FEBRUARY 2023 - AudioFile
Ferdelle Capistrano gives a spirited performance as Perla, whose whole life has been planned by her overreaching parents. They expect her to go to Delmont University and become a doctor. But after all her college prep work fails to get her into Delmont, Perla disguises herself as another student and goes there anyway to avoid her parents’ disappointment. Capistrano captures the conflicting feelings a teenager experiences when choosing between their parents’ ideal path or making their own. Throughout Perla’s experiences, she learns it’s best to make her own decisions in life. Capistrano shows this process with conflicted inner monologues and bright depictions of what brings Perla joy. Despite being aimed at young adults, this production will appeal to listeners in a range of ages. G.M. Winner of AudioFile Earphones Award © AudioFile 2023, Portland, Maine
Publishers Weekly
11/14/2022
Sixteen-year-old high school senior Perla Perez has lived her life according to the high expectations of her immigrant Filipino parents and her competitive high school. When she isn’t accepted into her dream university, Delmont, or any other school she applied to, her carefully curated plan for college and her reputation as “Perfect Perlie Perez” seem doomed to fall apart. But Perla prides herself in always having a plan. After successfully faking her acceptance, she heads off to Delmont anyway, determined to cover her tracks by draining her savings and secretly living on campus in an unused dorm room, and planning to reapply for Delmont’s spring semester. At Delmont, she experiences a sense of freedom previously unknown, but as her lies begin to snowball, threatening to undo all of Perla’s increasingly intricate double life, she finds that even her unconventional first semester at college is plagued by her family’s constant pressure and her seemingly inescapable feelings of loneliness. Attentively examining themes of guilt and outside pressures with cultural nuance and plenty of good-humored scheming, Badua (Freddie vs. the Family Curse) cultivates a high-stakes narrative of self-discovery and the dangers in pursuing perfection. Ages 13–up. Agent: Natalie Lakosil, Irene Goodman Literary. (Jan.)
From the Publisher
I read this book with my heart in my throat, increasingly breathless as I turned the pages. This Is Not a Personal Statement is both a poignant coming-of-age and a carefully plotted story of a lie that quickly spirals out of control. Tracy Badua is an author to watch.” — Rachel Lynn Solomon, New York Times bestselling author of See You Yesterday and Today Tonight Tomorrow
“At turns humorous, painful, and heartfelt, Perla’s story speaks to how we can lose ourselves to parental and communal expectations and how we can find our way back.” — Randy Ribay, award-winning author of Patron Saints of Nothing
"A compelling read that will speak to the many readers who will understand [Perla's] motivations all too well. An intense and heartfelt romp." — Kirkus Reviews
Attentively examining themes of guilt and outside pressures with cultural nuance and plenty of good-humored scheming, Badua cultivates a high-stakes narrative of self-discovery and the dangers in pursuing perfection. — Publishers Weekly
“Full of thoughtful exploration of the pressure of immigrant parents and elitism in college admissions.” — School Library Journal
“Not only is this book endlessly compelling, it is a master class in character.” — Buzzfeed
School Library Journal
01/01/2023
Gr 9 Up—Anxiety radiates off 16-year-old high school graduate Perla Perez and off the page in Badua's YA debut, when Perez moves onto the campus of an elite college—a school she was not accepted to. The pressure from her perfectionist parents leaves her spiraling as she fakes an acceptance letter and then attempts to survive at a college that didn't choose her. Her planning spreadsheet can only account for so many shoes to drop, and as the semester careens to an end, Perla careens towards a confrontation not only with her parents and friends, but with herself. Full of thoughtful exploration of the pressure of immigrant parents and elitism in college admissions, this book also brings a unique zest to the "college novel" that makes it ideal for teens who have not yet graduated. While the prose sometimes feels stilted, it also reflects how Perla's strict upbringing has impacted her inner dialogue. She is Filipina American. VERDICT Perfect for fans of imperfect protagonists and "can't look away from the car crash"—stories.—Aryssa Damron
FEBRUARY 2023 - AudioFile
Ferdelle Capistrano gives a spirited performance as Perla, whose whole life has been planned by her overreaching parents. They expect her to go to Delmont University and become a doctor. But after all her college prep work fails to get her into Delmont, Perla disguises herself as another student and goes there anyway to avoid her parents’ disappointment. Capistrano captures the conflicting feelings a teenager experiences when choosing between their parents’ ideal path or making their own. Throughout Perla’s experiences, she learns it’s best to make her own decisions in life. Capistrano shows this process with conflicted inner monologues and bright depictions of what brings Perla joy. Despite being aimed at young adults, this production will appeal to listeners in a range of ages. G.M. Winner of AudioFile Earphones Award © AudioFile 2023, Portland, Maine
Kirkus Reviews
2022-10-11
An unconventional coming-of-age story.
Filipina American Perla has earned the unwanted nickname Perfect Perlie Perez. At the tender age of 16 she is a senior at Monte Verde, a top-notch California public high school. Her ambitious professional parents, who come from modest backgrounds and are conscious of the obstacles of racism, constantly demand excellence in academics as well as physical appearance. The next steps mapped out for her are attending prestigious Delmont University, followed by medical school. So when Perla is rejected by Delmont, she has no idea how to cope. Unwilling to disappoint everyone who has supported her, she fakes an acceptance letter and reapplies for the spring semester. Armed with a meticulous spreadsheet, Perla claims she got a full-ride scholarship, draws on her personal savings, and sneaks into an unused dorm room. Making a calculated plan to get to know Delmont students and figure out how they were admitted, she befriends freshman Tessa Rivera. Perla didn’t anticipate the guilt and stress of struggling with lies and dwindling funds. It doesn’t help that she is pulled toward an interactive entertainment major. While Perla’s ability to successfully maintain the subterfuge and trespass on campus for a month may strain credulity, her well-paced personal growth, during which she questions her competitiveness and explores her real interests, makes for a compelling read that will speak to the many readers who will understand her motivations all too well.
An intense and heartfelt romp. (Fiction. 12-17)
