I received a free ARC from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

This book was adorable. I loved the bright, colorful pictures. I enjoyed the story also. It was a fun book.

I have loved sharing this series of books with my grandchildren. They have come to love the various characters from the forest. The illustrations are the best part of these books. We could talk for hours about them. Add in a lesson from the story in a fun way and these books are a hit not only with the kids but parents and teachers as well.

In this story, it is Beaver's birthday. Beaver is a perfectionist and a planner. He has his birthday cake all planned with various layers, full of deliciousness and a delight to look at. His friends want to help him make the cake, afterall, it is his birthday. Well, they succeed in making a cake, but not the cake Beaver has planned. They succeed in driving Beaver around the bend and causing him to have a major temper tantrum. Well, he gets his wish and makes a beautiful cake, but his friends are so upset with him, he has no one to share it with. He realizes that it more important to share his birthday with his friends, than to have the perfect cake.

As I said earlier, the illustrations are amazing. The expressions on Beaver's face tells what he is feeling with no question. The animals are large and colourful. There is so much happening to complement the story. The story itself is simple but cute. This book has a great message not only to children, but to adults as they read and share it with their children, grandchildren, nieces, nephews etc. I definitely recommend this book, in fact the whole series, to families, schools, and libraries.

Beaver is very particular about how he does things, because he wants them to be done right. It is hard for a perfectionist to let go of control! And especially with his birthday coming up, he knows exactly what he wants and how he is going to do it. But then his friends want to help him make this perfect birthday cake, because they don't think he'll have time to do it all by himself. And of course, they want to do something nice for him on his birthday.

And of course everything that can go wrong does go wrong. Beaver's friends ignore his recipe or do not pay close enough attention to it. So his perfect cake is an absolute disaster. But to his friends, it is a job well done and they are so proud of themselves. Naturally, Beaver is upset and blows up at his friends. He does the cake over again, only now he has no one with whom to enjoy it. His friends hear his cries and give him a birthday party the next day. It is not what he had originally planned, but finds that it is actually more perfect than he had anticipated it could be.

So Beaver learns a lesson about letting go. I think adults reading this book could definitely benefit from having this lesson reiterated to them. We definitely have difficulty letting go of our own ideas of perfection, especially when others are involved. I know it's a lesson I have been working on learning my entire adult life.

I think kids will enjoy this story and can also start to learn a lesson about letting go and looking at the point of view of others. It could make for a good discussion launch pad.

I do love the illustrations in this. The expressions on Beaver's face are priceless. You really get a feel for the personalities of the different characters. They're a lot of fun.

I give this book 4.5 stars. Thank you to the publisher and NetGalley for providing me with a review copy. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

I absolutely fell in love with ‘A Loud Winter's Nap’ and ‘The Golden Acorn’, and I have read this one so many times now that I’ve lost count. Some of the most adorable children’s book illustrations I’ve come across are from this series. It’s gotten to the point where I don’t even care what a Katy Hudson story is about anymore; I need it in my life regardless.

Beaver is a perfectionist. His latest project, which he’s been planning very carefully, is a birthday cake. Not content with anything less, this will be a “PERFECT birthday cake”. Beaver’s friends, Tortoise, Rabbit, Bird and Squirrel, decide to help. Only they don’t have Beaver’s attention to detail.

Rather than the perfect layers of sugary goodness Beaver had imagined, his friends’ help has instead resulted in layers of panic, frustration and ultimately a perfectly dramatic temper tantrum for Beaver. Beaver finally decides that if you want something done right you have to do it yourself but ultimately discovers it’s a perfectly lonely way to celebrate a birthday if you have alienated all of your friends.

I understand Beaver’s perfectionism, possibly too well. After spending so long reading and rereading this book, and agonising over finding the perfect words to include in this review, my advanced copy of this book has morphed into an ‘oops, this book has now been published’. Apparently I still need to read this book a few more times.

Thank you so much to NetGalley and Capstone Editions for the opportunity to read this book. Now all I need to do is find a copy of ‘Too Many Carrots’ and I’ll have a go to book for every season. I wish there was a fifth season so I could look forward to another book in this series.

It’s Beaver’s birthday and he has the perfect plan for the perfect cake for his special day. But his friends aren’t very good at following his instructions. Will Beaver’s birthday be completely ruined?

This reminds me quite a bit of Marigold Bakes a Cake in that it involves a perfectionist trying to make a cake with less-than-stellar helpers and results in the perfectionist spazzing out. This one does show Beaver learning that people are more important than the perfection, which is somewhat different from the moral of the other book. The two books would make a good compare/contrast activity. The forest animals are cute, and the various ways in which they epically mess up Beaver’s recipe were most entertaining. I like that there are more books coming out for little perfectionists to help them better learn to be ok with ok. Recommended for animal lovers and little perfectionists.

I received an ARC of this title from the publisher through NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

Beaver likes to be totally in charge of his life and what goes on around him. Some might call him a perfectionist. And they would be right. Though perfection to one might be different for another, Beaver has a clear idea of what is perfect.

And for his birthday he has spent time creating the perfect recipe for the perfect cake. But when he tells his friends about the perfect multi-layered cake that he plans to make, they say it’s too much work for one person.

So Tortoise, Bird, Rabbit, and Squirrel insist that they will bake the cake. However, in their haste, a series of mishaps result in a creation that is far from perfect. So far from perfect that Beaver loses it,

“This is the UGLIEST most DISGUSTING cake I have ever seen!” he yelled. “None of you followed my very clear recipe.”

Yikes! Though Beaver is a perfectionist, he may have lost it. How will his friends react when he proceeds to start all over and make the cake himself?

Hudson’s illustrations are extremely cute and accompany the story beautifully.

My thanks for NetGalley and Capstone for an ARC of this book and the freedom to give my honest opinion.

What Concerned Me
The text was just on the edge of bothering me. Especially in one place where the dialog has so many noticeable tags.

interrupted Rabbit
started Beaver
offered Rabbit
tweeted Bird
I just felt the text didn’t flow easily. But all in all, this is a very small concern.

What I Liked Best
A) The message is very good . . .

Watch that your vision of perfection doesn’t cause you to overlook what’s really important.
Weigh the importance of what is upsetting you and try to enjoy the moment.

and B) I love the cute illustrations.

I believe there is something in all of us that wants everything to go according to plan. In some people that urge is stronger than others. The Perfect Birthday Recipe by Katy Hudson shines a light on that urge. Beaver is the definition of perfectionism. And what deserves perfectionism more than a birthday? Beaver's desire to have everything just right causes him to push his friends away. This lovely picture book reminds us how truly important friends are. Beaver learns having everything ideal doesn't bring any joy if your alone. The overly detailed illustrations give the readers more fun insights into the characters. Children ages 5-9 will enjoy this story.

This author always writes and illustrates such cute stories. I like the end pages with all of the plans! I will be adding it to my elementary library.

I love, love, loved this story! For so many little kiddos, it can be challenging when things don't go exactly as planned. This story is a great lesson on how everyone does things a little different and to be flexible. The illustrations are gorgeous as well!

I found that the illustrations were the best part of this book. The writing left me wanting more and feeling unsatisfied. The message of the book was very clear and I enjoyed how Beaver's friends tried to help him have the perfect birthday party.

Wait. So, who ate the perfect cake? The illustrations are beautiful and colorful. The story cute and meaningful. An important theme that shows that things don’t always turn out as planned and one cannot always have one’s way. Also, that we should accept other people and their differences. Perfect birthday gift for a young one!

I received an advanced reader copy of this book in exchange for an honest review via netgalley and the publishers.

What a delightful book this is! I read this with my 7 year old and we both loved it.
The artwork is absolutely beautiful and very detailed too.
The story teaches us that having perfection isn't everything and sometimes just the opposite is more fun if you take the time to enjoy things and have fun with others. The end result may not be what you wanted but was more fun and worthwhile.

My little one's birthday was on the 4th of December so the timing was simply perfect.
And talking about perfection, so is this story about friendship, about the need for control and the desire for things to be perfectly planned.

*cough* Some of us can definitely relate *cough*

Katy Hudson is a top favourite of ours, her stories always make us laugh, while the colourful & cute illustrations give such joyful vibes. The kid fell deeply in love with these characters and he is eager to hold the actual book in his hands.

(Oh!) how I adore this book!
I was that child hoping for the perfect birthday, disappointed by the blandness and unpredictability of the world outside my own head, so I hope that it will help the little ones truly enjoy their birthday as it comes.

Happy birthday, my little love!

#ThePerfectBirthdayRecipe #NetGalley Everyone can learn from Beaver and his friends. I loved Beaver's finished product, but I loved the lesson even more. Perfection is not what we should strive for. Cute story with a wonderful lesson.

The illustrations for "The Perfect Birthday Recipe" are fabulous, so much detail gone into each page. The story is great for young readers as it teaches about compromise and friendships.

This book touched my heart. It starts with Beaver, who is a perfectionist in every sense and in whatever he does. He is thoughtful, careful and perfect. So his birthday is approaching and his latest project is to make his birthday cake. He has already planned what flavor every layer will be, recipe to bake each layer, the color of the icing on each layer and how is he going to decorate them. On his birthday he is ready with all the ingredients and tools required.

His friends are in awe to see his plan and preparation. They all want to contribute to making his birthday cake. Hence they all start making Beaver's perfect cake and this concerns the Beaver since they are not perfect like him.

They end up with a cake which is perfect for them but seems horrible to Beaver. He wants to redo his cake again. He starts preparing the cake from scratch again and his friends are gone. By the time he is done he is sitting all alone with his perfect cake. Then he realizes that being perfect is good, but sometimes imperfection gives more joy to us. His friends made a cake for him which was imperfect for him. But they were all together and that brought happiness to him on his birthday and not the perfect cake.

This book may be for kids but it gives a life lesson to us adults as well. We may want to do everything perfectly but the joy of life is also important. So sometimes just leave perfection and enjoy the moment. It is okay to be imperfect.

The illustrations are good and the book is a good read for the ages 3+. The book is wonderful for kids who are learning to read or started reading themselves since it has simple sentences and vocabulary.
Thank you Netgalley and capstone publication for the advance copy.

I received a copy of this arc from NetGalley for an honest review. The perfect book for little ones about feelings and patience. Lovely illustrations too.

Have you ever wanted everything to be so perfect that you miss what is really important? Beaver does in this story about the perfect birthday cake. A tale to teach us that everything that is perfect (in our eyes) is not always good and everything that isn't perfect is not always bad. Sometimes spending time with friends or family is more important than having the most beautiful dinner or following a perfectly laid plan for the day. Just being in the moment can be perfect.
#Netgalley

This is a cute little book. I like the idea of understanding that each person has their own idea of what makes the perfect birthday party and that people need to learn to compromise to truly make the best party.

Cute story that teaches the importance of friendship. Sometimes you need to adjust and and let go of perfection to focus on what is the most important things in life.