The need to be perfect, particularly for people with anxiety, is an all-encompassing drive. It is a goal that can never be achieved, thus leading to intense anxiety and feelings of hopelessness, helplessness, and negative self-worth. Alternately, learning how to be imperfect, accepting and even embracing one's limitations, can reduce stress and be incredibly liberating. In Pearla and her Unpredictably Perfect Day, Ms. Lieberman has captured the essence of this struggle to be perfect and the ability to use cognitive processes to control and triumph over fear and change behavior. -- Dr. Felice A Tager, Assistant Clinical Professor of Medical Psychology in Psychiatry, Columbia University Medical Center
Oh no! Pearla isn't so perfect after all. But the spunky heroine of Pearla and her Unpredictably Perfect Day doesn't stay stuck for long, finding a creative solution for her baking mishap and learning that perfection is in the eye of the beholder. Children will easily relate to Pearla's initial angst while learning from the coping strategies she then employs. An appealing, useful book. -- Dawn Huebner PhD, Psychologist and Author of What to Do When You Worry Too Much
In this delightful children's story, Pearla and her Unpredictably Perfect Day, Rochel Lieberman pulls the reader in through Pearla's happy anticipation, then her intense disappointment about her mistakes, and finally her gradual discovery that imperfection is not, as she had first felt, a crisis, but is quite manageable and can even lead to new pleasures for others and then for her. Each part of the story is easy for children to relate to, with the lovely illustrations bringing it to life. For so many children with anxiety or other challenges, making mistakes can feel devastating. Reading this book with others, with other children, classmates, siblings, and adults, provides an opportunity to generate healing enjoyable discussions and dramatic play that help children increasingly develop internal emotional and cognitive capacity to cope with mistakes. I can right away think of many children who will enjoy and benefit from this book! -- Dr Karen Levine, Child Psychologist and Co-Author of Attacking Anxiety: A Step-by-Step Guide to an Engaging Approach to Treating Anxiety and Phobias in Children with Autism and Other Developmental Disabilities
