In a bold and brilliant memoir that reinvents the form, the acclaimed author of the novel Museum Pieces and the collection Mendocino Fire explores the ferocious desire for perfection which has shaped her writing life as well as her rich, dramatic, and constantly surprising personal life.

"Pearla loves to bake! Her favorite foods are cookies and cupcakes, which she sells at her dad's bakery. She always tries very hard to make her baking absolutely perfect, but one day Pearla is so busy that she makes a huge mistake! Have fun with Pearla as she learns how to adapt when her day doesn't go to plan and realizes it could turn out to be pretty perfect after all. This is a scrumptious tale for children aged 4-12, particularly those who experience...

When the other eggs in his carton behave badly, the good egg feels like he needs to be perfect.

A highly regarded professor of psychology at the London School of Economics, sharing contemporary evidence, explores how the pursuit of perfection can lead to burnout and depression and shows what we can do to resist the modern-day pressure to be perfect to led a more purposeful and contented life.

Unicorn wants to be as perfect as everyone seems to think he is, so when he embarrasses himself in front of Kitty he is afraid Kitty will no longer want to be friends with a not-so-perfect Unicorn.

Practically-perfect twelve-year-old Victoria Wright must lie, sneak, and break the rules when her investigation of the disappearance of her best--and only--friend, Lawrence, reveals dark secrets about her town and the orphanage run by the reclusive Mrs. Cavendish.

Perfectionistic Jerzey desperately wants to be a good ballet dancer like her sisters, but her efforts to learn are repeatedly thwarted, until she finds help in an unexpected place.

"A straight-talking but uplifting story about a boy living with ADHD and the sparks that fly when he moves in with his perfectionist step-sister..."--