Ari Brown

Hi Everyone, Thanks for taking the time to learn a little bit more about me! When I am not writing books, I actually work full time as a pediatrician in Austin, Texas. Like every other graduate of the University of Texas at Austin, we all try to find a way to make it back to Austin and call it home. It took me over a decade to return to this very cool city. I received my medical degree from Baylor College of Medicine in Houston and also met my husband there. He helped out as a teaching assistant in my anatomy class. There's nothing like the smell of formaldehyde and a cadaver to set the mood... We completed our residency training in Boston. He became an ear, nose, and throat specialist. I completed my general pediatrics residency at Harvard Medical School/Boston Children's Hospital. We had our first child shortly after residency, moved to Baltimore for jobs, had another baby, and decided to move back home to our native Texas. After seven years of being a busy pediatrician, I realized that parents and parents-to-be wanted to be more involved and more informed about children's health issues. I applaud that. Informed parents are empowered parents! But, the parenting shelves at the bookstore were lacking the level of up-to-date, detailed information that parents needed. And the internet lacked reliability of sources and the ability to give parents a perspective on what they were reading (example: most headaches are NOT caused by brain tumors). Hence, Baby 411 was born in 2003. I translated my passion to educate families into the best selling 411 Parenting Series. I now have three book titles: Expecting 411:Clear Answers and Smart Advice for Your Pregnancy (co-authored with OB/GYN Dr Michele Hakakha), Baby 411: Clear Answers and Smart Advice for Your Baby's First Year and Toddler 411: Clear Answers and Smart Advice for your Toddler (both co-authored by consumer advocate, Baby Bargains author, and mom, Denise Fields). Each title is updated every two years to provide readers with the most up-to-date content out there. Despite my many hours serving as a child health advocate being a spokesperson for the American Academy of Pediatrics, child health expert for WebMD, and medical advisor to Parents Magazine, my most gratifying achievements are my two kids--who really are amazing. And now that I have a teenager living in my home, my next project may be Teenager 411--HELP! Head over to www.baby411.com for book updates and the latest news on pregnancy and child health. Join the conversation!