UNDIES, PLEASE!

A toddler is determined to ace the potty-training experience.

The diaper-wearing tot, who could be a girl or a boy, really wants underwear, just like the colorful pairs their older sibling wears. Daddy (who appears to be a single dad) obliges, and they go underwear shopping. Once the tyke has the brand-new undies on, the whole family, all with medium brown skin and straight black hair, rallies to the toilet-training cause. The youngster progresses through the other milestones of mastering the toileting routine: learning about wiping, teaching a toy how to have a tinkle, transitioning from diapers to the potty chair, having an accident, and trying again. After some abortive attempts, the toddler finally pees in the potty, and the family celebrates. While there is, unfortunately, no mention of hand-washing, the book affords a joyous and playful potty-training exploration. Seeboruth uses just enough words to get the point across, and the holophrases and telegraphic sentences emulate toddler-speak—a rarity in a book category that is often burdened with too much text. Corrin’s textured digital illustrations depict friendly, familial scenes in lively colors and have a chalk-art feel that contributes to the sense of the story being told through the eyes of a child.

Empowering and entertaining for those learning to “go.”