A HISTORY OF TOILET PAPER (AND OTHER POTTY TOOLS)

A comedic, nonfiction picture book explores the history of human hygiene and toilet paper.

Starting at the beginning of human history (200,000 years ago, according to Gholz’s timeline), this creative story examines potty tools. Early substitutes for toilet paper and hand towels included seashells, grass, moss, and leaves. The author fast-forwards to ancient Mesopotamia’s ceramic and brick nonflushing toilets and makes a stop at ancient Rome’s public toilets—recommended “if you don’t mind pottying in public and sharing a tersorium (a bum brush) with others.” She then proceeds to the invention of paper in China in 79 C.E. But it takes many years before flushing toilets and commercial toilet paper hit the market, and Gholz and illustrator Teimoy indulge in silliness every step of the way. In endnotes, the author explains that sources differ regarding many facts about toilet origins, but the inventors and time periods in the book are the most commonly accepted. For sheer potty humor, Gholz has hit gold, and the use of simple language and sentence structures allows emergent and newly independent readers to experience the comedy confidently. Teimoy’s diverse cartoon illustrations capture the humor of early potty techniques (for example, a bidet user in 1700s France loses her balance while getting a “spritz”). For some readers, the specifics of how toilet paper was invented and marketed may come as a revelation. In addition, this history of how humans have gone to the bathroom delivers plenty of gross, gleeful details that science lovers will enjoy.

A humorous and clever tale about toilet tools.