I’m not sure why this book is just coming out now and why I never realized how important it is. It sounds silly, but we as Muslims are very precise about our bathroom habits and cleanliness and the fact that this is the first book to address it for children is actually, kind of surprising. But Alhumdulillah, you only need one if it is done well, and over 16 pages of cute illustrated rhyme filled pages, istinja is explained and normalized. The book is a great tool to use, not only, when potty training toddlers, but also for reviewing with your preschooler when they might be leaving home for the first time and/or seeing other people’s bathroom habits.
The book starts out with a thorough “Note to Parents” explaining istinja, tahara as well as giving parents some tips to handle potty training in general. The book starts by noting how you started out as a baby and are now growing and part of the growth has you ready for big kid underwear.
It talks about what it feels like when you need to go, and how when that feeling happens, you need to hurry to the bathroom. If you hurry and still have an accident, we (the parents) will clean it up and not to worry.
The book teaches that you enter with your left foot, and ask for help if you need it. That you sit down to do your business because poop and pee are najis, impure. You then have to do istinja, which is like a germ fighting ninja!
It teaches the toddler to call for mom or dad to wash them with the lota or bidet or pot using their right hand to pour and their left to wash. You then use toilet paper to dry. After you flush, you wash your hands for 20 seconds, leave with your right foot and be done.
The book then has a glossary, some ayats of Quran and some Hadith as well as Duas relating to the bathroom. The 8×8 hardback book is done really well and conveys the key points on a kid’s level, which is great.
I love that the book uses Islamic Arabic words and shows a diverse family being patient and encouraging. I am fine with the child illustrated as reading a book while on the toilet, but I think some parents might frown on that. The book is meant for Muslim kids, and does a good job of showing the practicing family in the illustrations and in the text.
Thank you to Crescentmoonstore.com for their great price and service!
This book is the first in a series (hopefully) called Trilingual Sofia, where English is the predominant language, and Spanish and Arabic are interwoven to tell the story. Focusing on Eid and spending the holiday in Mexico with her non Muslim grandmother, the story with bright illustrations is a celebration of diversity, acceptance, family, and Eid.
Islamic School Librarian 