Cheers, Mama

Nine months of "just water for me, thanks."

There's a better answer - and there are 83 of them.

Pregnancy is long, and a surprising amount of it happens at other people's parties. Somebody is always pouring, and the choice is usually orange juice, tap water, or something so sweet it makes your teeth ache.

Cheers, Mama is 83 alcohol-free drinks worth actually wanting - sharp, grown-up, properly made. Drinks that look like the real thing from across a room, and taste like somebody thought about them.

ALL NINE MONTHS, AND THE SEASON AFTER

There's a strategy for the first trimester, when you aren't ready to tell anyone, and everybody keeps offering you a glass. There's a baby shower chapter with quantities that actually scale. And there's a full chapter for after the birth, with every drink built to be made in advance - because at three in the morning, with one hand free, past-you being kind is the entire point.

INSIDE YOU'LL FIND

• 83 alcohol-free recipes, from a single glass to a pitcher for a crowd
• Drinks that look like the real thing, for when you'd rather not explain
• A full chapter of make-ahead drinks for the fourth trimester
• An index that starts with how you feel - queasy, heartburn, awake at 3 am - and points you to the glass
• Straight answers on caffeine, extracts, and what to order at a bar
• US and metric measures throughout
• A bonus waiting on page 94

A GIFT THAT ISN'T FOR THE BABY

Everyone else is buying tiny hats. This one is for the person doing the actual work, which makes it a present she'll open twice.