by Do covers of storybooks matter? If you ask me, I think they do and I have seen my child and other kids at the story sessions I conduct to be drawn to interesting covers of the books. They want those stories to be narrated first. The book I Need to Pee written by Neha Singh and illustrated beautifully by Meenal Singh and Erik Egerup is refreshing in its outlook.
The book has a young girl standing in an awkward pose that indicates almost she is dire need to pee. So the story begins with young Rahi probably around 8 years of age remembering her train journey from Mumbai to Gawhati and further to Meghalya.
Rahi is a kid who loves juices and they seem forbidden as mumma has to worry where to make her pee comfortably among travel journeys.
The pictures in the book are starkingly different and a few may even create a chuckle as portraying the reality of washrooms and our bodies. Having said that it is important that we siscuss these stories with kids-both boys and girls as we all know it isn’t easy for women and girls to use washrooms on journeys and travels.
After a train journey that reached Gawhati, Rahi now thinks of using a washroom in a star hotel. This is a dilemma many women travellers would have faced either themselves or moms tagging kids along. Is it acceptable to use the washroom without having to buy anything at the café or not? Rahi has lots of books on quotes and laws too which clearly now states in the country anyone can use the toilet in any hotel.
So does Rahi get to use the washroom in the hotel? Do read the book to find out even as the story treads along with interesting illustrations and descriptions of the hills, bus journeys and even various kinds of toilets.
Lastly loved the last line in the book ‘Children should always have a safe toilet experience’.
A must-read if you are travelling with kids this summer
A must-read for girls and boys for a delightful story with interesting illustrations.
I Need to Pee is published by Penguin Books.
Reviewed by Reshma Krishnamurthy from Mums and Stories
