Baby Proof Review

Baby Proof is a thoughtful novel that explores what it is like for professional twenty- and thirty-somethings when the "kid" issue comes up.  As a professional in my late twenties who doesn't want kids, an issue that comes up frequently in dating now, I was intrigued by the story of Claudia and Ben, who agree while dating that neither wants children.  Now married, their relationship starts to unravel when Ben decides that he wants kids after all.  The story looks at how the pressures to have children--societal, external (ie parents/family who want them to have kids), and internal within the relationship itself--can divide a couple with an otherwise strong, enviable relationship.

Even if you don't identify with the main characters in Baby Proof, the book's supporting cast of interesting characters are all in various stages of dealing with the impact of children.  One of Claudia's sisters faces the issue of whether to stay with a philandering husband for the sake of the kids.  Her other sister is waging a battle with infertility.  Her best friend is considering having a baby in order to encourage her married lover to leave his wife.  A couple that Ben and Claudia are friends with have just had a baby.  And Claudia, as an adult, is trying to handle a relationship with the mother who emotionally abandoned her as a child.  So no matter where you are in life, you will likely be able to identify with one or more of the characters.

The best part about the book is the ending.  While both come to the realization that their relationship is more important than the issue of kids, the book never resolves which one of them is going to have to compromise their desires to stay together.  It is the realization that they are both willing to do so that saves them.  But it leaves you with the feeling that much like real life, the hard issues cannot be worked out quickly and neatly.

All in all, I think this is a good read that is thought provoking while still managing to be entertaining.