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I Need a New Bum!

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The book behind the viral internet sensation of "The Scottish Granny" reading this story to her grandchild. A young boy suddenly notices a big problem - his bum has a huge crack! So he sets off to find a new one. Will he choose an armor-plated bum? A rocket bum? A robot bum? Find out in this silly, quirky tale with hilarious illustrations. Children and parents will love this book - no ifs, ands, or butts about it! "I can assure you right now that your kids will love this book. They will giggle, they will laugh, and they will want this book to be read over and over again because it is just plain silly and funny ... the perfect kid-combo." Storywraps

36 pages, Kindle Edition

First published September 1, 2012

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Dawn McMillan

229 books63 followers

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5 stars
1,585 (47%)
4 stars
833 (25%)
3 stars
540 (16%)
2 stars
227 (6%)
1 star
133 (4%)
Displaying 1 - 30 of 532 reviews
Profile Image for Emily May.
2,290 reviews323k followers
November 24, 2020
I feel the same as a lot of other adults who've reviewed this book do: I don't really get it. The premise is quite funny-- "I need a new butt. Mine's got a crack!" But then this boy goes on a journey to find a new butt (a green one? a wood one? a robot one?) and I just didn't find it funny.

But, well, I'm not the target audience, and the actual target audience adored this book. He asked me to read it again and again, so what do I know? I must be old.
Profile Image for Sandysbookaday (on indefinite hiatus).
2,722 reviews2,497 followers
September 28, 2020
EXCERPT: I need a new bum! Mine's got a crack .....

ABOUT THIS BOOK: A young boy suddenly notices a big problem — his butt has a huge crack! So he sets off to find a new one. Will he choose an armor-plated butt? A rocket butt? A robot butt? Find out in this quirky tale of a tail, which features hilarious rhymes and delightful illustrations. Children and parents will love this book — no ifs, ands, or butts about it!

MY THOUGHTS: A huge thank you to Carla Johnson-Hicks who posted a video clip of a Scottish woman reading this to her wee grandson on her webpage carlalovestoread.wordpress.com - it was hilarious, I had tears of laughter running down my cheeks and I almost wet myself. It is honestly, the funniest thing that I have ever seen. (Other than Billy Connolly live). Maybe it's the Scottish thing.....

Luke didn't have quite the same reaction, but he still thought it was pretty darned funny and we all had to take turns at reading it to him. In the end, he couldn't make up his mind whether he wanted a rocket bum or a robo bum.

😂🤣😂🤣

THE AUTHOR: Kia ora

I live in an amazing place, on the Thames Coast of the Coromandel Peninsula in New Zealand.

I work from a little studio in my back garden. I look out my studio window across the park to the beach. Many of my stories are about the sea, or about nature. We have the bush close by and I love to walk alongside the Waiomu Stream, right up to a grove of magnificent Kauri.

But not all my stories come from nature. I keep a watch on what’s happening around me and I listen to what people say. Sometimes a joke can give me an idea. But most of my stories come from my own experience…the happy times, the sad times, and the special people I’ve known.

You’ll see that I do a lot of readers for schools. I enjoy doing these. They’re like a story and a puzzle combined. The story is the most important part but there are lots of reading level challenges to get right too. The readers go all over the world, with some of them translated into other languages.

Come and see us sometime. Bring your swimming gear and your fishing rods. If you let me know you’re coming I’ll make you some hokey-pokey biscuits.

DISCLOSURE: I purchased I Need a New Bum written by Dawn McMillan and illustrated by Ross Kinnaird, published by Oratia from my local bookstore, PaperPlus. All opinions expressed in this review are entirely my own and my grandson Luke's personal opinions.

For an explanation of my rating system please refer to my Goodreads.com profile page or the about page on sandysbookaday.wordpress.com

This review and others are also published on Twitter, Instagram and my webpage https://sandysbookaday.wordpress.com/...
Profile Image for Diane S ☔.
4,901 reviews14.6k followers
May 26, 2022
A novel experience to receive a book recommendation from ones mailman. His name is Josh and he's a Dad to two young boys aged 4 and 6. Anyone who has or has been around young children know they go through a toilet humor stage and this book uses this humor in an amusing way. The young boy in the story uses his imagination to picture different buts, some decorated, some made of different materials. Colorful illustrations and a recognizable ending. Too cute!!
Profile Image for Rosh (is back & catching up slowly!).
2,517 reviews5,475 followers
June 6, 2026
In a Nutshell: A children’s picture book with some questionable inclusions. My low rating isn't because this talks about butts, but because I found it poorly written.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Plot Preview:
Written in first person, the young narrator is sad at having discovered a crack in his butt. He wonders where and when he might have broken it. (He’s fairly certain a fart caused it to split.) He then mulls over various butt options he could try as a replacement, going from the arty to the outrageous. But will these options work on a broken bottom?


It is a truth universally acknowledged that kids like good butt stories. And this one seemed to have the makings of one. But I don’t get its appeal.

Honestly, the title got me cracking up. I was hoping for a cheeky story about how the boy discovers that all butts are cracked. However, while the story started off excellently, it got wilder and sillier as it progressed, which isn't what I expected. Just when I was hoping it would deliver a good/reasonable ending, it closed abruptly, thereby sealing my low rating.

Such books obviously cannot be read with logic. I too let many silly things slide in this silly tale. But one question that I cannot stop myself from asking is: how did the boy not realise that his pet dog too had a cracked butt? Was he so self-centred? Then again, he was actually ready to sell his dog to earn enough money for a new butt – nope, not done! Pets ought to be valued!

The story is written in rhyming prose – not my favourite style but the lines do rhyme decently. However, there are many difficult words/concepts in the content. Will younger readers know the meaning of ‘titanium’ and ‘chrome’? Will they understand what’s a 1960s sport coupé?

The illustrations are in tune with the story, and some of the artwork is quite funny. But a couple of the sketches (and their corresponding verses) didn’t work for me. Like the one with an artist painting a mural on the boy’s naked butt or of the boy ramp-walking with his naked bottom and the audience evaluating his “outfit”. Kids might find this funny but it made me uncomfortable.

Amazon says that the official target age group is 6-10 years, but the story might be too juvenile for the older kids of this age range. Some other sites recommend this to 4-8 year olds, but the younger kids in that segment won't understand most of the middle section. So unless you have kids who can laugh at the word/image of ‘butt’ without wanting any further explanation, this isn't worth a purchase.

Overall, I expected to chuckle aloud at this story but it just didn’t click with me beyond the first six pages which were genuinely funny. Bathroom humour usually works well in kids’ books, but this is a sad exception. I still think the “broken butt” idea was fabulous; it just deserved better execution.

Then again, the story aims at young boys, and I have never been one in my life. So who knows? Maybe they will find this a cracking [Sorry! Couldn’t resist this dad joke!] adventure, especially as they will not indulge in as many ifs and butts [Whoopsie! Sorry again!] while reading this. But in all honesty, I cannot recommend it strongly.

2 stars.


On an aside, this book came into my life because I read about a Mississippi school administrator whose employment was terminated in 2022 after he read this book aloud to his class of second-graders. It has been a four-year long battle, but he has finally received (some) justice. In Jan 2026, the Mississippi Court of Appeals reversed the school board’s decision to fire him, calling the original decision “arbitrary and capricious’. I appreciate this decision. Even though this book didn’t work for me, I believe that there’s nothing wrong in silly children’s books referencing perfectly natural things like butts or farts. Many children learn to love reading by beginning with such books. Some adults really need to get off their high horses and think with the heart of a child.


~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

I follow the Goodreads rating policy:
⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ - Lifelong favourite!
⭐⭐⭐⭐ - I loved the book.
⭐⭐⭐ - I liked the book.
⭐⭐ - I found the book average.
⭐ - I hated the book.
The decimals indicate the degree of the in-between feelings.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Connect with me through:
My Blog || The StoryGraph || Instagram || Facebook ||
Profile Image for James.
515 reviews
December 30, 2018
‘I Need a New Bum’ (2018) – by Dawn McMillan, with illustrations by Ross Kinnaird – is a fun and silly story aimed squarely at its target audience demographic of largely bum/pooh fixated 2-6 year olds.

For a supposed ‘internet sensation’ and with the subject matter being potentially so much fun – ‘Need a New Bum’ is somewhat underwhelming; it’s just okay, it’s quite amusing at best – but in the right hands could definitely have been lots more fun than it is. But then again – maybe I’m just too old?
Profile Image for Scott.
Author 23 books44 followers
April 5, 2018
3.5 stars
I found some of the humour in this forced at times, but I can see it would appeal to young children.
The ending fell flat and lacked any kind of closure. I know I’m an adult and may be expecting too much from a book aimed at children, but the end just seemed anticlimactic.
Profile Image for Christian West.
Author 3 books4 followers
June 3, 2018
Short, cute book about a boy who wonders what kind of new bum he should get because his has a crack in it. Amusing and the pictures are cute.
Oh, and I want a rocket bum, all fire and thrust.
Profile Image for Jennifer Tabler.
66 reviews19 followers
August 15, 2014
Ok im no prude and I read this and I don't think it is appropriate for kids. It says fart I don't know how many times and shows many butts. I know the kids see a lot worse but why add more crap to there brains.
Profile Image for Licha.
732 reviews127 followers
April 17, 2020
2.5 stars

It's a kid's book. It's supposed to be silly. First couple of pages made me laugh out loud so it was enough to reel me in but the rest kind of failed for me. However, I'm not the target audience, so this might be funny enough for a kid to laugh all the way through.
Profile Image for aPriL does feral sometimes .
2,264 reviews572 followers
October 16, 2025
‘I Need a New Butt!’ by Dawn McMillan is a silly picture book for little kids! Since I laughed my ass off several times, too, I guess old farts will enjoy the fun as well. I assume it will be a book that parents read to their kids. I assiduously examined the pages and I did not find anything but a lot of asinine jokes which despite the toilet humor, cracked me up! There are literally hundreds of YouTube videos by little kids, moms, grandmas, and teachers loving this book and assessing it as the kind of book which entices children to continue with their reading lessons.

I have copied the book blurb:

”A young boy suddenly notices a big problem — his butt has a huge crack! So he sets off to find a new one. Will he choose an armor-plated butt? A rocket butt? A robot butt? Find out in this quirky tale of a tail, which features hilarious rhymes and delightful illustrations.”

Some MAGA and Christian Evangelical adults have deemed the book crass, asserting the book is no asset to any library or home. Republicans bent over for these few blowhards and passed laws. As a result, in 2025 any teacher who tries to introduce this book to kids now, or any librarian caught recommending it this year, will be prosecuted and put in prison in at least two states. In most other Midwest and Southern United States states teachers and librarians will lose their jobs and whatever certifications they have after having been fired. Plus, MAGAs invent further harassments, and worse, given recent events of MAGA attacks in the news on the homes and family members of people MAGA and Christian members don’t like. MAGA politicians continue to assail the reading public with threats of closing down libraries that don’t comply in meeting MAGA demands for censorship of any materials not meeting with White supremacist evangelical standards. As a result, ‘I Need a New Butt’ is a banned book in those places where MAGA politicians, with their assubjugating agenda, have taken over the local school boards and state congress and governor’s office.
Profile Image for Emily Jones.
422 reviews1 follower
August 25, 2019
This is what literature has been reduced to these days? Unbelievable. I’m sure children would find some humor in this book with its presentation of different silly ideas for a “replacement butt,” yet it’s just not well done. The ending makes little sense and seems to end abruptly. I’m also just not a fan of encouraging “potty humor” in the minds of children. Let children be children, but this is not funny.
Profile Image for McKenzie.
284 reviews35 followers
July 8, 2019
this was hilarious. A rhyming book about needing a new butt because it has a crack is a fun read to have with kids and adults (my husband and I stumbled across it in the bookstore and I giggled like a child while reading.
Profile Image for Alex Sarll.
7,235 reviews375 followers
Read
February 22, 2020
When people talk about how modern children's literature needs to address the issues that concern young people, I assume this is what they mean.
Profile Image for Mehsi.
15.7k reviews463 followers
March 17, 2022
A laugh out loud book about a little boy who decides he needs a new butt… his got a crack!


I already eyed this book some time now, but then I read an article that a principal in the US got fired after reading this book! We can’t have that. Really, it is getting freaking ridiculous with all the book banning and book this and that being “bad”. So I thought I would read this one, write a review! Help this book get some love, show it is silly to ban books/fire people for reading a book like this. So I moved around some things in my blog schedule (I am all full for March and half of April) so that this book’s review would be up quickly.

In this hilarious book that will delight young readers (and also some older ones, like me) we meet a little boy who finds out that his butt is cracked. Yep. And so he wonders where it happened. I just had such a laugh at all he was imagining could be the cause. From a fart to a slide. To be honest, the fart was very relatable. XD

And then follows the quest on what new butt to choose. There are all sorts of butts, from coloured ones to flair (taking the saying to a new and literal level). I had so much fun seeing him think of all the butts he could have, and BOY there are many. I would definitely not mind having a choice of butts. Would be fun! I laughed a lot during this part. So so much.

The art was also fun. The illustrator really can draw butts! And it made everything written become even more funny.

The ending, I was wondering how it would go, butt I definitely hadn’t seen that one coming. It is a good ending!

All in all, this book is just fantastic. Let’s stop banning books and just have fun again. Let kids read and be read aloud to whatever they want. If they want butts, then go for it! Recommended!

Review first posted at https://twirlingbookprincess.com/
Profile Image for Julee.
348 reviews66 followers
July 21, 2014
I know little kids love to laugh about butts and booties all day long. I spend a lot of time with four and five year boys and every other word seems to be poop. Even so, I didn't really get this book. I think it would be funnier as a birthday or get well card. I can't see me using I Need a New Butt as a library read aloud to children.
Profile Image for Amanda [Novel Addiction].
3,579 reviews100 followers
March 15, 2022
Read this for a few reasons...
1. It's funny
2. Give the library an extra eBook stat
3. Because it's absolutely ridiculous that someone was fired for reading this book. I bet the kids that were listening to that storytime thought it was absolutely hilarious.
Profile Image for Elena.
43 reviews
March 3, 2024
don’t get it. no moral of the story. how did he not notice his butt crack earlier in his life??? doesn’t make sense. 0/5 stars. read this in the aisle at target.
2,367 reviews31 followers
December 27, 2020
Years ago there was a book called Everyone Poops. It wasn't a great book, but I guess it had some redeeming value. This book didn't.

We browsed Target and this caught my eye. I read it there. It tried to be cute. I guess there was a line or two that made me chuckle. In the end, it's just bathroom humor. Blech!
May 25, 2022
For full transparency, I didn't read this book. Instead, I watched a video where it was read aloud for a kid based target audience. To be completely honest, it made me smile and I watched the video several times.

I will also put here that this book came to my attention when I read a review on my Goodreads feed (thanks Gregg) which stated that Toby Price, a Mississippi vice-principal had been fired because he read this book out to a bunch of elementary school kids (lower primary). It seems the school administrators are not amused by bum and fart references.

This is exactly the kind of book that would get my 7 year old great-nephew giggling. He is at the age where all fart and bum humour is the height of great literature. While middle-aged me jokingly eye-rolls to his mother about his current taste in books, I am simply happy that he wants to read. So, I have ordered a copy of the book and its follow up, and they are now on their way to my great-nephew for his enjoyment.

This is the kind of book that can engage kids into reading books. The illustrations are colourful, relevant to the text, and funny. The story itself is the right level of sillyness and playfulness that you want in a kids book. Not surprisingly it abounds in bum and fart jokes, and even has some bum puns. Admittedly, the text may not earn the author a spot in Poet's Corner, but then again, this is not supposed to be high poetry.

It can be difficult getting kids interested in books and reading. Any book that can capture a kid's interest and have them wanting to read it again, and then read another book is a good book - a great book.

And seriously, if you take an honest look back to your own childhood, can anyone say that they didn't giggle at a fart or bum joke when they were young?
Profile Image for Roz.
914 reviews61 followers
Read
December 22, 2019
Shopping for pressies for my nephew! (I read it. It counts. It's December and I am behind my reading goals!)

I was first introduced to this book by The Scottish Granny on Youtube, who read it aloud to her very young grandson between snorts of laughter. Sounded perfect.

The story is pretty simple. The kid realises that his bum is broken. It is cracked. From there he wonders how it happened, to thinking up daft ways to replace his bum.

I think what surprised me the most was the vocabulary in this. I have taught some kids in high school who wouldn't necessarily know some of those words. But then, hose unfortunate kids never had their grannies read to them (or their moms, dads or other interested family members). If what the research suggests is true, that one is able to learn the most up until the age of 5, then please read books with good vocab!

Anyway, this was a fun read - even for me.
Profile Image for Addy Orangutan .
31 reviews4 followers
February 18, 2023
This book taught me so much about my identity and who I say I am. Now I can look behind me and not be afraid at what I see. No longer is it just some alien substance latched upon me, it is a part of me! I have a butt!! And I don’t really mind if it’s cracked;)
👉👈🥹
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
Displaying 1 - 30 of 532 reviews