Emily’s Magic Words: Please, Thank You, and More

This chipper, earnest etiquette primer for toddlerstakes off from the oft-heard suggestionthat“please” and “thank you” are magicwords. (So are “hello,” “good-bye,” and “excuse me”). After all, reason the Posts (who are co-directors of the Emily Post Institute and the co-authors of Teen Manners ; see Children’s Notes), when one says to a friend, “Please have a cookie,” it can conjure up a smile, and when one says, “Excuse me” after a breach of behavior (a burp), disapproving parents are transformed into forgiving ones. Landry’s (Eat Your Peas, Ivy Louise ) crisp, winsome ink and watercolor spot illustrations keep the mood light. His Emily, balancing a head as large as her torso, is first seen sporting a magician’s top hat and purple cape, and wielding a wand—but she quickly sheds the paraphernalia to demonstrate her verbal “sorcery” with friends and family.Although the Posts do little to animate an old idea, parents will welcome the useful, encouraging advice supplied in an endnote. Ages 3-6. (Oct.)