You Can't Wear Panties! (No More Nappies!) by Justine Avery and Kate Zhoidik

You Can't Wear Panties! (No More Nappies!) by Justine Avery and Kate Zhoidik
Buy You Can't Wear Panties! (No More Nappies!) by Justine Avery and Kate Zhoidik at Amazon.co.uk or Amazon.com
Category: For Sharing
Reviewer: Jill Murphy
Summary: A sweet and engaging picture book, aimed at helping little girls progress from nappies to "big girl pants". Fun as ever from Justine Avery but perhaps not quite to the standard of some of her other books.
Buy? Maybe	Borrow? Yes
Pages: 26	Date: November 2021
Publisher: Suteki Creative
ISBN: B09FFJF8YS
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For the big, grownup girls out there, the potty masters in training, "You Can't Wear Panties!" is a cry (the big-girl kind!) of toilet triumph and persevering panty pride.

And so it is! This latest book from Justine Avery celebrates a little girl's final goodbye to nappies and pull-ups and graduation to "proper" pants by following her around as she proudly explains to her dog, her cat, her stuffed rabbit and her baby sibling that she can wear super-duper proper pants, while they cannot. Neither can the flowers, nor the fish, nor the birds. Boy's certainly can't. She's a big girl now and she wants everyone to know it!

It's a lovely message: to be proud of a newly gained independence and perhaps also one to show that the tears and accidents along the way were all worth it. Kate Zhoidik's illustrations are lively and energetic, using a colour palette that will appeal to girls without being a pinkfest - mauves, blushes, aquas and ambers. It's a book that you'd want to buy your daughter to show that you're proud of her for taking this big step. And one that you'd want to share so that she knows you're in it together.

We love Justine Avery here at Bookbag. Her books are always positive: full of sunshine and joy and often, as here, aiming to inject some fun into areas of childhood and parenting that aren't always full of it. They encourage both children and parents alike and they promote the sharing of books, which is always a good thing.

So we don't like to sound a critical note at all. But a review's a review and it's important to be honest and so we have to say that You Can't Wear Panties! isn't our favourite. There's nothing wrong with it - it aims to celebrate the right of passage from nappies and pull-ups to proper big girl pants; the text is fun for mum and daughter to chant together; the illustrations are lively and attractive with lots of detail to point out. It just lacks some spark somehow, and the subject feels a little bit thin.

But don't let this mild criticism put you off. You Can't Wear Panties! is still a fun picture book and Justine has lots more to offer. Here are some of our favourites:

The Farm Shop by Devon Avery, Justine Avery and Ema Tepic Everybody Pees! (Everybody Potties!) by Justine Avery and Naday Meldova I Dreamed You by Justine Avery and Ema Tepic This Book Wants to Make You Laugh (Living Book) by Justine Avery and Daria Yudina

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You can read more book reviews or buy You Can't Wear Panties! (No More Nappies!) by Justine Avery and Kate Zhoidik at Amazon.co.uk Amazon currently charges £2.99 for standard delivery for orders under £20, over which delivery is free.
You can read more book reviews or buy You Can't Wear Panties! (No More Nappies!) by Justine Avery and Kate Zhoidik at Amazon.com.

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