Little Imperfections: A Tall Tale of Growing Up Different

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Peet: It truly is way more work than we thought. There's so much more logistical things you have to think about and all these different components. Even with the illustration — the illustrator would make the images and then I'd be like, "Oh, it doesn't feel right. I'm a perfectionist and my creative bone isn't tingling right now. Why is that?" And so I have to dissect it. It is sweet, fun, soft, entertaining with easily relatable characters, interesting, moving storyline, three generation’s communication problems. Note: I received e-copy of this book from the publisher via NetGalley, in exchange for an honest review. Many thanks to PRHGlobal for free copy. *** Peet, your platform explores being the only average-height member of your family. What was that like growing up?

Josie is now an admissions office at a private school. She skipped college to go into modeling, thinking she would make more money that way, but it was not to be and, as she aged, she could no longer compete with the young ones. The robustness of a farm girl, the honed sophistication of a city woman, a dash of Jewish chutzpah, and a heaping cup of endurance athlete and voila, you have Alli Frank. Alli was raised in Yakima, WA, the only child of two parents who instilled in her that hard work coupled with a resilient spirit will take you where you want to go. So up some of the highest mountains Alli climbed, down insanely steep terrain she skied and across long swathes of land she ran. To pay for all this adventure, Alli has worked in education for over 20 years in San Francisco and Seattle - from an overcrowded, cacophonous public high school to a pristine private girl's school. She has been a teacher, curriculum leader, coach, college counselor, assistant head, private school co-founder, sometimes pastor, often mayor, and de facto parent therapist. A graduate of Cornell and Stanford Universities, Alli can still be found with her nose deep in a book or hunkered down at the movies, never one to miss a great story. Alli lives in Seattle, Washington with her husband, two daughters and terribly cute mini-Bernedoodle. When she needs good food (cause she can't really cook) she turns to her co-author Asha Youmans. I am tired of seeing gay men in books just to be that girly, femme side character that complains about excersize and lusts over every man within a six-foot radius. We. Are. Tired. One of the themes of your book and platform is taking your weaknesses and reforming them as positives. How do you guys take your weaknesses and reframe them as positives, and what impact has that had on your life? Josie’s mother abandoned her to live with her Aunt Viv when she was little to chase her career oriented life. Now Josie wants to be good caring mother but her daughter’s dream to be a dancer and plans to apply to Juillard Conservatory disappoints her. And the worst part is Aunt Viv supports her daughter’s plans.

Right from the get-go, our main character Josie introduces Roan who is in every sense the overused trope of the gay best friend. Let me make something clear: I know that there are gay men out there who fit certain stereotypes very well. They can be flamboyant and love gossip and fashion, and there is NOTHING wrong with being queer and fitting certain queer stereotypes. What I find issue with is when cisgender straight women write a gay character into their story who is the epitome of every stereotype that ever was, and does not contrast them with a more non-conforming gay man. I hate when straight authors will just plop in a gay character for "diversity points" and fit them nicely into an overused and, frankly harmful, trope.

Peet: It was really important to me to share my childhood experience in a relatable way and tell people no matter how you feel, whether you feel different or whatever, it doesn't matter because you're validated and you're perfect the way you are. You guys have a beautiful bond. What inspired you guys to come together and write this book? And what do you hope people take away from this book? This isn’t an ordinary children’s book. Why did you want to create a video and a book component for this project? Tiny Imperfections is a well-balanced story of love, new chapters of life and moving forward. Readers can expect a great deal of heart, soul, emotions to the highest degree, and several laugh-out-loud moments sprinkled within this novel. Each of these traits tie into the center of the novel and make it all the more compulsively readable-- Tiny Imperfections reads so smoothly you can expect to lose yourself and your day without even realizing it. Is there anything more ridiculous than obscenely rich parents vying for their kids' admissions to an elite private school?⁣

Customer reviews

The story is told through the empathic and humorous perspective of Peet Montzingo, the internet sensation who grew up as the only "tall" sibling in a family of little people. As always, a copy of this book was provided by the author or publisher in exchange for my honest review. This does not effect my opinion in any way. Mind you, I myself live in a city near San Francisco. Not only does this one line fetishize the hell out of gay men, but it also is enforcing yet another stereotype that the Bay Area is full of gays. Do you understand how harmful that is? The Bay Area is a wonderfully diverse place, I agree, but pegging it as this hub for gays is just so harmful and accomplishes nothing.