Book Review: The Girl Who Never Made Mistakes

I usually don't do book reviews unless it's something I have discovered at the library or elsewhere that I just really want to share. So, when I am sent offers to review items I have never heard of before, I typically don't pay attention to them. This one was different.

The title alone made me take notice... The Girl Who Never Made Mistakes. It's the story of a bright young girl name Beatrice Bottomwell who, as you can guess, makes her very first mistake and learns to laugh about it. It's a sweet story with a gentle lesson and eye catching illustrations. Mark Pett's artwork is really delightful and grabbed everyone's attention. Mr. Pett and Mr. Rubenstein have put their combined teaching and parenting skills together to come up with a engaging story too. My kids passed the book around and declared it to be shelf worthy! High praise, indeed!

Now, I am not ashamed to admit that there is a strong streak of perfectionism that runs in this family. Being the oldest child of an oldest child seems to seal a perfectionist's fate. I used try to make The Professor laugh by droning, "Hi... my name is Mommy... and I make mistakes," and then encouraging him to say it too. If he did, it was often through clenched teeth. He's much better about it now but it took some work. While this adorable little story isn't going to be enough to fix your anxious idealist and make her send her inner Donna Reed packing, pearls and all, like most good books, it can open the door to conversation and discussion about moderation in all things, including perfectionism. And it will make you laugh!



I received a free review copy of this book in exchange for my honest opinion. This is it.