Petunia is a superstar—she keeps her room neatly organized, studies hard for school, and never colors outside the lines. Even when she’s practicing her guitar, she’s careful to play every note perfectly; in fact, Petunia is so conscientious, it earns her the nickname “perfectionist” one day at school, when she overhears two classmates whispering that she’d never want to get messy enough to paint with them. At first, Petunia is proud of that name, but soon the realization sets in that being perfect may be more than even she can handle.

Bader (author of Stella’s Brave Voice) transforms a very real—and often hard to discuss—issue for younger readers into a problem that can be faced and handled in this polished book. Just about anyone can relate to Petunia: she’s desperate to do well and outperform herself in every way possible, but sometimes even the most careful attention to detail doesn’t pan out in the end. When she gets distracted during a music lesson and plays the wrong note, she’s devastated—but her wise teacher quickly turns that mistake into an opportunity, praising Petunia for “create[ing] a brand-new sound” and reminding her that “when we try too hard to be perfect, it’s like our strings are pulled too tight. But if we loosen our strings, Petunia, we can make beautiful music!” That beautiful imagery will resonate with readers of any age.

Ellie Beykzadeh skillfully captures Petunia’s nuanced facial expressions throughout the story, portraying her inner emotions with expressive eyes and subtle hints of movement, and the book’s textured backgrounds give it a warm, tender feeling—the ideal vehicle to teach kids that “nobody expects you to be PERFECT.” By the story’s end, Petunia is savoring the freedom that comes with being “perfectly imperfect” and learning the important lesson of self-love, flaws and all. This is a delight.

Takeaway: Delightful story on why it’s okay to be imperfect.

Comparable Titles: Anna Kang’s It Is (Not) Perfect, Brenda Li’s The Girl Who Makes a Million Mistakes.

Production grades
Cover: A
Design and typography: A
Illustrations: A
Editing: A
Marketing copy: A