
Rutgers University Press (1998)
Pushed
Jennifer Block
De Capo Press, 2008
Canadian Books Authors or Experiences
The Birth House
Amy McKay
Vintage Canada, 2007
The Mother of All Baby Books
Ann Douglas
Collins, 2015
Trying Again: A Guide to Pregnancy After Miscarriage, Stillbirth, and Infant Loss
Ann Douglas, John R. Sussman
Taylor Trade Publishing (2000)
Through, Not Around: Stories of Infertility and Pregnancy Loss
Allison McDonald Ace, Caroline Starr, Ariel Ng Bourbonnais
Dundurn (2019)
Indigenous Authors, Experiences or Advocacy
Indigenous Experiences of Pregnancy and Birth
Hannah Tait Neufeld and Jaime Cidro
Demeter Press, 2017.
Red Medicine: Traditional Indigenous Rites of Birthing and Healing
Patrisia Gonzales
University of Arizona, 2012
Life Stages and Native Women: Memory, Teachings, and Story Medicine
Kim Anderson
University of Manitoba Press, 2011.
Labor and Birth Support
Birth Ambassadors, Doulas and the Re-Emergence of Woman-Supported Birth in America
Christine H. Morton with Elayne G. Clift
Praeclarus Press, 2014
The Doula Advantage
Rachel Gurevich
New York, USA: Three Rivers Press, 2003
The Doula Guide to Birth – Secrets Every Pregnant Woman Should Know
Ananda Lowe and Rachel Zimmerman
New York, USA: Bantam, 2009(2000)
Why Did No One Tell Me This?: The Doulas’ (Honest) Guide for Expectant Parents
Natalia Hailes, Ash Spivak
Running Press Adult (2020)
Pregnancy, Childbirth and the Newborn
Penny Simkin, Janet Whalley, Ann Keppler, Janelle Durham, April Bolding
The Doula’s Guide to Empowering Your Birth
Lindsey Bliss
Harvard Common Press, 2018
Gentle Birth Choices
Barbara Harper Rochester
Rochester, USA: Inner Tradition, 2005
Magical Beginnings, Enchanted Lives: A Holistic Guide to Pregnancy and Childbirth
Deepak Chopra and David Simon
Harmony, 2005
The Labour Progress Handbook – Early Interventions to Prevent and Treat Dystocia
Penny Simkin, Ruth Ancheta
West Sussex, UK: The Atrium, Southern Gate, 2011
Birthing from Within
Pam England
Partera Books, 1995
The Birth Partner 5th Edition: A Complete Guide to Childbirth for Dads, Partners, Doula and All Other Labour Companions
Penny Simkin, Ruth Ancheta
Boston, Mass. : Harvard Common Press, 2018
A Doula’s Journey: Into the World of Birth
Sarah Goldstein
CreateSpace Independent Publishing Platform (2014)
A Doula's Guide to Labor Positions
Cheyenne Williamson
Use code DOULASCHOOL10 to get 10% off.
Black Authors, Experiences or Advocacy
Medical Bondage: Race, Gender, and the Origins of American Gynecology
Deirdre Cooper
Owens University of Georgia Press, 2018
Battling Over Birth: Black Women and the Maternal Health Care Crisis
Julia Chinyere Oparah, Helen Arega, Dantia Hudson, Linda Jones
Praeclarus Press (Dec 2 2017)
Killing the Black Body: Race, Reproduction, and the Meaning of Liberty
Dorothy Roberts
Vintage (1998)
The Big Letdown: How Medicine, Big Business, and Feminism Undermine Breastfeeding
Kimberly Seals Allers
St. Martin’s Press (2016)
Like a Mother: A Feminist Journey Through the Science and Culture of Pregnancy
Angela Garbes
Harper Wave (2019)
Delivered by Midwives: African American Midwifery in the Twentieth-Century South
Jenny M. Luke
University Press of Mississippi (2018)
LGBQ2TS+ Authors, Experiences or Advocacy
And Baby Makes More: Known Donors, Queer Parents, and Our Unexpected Families
Susan Goldberg (Editor), Chloe Brushwood
Insomniac Press (2009)
Pregnant Butch: Nine Long Months Spent in Drag
A. K. Summers
Soft Skull Press (2014)
Raising Them: Our Adventure in Gender Creative Parenting
Kyl Myers
Topple Books & Little (2020)
Where’s the Mother?: Stories from a Transgender Dad
Trevor MacDonald
Trans Canada Press (2016) )
My Son's Siblings: A Queer Parent's Memoir on the Joys, Grief, and Ethics of Donor Conception
Eli Ramos
Eli Ramos (2025)
How to Make a Baby: Everything LGBTQ+ Families Need to Know About IVF and Fertility Treatments (Trying to Conceive, Queer Parenting)
Allie Conway, Sam Conway
Mango (2025)
Postpartum Transition and Recovery
Mothering the New Mother
Sally Plaskin
Newmarket Press, 2000.
Nurturing Beginnings: Guide to Postpartum Care for Doulas and Community Outreach Workers
Debra Pascali Bonaro
Debra Pascali-Bonaro, 2014
Misconceptions, Truth, Lies, and the Unexpected On the Journey to Motherhood
Naomi Wolf
First Anchor Books, 2003
Nobody Told Me About That: The First 6 Weeks by Ginger Breedlove
Michelle Michelle, Libby Rosen, Ashley Seematter, Jamie Zahlaway, Katya Simon, Ravae Sinclair, Alexandria Montgomery, Megan Arbour, Richard Vaughn
This Isn’t What I Expected: Overcoming Postpartum Depression
Karen R. Kleinman and Valerie Raskin
Da Capo Lifelong Books, 2013
The First Forty Days: The Essential Art of Nourishing the New Mother
Heng Ou
Harry M. Abrams, 2016
The Mother-to-Mother Postpartum Depression Support Book
Sandra Poulin
Berkeley, 2006
The Fourth Trimester Companion
Cynthia Gabriel
Harvard Common Press, 2017
Myself Again
Gabrielle Mauren, Michelle Wiersgalla
Loss
After Miscarriage: Medical Facts and Emotional Support for Pregnancy Loss
Krissi Danielsson
Harvard Common Press, 2008
Companioning at a Time of Perinatal Loss
Jane Heustis, RN, & Marcia Jenkings, RN
Companion Press, Colorado, 2005
What God Is Honored Here?: Writings on Miscarriage and Infant Loss by and for Native Women and Women of Color
Shannon Gibney and Kao Kalia Yang
Univ Of Minnesota Press (Oct. 15 2019)
Joy at the End of the Rainbow
Ross-White
Henke (2017)
Holding Space: On Loving, Dying, and Letting Go
Amy Wright Glenn
Parallax Press, 2017
Our Heartbreaking Choices: Forty-Six Women Share Their Stories of Interrupting a Much-Wanted Pregnancy, 1st Edition
Christie Brooks
(iUniverse, 2008)
Without Apology: Writing on Abortion in Canada
Shannon Stettner Athabasca
University Press, 2016
Anxiety: The Missing Stage of Grief: A Revolutionary Approach to Understanding and Healing the Impact of Loss
Claire Bidwell Smith
De Capo, 2018
It’s OK That You’re Not OK: Meeting Grief and Loss in a Culture That Doesn’t Understand
Megan Devine
Sounds True, 2017
Through, Not Around: Stories of Infertility and Pregnancy Loss
Allison McDonald Ace (Editor), Caroline Starr (Editor), Ariel Ng Bourbonnais (Editor)
Dundurn (2019)
Through the Grey Skies: A Mother's Journey of Grief and Hope
by Megan Hewson
Trauma
The Body Keeps the Score: Brain, Mind, and Body in the Healing of Trauma
Bessel van der Kolk M.D.
Penguin Books, 2015.
Trauma Stewardship: An Everyday Guide to Caring for Self While Caring for Others
Laura van Dernoot Lipsky, Connie Burk
When Survivors Give Birth: Understanding and Healing the Effects of Early Sexual Abuse on Childbearing Women
Penny Simkin and Phyllis Klaus
Quality Code Publishing, 2004
The Myth of Normal: Trauma, Illness and Healing in a Toxic Culture
Gabor Maté MD, Daniel Maté
Healing After Birth: Navigating Your Emotions After A Difficult Childbirth
Jennifer Summerfeldt
Lacatation and Infant Care
Safe Infant Sleep: Expert Answers to Your Cosleeping Questions
James J McKenna
Sweet Sleep
Diane Wiessinger, Diana West, Linda J. Smith and Teresa Pitman
Ballantine Books, 2014
Breastfeeding Made Simple: Seven Natural Laws for Nursing Mothers
Nancy Mohrbacher, Kathleen Kendall-Tackett
Breastfeeding: Empowering Parents
Dr Jack Newman
The Nursing Mother’s Companion, 7th Edition
Kathleen Huggins
Harvard Common Press, 2015
Childbirth Educator: Readings to Accompany Assignments
Birth – The Surprising History of How We Are Born
Tina Cassidy
New York, USA: Grove Press, 2006
The Complete Book of Pregnancy and Childbirth
Sheila Kitzinger
Knopf, 2003
The Womanly Art of Breastfeeding
La Leche League International
Ballantyne Books, 2010
Pushed
Jennifer Block
De Capo Press, 2008
Dr. Jack Newman’s Guide To Breastfeeding
Dr. Jack Newman and Teresa Pitman
Collins, 2014
Fertility Support
Taking Charge of Your Fertility, The Definitive Guide to Natural Birth Control, Pregnancy Achievement and Reproductive Health, 20th Anniversary Edition
Toni Weschler William Morrow Paperbacks, 2015.
FIt Starts with the Egg
Rebecca Fett, 2023
Fat and Fertile: How to Get Pregnant in a Bigger Body
Nicola Salmon, 2019
Awakening Fertility: The Essential Art of Preparing for Pregnancy
Lara Amely Greeven, Heng Ou, and Marisa Belger Briden, 2017
How to Make a Baby: Everything LGBTQ+ Families Need to Know About IVF and Fertility Treatments (Trying to Conceive, Queer Parenting)
Allie Conway, Sam Conway
Mango (2025)
Menopause Doula
The Menopause Book: The Complete Guide: Hormones, Hot Flashes, Health, Moods, Sleep, Sex
Barbara Kantrowitz
Workman, 2018
Flash Count Diary: Menopause and the Vindication of Natural Life
Darcey Steinke
Sarah Crichton Books, 2019
Hot Flushes Cold Science
Louise Foxcroft
Granta, 2010
Before the Change: Taking Charge of Your Perimenopause
Ann Louise Gittleman
HarperOne, 2017
The Wisdom of Menopause: Creating Physical and Emotional Health During the Change Paperback
Christiane Northrup M.D.
Bantom, 2012
Business and Business Inspiration
The Big Leap: Conquer Your Hidden Fear and Take Life to the Next Level
Gay Hendricks
Bellweather Books, 2010
Daring Greatly: How the Courage to Be Vulnerable Transforms the Way We Live, Love, Parent, and Lead
Brené Brown
Avery Books, 2012
Body of Work, Finding the Thread That Ties Your Story Together
Pamela Slim
Penguin, 2013
Lean In: Women, Work, and the Will to Lead
Sheryl Sandberg
Knopf, 2013
Infant/child Sleep
The no-cry sleep Solution, second edition
Elizabeth Pantley
Sweet Sleep: Nighttime and Naptime Strategies for the Breastfeeding Family
By La Leche League International, Diane Wiessinger, Diana West, Linda J. Smith, Teresa Pitman
Prefer to get certified online? We have you covered with our self-study options!
What our Students Say
“The videos on these modules for the dual stream are SO GOOD. First of all it’s great to be able to see/hear you guys especially as a home-study person and secondly so much of the content is covering stuff I was really wondering about (e.g what is meant by emotional support, and the nuances of relationship building with primary care folks). Loving it!!”
– Jenn