How to Pee--Potty Training for Girls

January 1, 2016
A book that's unafraid to put the fun in flushing. Anyone familiar with the physical logistics on display in How to Pee: Potty Training for Boys (2015) may be inclined to scratch their heads at a feminine sequel. Yet while the plumbing may vary, the idea of making potty time a creative endeavor is gender-inclusive. As with its predecessor, "Dr. Todd" opens the book with an explanation about why he turned potty time into a game with his kids. What follows is a series of different methods, easily adoptable by girls everywhere. There's "Little Star Style," which involves contemplating the wonders of the universe from a backyard potty; "Royal Ball Style," complete with toilet paper; and "Dance-Party Style" (glow sticks optional). Those adults under the impression that peeing outside is strictly boy territory will be edified by the little protagonist's attempts to "water the flowers" (as it were) as part of the "Fresh-Air Style." With a list of tips at the end, the book is as much a training manual for anxious parents as it is a series of role-playing ideas for kids. Once again, Chung is called upon to give this pint-sized urinator a certain level of joie de pisser. This he does with aplomb, depicting a biracial child with an Asian-American mom and white dad. A continuously clever concept that allows kids to alleviate their fears even as they relieve their bladders. (Picture book. 2-4)

COPYRIGHT(2016) Kirkus Reviews, ALL RIGHTS RESERVED.

April 1, 2016
Preschool In this companion to How to Pee: Potty Training for Boys (2015), Spector again advocates the creative approach, encouraging children to behave theatrically in learning how to use the toilet. Though the dramatis personae have a distinctly gendered castfairies, ballerinas, princess, witchat least two suggestions escape gender expectations by involving trips out into the (fenced) yard, either by day to Water the plants or with a parent at night for a chorus of Tinkle, tinkle, little star. Chung illustrates each of the 10 four-step scenarios with cute, discreet cartoon views of a costumed child heading, often but not always with Mom and/or Dad, toward either a full-size toilet or a pink porta potty. The family is white, but a darker-skinned guest does arrive for a collective Tea Party Style. The author, a family practice physician, closes with sage advice for parents. Wiping afterward doesn't get a mention but could easily be incorporated into the playful strategy.(Reprinted with permission of Booklist, copyright 2016, American Library Association.)