In a controversial book that sold more than 30 million copies in the three decades following its publication in 1946, pediatrician Benjamin Spock changed the way American parents raised their babies. The Common Sense Book of Baby and Child Care, based on Spock's 10 years of pediatric practice and psychoanalytic training, gave parents permission to use pacifiers, maintain flexible feeding schedules, and show ample affection to their babies. All were considered radical ideas at the time and, many believed, led to permissiveness that produced undisciplined, out-of- control behavior. The controversy created by the book catapulted Spock to fame, making him a worldwide child-rearing icon and prompting him to branch out in his career to include teaching and political activism.

Spock was born the eldest of six children in 1903 in New Haven, Connecticut. His father was a railroad lawyer whom Spock describes as "grave" and "just," who commuted by trolley to his...