The lesson is clear: Pee with flair.
Sure, potty training is important, but how many books emphasize how to urinate with style?
Family practitioner Spector explains that he and his wife potty trained their son using the “free style” method. Translation: Costumes optional. Moved to inspire others, he offers this minihandbook highlighting 10 different styles from which a boy can draw inspiration. There’s “Rocket Style,” which involves a countdown to “blast off”; “Superhero Style,” in which the valiant urinater defeats a villainous square of toilet paper with proper aim; and “Firefighter Style,” in which the stream is put to good use extinguishing an imaginary potty fire. For all these and more, wardrobe changes and props are encouraged. Naturally some styles are stronger than others. “Magic Style” makes perfect sense, while “Mommy Style” (in which the child presumably imitates his mother and complains that the toilet seat is up) is just a cheap joke. Parents who would rather their kids not pee outside may wish to avoid “Free Style” and “Waterfall Style,” both of which turn the great outdoors into a boy’s personal lavatory. Illustrator Chung treats the material with suitable razzle dazzle, imbuing his hero with the heart and soul of a performer while never showing a single penis. A note to parents and a list of basic potty-training rules at the end make this a touchstone for the anxious.
The lesson is clear: Pee with flair. (Picture book. 2-4)Pub Date: April 14, 2015
ISBN: 978-0-8050-9773-3
Page Count: 40
Publisher: Henry Holt
Review Posted Online: Feb. 2, 2015
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Feb. 15, 2015
BOOK REVIEW
Not a standout, but it’s potentially useful for allaying the anxieties of wee ones ready to make what can be a scary leap...
A primer for little boys transitioning from their own potties to the toilet.
Jack is a cute, bespectacled tot wearing a large pirate hat featuring a skull and crossbones. He is busy playing with his teddy bear (which sports a bandanna and eye patch) when Daddy announces that it’s time to potty. But Jack has decided that he’s ready to give up the little potty and use the toilet like his father. Capt. Jack climbs aboard “his ship,” pees into the bowl, sits down and “does a poo,” flushes the toilet and then washes his hands. Proud Jack “takes a bow” while “Daddy claps and cheers,” proclaiming Jack “Captain of the Toilet!” Jack makes it look really easy, which may intimidate little ones, but they will probably be too busy repeatedly generating flushing sounds by pushing the book’s big blue button to notice. A companion title, Queen of the Toilet (978-0-7641-6659-4), stars a little girl. It follows the pattern of Jack’s story, except no child’s potty is pictured or mentioned. Bella seems to go directly from diapers to toilet, though the back cover indicates that this title, too, is intended for those transitioning from a child’s potty.
Not a standout, but it’s potentially useful for allaying the anxieties of wee ones ready to make what can be a scary leap from child’s potty to toilet. (Board book. 2-4)Pub Date: Sept. 1, 2013
ISBN: 978-0-7641-6658-7
Page Count: 10
Publisher: Barron's
Review Posted Online: Nov. 1, 2013
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Jan. 1, 2014
A positive approach to a difficult subject.
The latest addition to the Best Behaviors series encourages little ones to “Pick a tissue, not your nose.”
The opening spreads inform readers that noses are for breathing and sniffing but not for picking. The rhyming text, with a couple of clever lines, describes using a tissue, throwing the tissue away and washing hands to “Tell those germs good-bye.” Heinlen’s art, which is a step above other titles of this instructive, didactic ilk, uses a diverse cast of cartoon kids and grown-ups to model appropriate behaviors, rendering them with a bold black line and warm colors. The last two pages offer extensive tips for parents and caregivers on ways to gently discourage nose-picking through modeling, respect, redirection and persistence.
A positive approach to a difficult subject. (Board book. 2-4)Pub Date: Oct. 1, 2014
ISBN: 978-1-57542-471-2
Page Count: 24
Publisher: Free Spirit Publishing
Review Posted Online: Oct. 5, 2014
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Jan. 1, 2015
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