The Boy Who Cried Poo

April 1, 2023
Oops--or, rather, poops! Accidents happen. It's the first day of vacation, and savvy Dad asks if the nameless narrator or their younger brother, Marc, needs to use the bathroom before they head to the pool. "NO!" Bidding farewell to Mom and other family members, they descend "exactly 168 steps." No sooner do the kids jump into the empty pool than Marc announces that he desperately needs to go No. 2. Marching back upstairs, the family runs into assorted neighbors. However, when Marc sits on the pot, he can't deliver the goods, so they return downstairs. This frenetic scenario repeats itself. But when they make it downstairs a third time, Dad's too pooped to make another trek when Marc moans that he really has to go, then finally does--right in the water. What could have been an eww moment becomes a surprisingly reassuring one when a few folks--big sibling plus those encountered on the staircase during the family's several journeys--confide their own poop-your-pants experiences. Marc is relieved to learn that "everyone poops their pants sometimes." (Readers will feel similarly.) This take on a perennially popular topic will grab children's attention and promote empathy. The colorful digital illustrations are humorously energetic; characters are very expressive. Dad, Mom, Marc, and the narrator are brown-skinned; the supporting cast is racially diverse. (This book was reviewed digitally.) When you gotta go, you gotta go...and read this comical, all-too-relatable tale of a potty mishap. (Picture book. 4-7)

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