46 books like Permissible Progeny? The Morality of Procreation and Parenting

Conly starts by examining the problems tied to human population size and raises a powerful moral challenge to the notion that we have the right to procreate as much as we want.

In fact, she leans heavily toward answering the question in her book’s title with a “no” and, within certain parameters, would support a global one-child policy.

While I ultimately defend a different position than Conly’s on this issue, her book had a huge influence on my work on overpopulation, and this work is one of the most accessible and provocative presentations of the environmental challenge to procreative liberty.

In this book, David Benatar defends a strong version of antinatalism – the view that it is morally wrong to procreate – and David Wasserman attempts to defend the moral permissibility of procreation.

Like most people, I originally found antinatalism deeply counterintuitive when I first encountered it, but some of Benatar’s arguments are hard to refute. I consider many of Wasserman’s responses reasonable, but as his exchange with Benatar progresses, the caveats and limits on permissible procreation become harder to ignore.

Even if antinatalism is false, this debate left me with the impression that the moral standards for procreation are much stricter than most believe. 

Rivka Weinberg’s theory of when procreation is permissible and why is one of the most well-defended accounts of reproductive ethics.

The subtitle alludes to the book’s unique approach – the idea that procreation should be an exercise in risk management. All children face the risk of serious harm, so we should only procreate when we are able to do an awful lot to mitigate that risk.

What struck me most about Weinberg’s approach was its theoretical rigor and systematicity. Her account of the ethics of procreation is more thorough and cohesive than other work on the subject I have encountered, and her conclusions, while not being as stark as an antinatalist outlook, are nevertheless provocative.

Christine Overall’s approach to the ethics of procreation draws more heavily on feminist philosophy than my other recommendations.

Understanding the aspects of procreation and pregnancy that exclusively impact women is crucial to informed ethical reflection on the issue, and Overall is one of the foremost experts on this aspect of procreative ethics.

Overall also intertwines her discussion of procreative ethics with questions about why having children is valuable and what motivates a decision to have them.

Books offering support to parents have come on in leaps and bounds since the days when Gina Ford and Supernanny-style discipline reigned supreme. This book is my go-to book for practical advice.

Perry, a psychotherapist with more than 20 years of experience, is not interested in manipulating children’s behaviour with naughty steps and sticker charts. Her approach may incidentally help to get your children to brush their teeth and eat their vegetables, but her emphasis is on the far deeper and more important business of how to build a mutually respectful and cooperative relationship. Her voice is wise and refreshingly nonjudgmental.

This is one for parents who, in Perry’s words, "Not only love their children but want to like them, too”.

Parents are the foundation of our society. However, too many parents do not receive the support they need to meet the needs of their children.

Dr. Dana Suskind, my incredible wife, combines the latest science on the key role of parents in the development of children’s brains with stories of the experience of parents left shouldering this vital responsibility. Leaving parents unsupported is detrimental not only to children and families, but also society.

This book is essential for all members of society to read in order to understand why and, importantly, how we must support parents. Parent Nation provides a blueprint for a more sustainable future.

This book singlehandedly changed the way I parented my children, especially my daughter who is very different than me in the way she processes information and how she moves through life. 

Through this book I learned to not only understand that her journey is her own and whenever I’m upset about her choices or the way she is doing things it often is because I’m inserting my own journey and fears into her life instead of letting her be who she is gloriously designed to be.

This book brought me a realization that my fears were often the motivator behind my parenting and helped me to redirect my focus to the joy and the wonder of the differences my child has and look for ways to support her strengths rather than focusing on changing what I deemed her weaknesses – thus, I was able to empower her in a way… show more.

Anxious Parents: A History of Modern Childrearing in America probes what I consider to be the basic dilemma of modern American parenting – how the love for children and concern for their welfare has led to growing anxiety among parents eager to do it right. 

In imaginative research into different dimensions of culture, Stearns shows that middle-class parents became increasingly self-conscious and self-questioning about meeting the needs of their children starting in the early twentieth century. The book probes the emotional consequences of modern parenting’s commitment to encouraging child expression and individual happiness.

Stearns’s exploration demonstrates one of the consequences of the revolution—from viewing children as having utility to having only emotional value—first defined by Zelizer. It suggests how even the best-intended changes can have unexpected consequences.

In this book, Dr. Lieberman holds parents’ hands as she walks through toddlers’ emotional experiences.

She draws upon her work as both a clinician and a researcher in writing this book, leaving a narrative that is fresh and also well informed. As a long-time fan of Dr. Lieberman, I can feel her respect for young children emanating throughout this book.

Dr. Naumburg’s books, including this one, offer a fresh perspective on parenting.

In this book, she compels parents to practice radical self-compassion. I find her message comforting and welcome, especially in an era when parents get messages from literally everywhere about all of the things they need to do better. Ironically, our feelings of guilt and anxiety about parenting can actually get in the way of good parenting, so finding a way to tune out these voices is important.

Dr. Naumburg is here to tell parents to accept that we are human, that parenting standards are impossibly hard, and that we should be more understanding of ourselves. This just feels really good to hear, especially on the heels of the pandemic, and I think we all need this message.

This is the kind of book I frequently recommend to friends and clients.