Review - The Girl Who Never Made Mistakes

The Girl Who Never Made Mistakes
by Mark Pett & Gary Rubinstein
illustrated by Mark Pett
Date: 2011
Publisher: Sourcebooks Jabberwocky
Reading level: C
Book type: picture book
Pages: 32
Format: e-book
Source: library

Beatrice Bottomwell has NEVER (not once!) made a mistake...

Meet Beatrice Bottomwell: a nine-year-old girl who has never (not once!) made a mistake. She never forgets her math homework, she never wears mismatched socks, and she ALWAYS wins the yearly talent show at school. In fact, Beatrice holds the record of perfection in her hometown, where she is known as The Girl Who Never Makes Mistakes. Life for Beatrice is sailing along pretty smoothly until she does the unthinkable-she makes her first mistake. And in a very public way!

(synopsis from Goodreads)

This book is a gentle chiding of perfectionism. I could totally relate to Beatrice, because I was (and still am, sometimes) much the same way. Beatrice is so careful never to make a mistake that she often ends up missing out; because she's not sure if she'll be able to do something perfectly, she won't even try.

You do have to suspend disbelief a little bit, as some parts of the story are a little unbelievable. She's a celebrity because she's never made a mistake. Her hamster is a little too sentient. But beyond that, it's a story with a good message about taking risks (like her brother, Carl, or her friends Millie and Sarah, who seem to be having much more fun than perfectionistic Beatrice).

The artwork didn't impress me in the beginning, but it kind of grew on me as the story went on. At least the poor hamster was drawn wearing a helmet (if you're going to juggle the poor thing, the least you can do is give him some protection).

Overall, this is a decent picture book with a good message. It might not be applicable to everybody, but it will probably be appreciated by kids who sometimes miss out on all the fun because they're too afraid of making mistakes.

Premise: 4/5
Meter: n/a
Writing: 3/5
Illustrations: 3/5
Originality: 4/5

Enjoyment: 3/5

Overall: 3.33 out of 5