Instead of putting a lot of pressure on our children to be perfect, we rather teach them how to accept failure creatively.
We, as adults, we have so much to learn from children books. I mean not only when reading in a new language, but learning the lessons from the short yet meaningful stories.
Hector´s Perfect Cake, written and beautifully illustrated by Lily Clarke, is my latest example in this respect. The funny Hector is decided to impres his Granny with a perfect birthday cake. Suddenly, he realised he is out of peanut butter. After a race against time, he was lucky enough to get one precious jar but...the destiny wanted it otherwise and as he stumble over in a puddle, he should face the reality: the cake will not be perfect, after all. However, he goes on and surprisingly, his Granny is happier than ever with the cake. The other guests find it good too. Therefore, his mission was perfectly accomplished, without the peanut butter.
I love the message of the book as myself I am far from being a perfectionist. Actually, I enjoy sometimes learning from my mistakes which I´ve found more inspiring then my random perfect works. Taking life as it is and teaching children to do their best, without struggling to be The Best helps so much for their further development. Life is too short to waste your time and your life looking to have everything perfect.
The message of Hector´s Perfect Cake is easy yet meaningful and the illustrations are enjoyable and relatable to preschool children. My son is in love with both Hector and his story, and fully agrees that a cake is good, even without the peanut butter.
Lily Clarke graduated Physics and is currently an innovative consultant in Cambridge. This is her first book but hopefully not the last one as she shows a lot a talent, both as a children writer and illustrator.
Rating: 5 stars
Disclaimer: Book offered as part of a Book Blog Tour, but the opinions are, as usual, my own.
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