#394: The way peonies unfurl when they blossom

Reason to Be Happy #394:

The way peonies unfurl when they blossom

Way back in July 2011 I vowed to list a reason to be happy every single day for a full year. And I did. Because it was a Leap Year, I listed 366 reasons to be happy in a row. When I hit July 2012, I said I'd keep it going, just not daily...but then I took a long break once we hit 2013. Enough friends and readers nudged me that I brought it back. 

 Peonies are one of my favorite plants. They seem so old-fashioned and classic. They have such a short bloom time, but that makes them all the more special in my opinion—you anticipate it and relish it so that you don't miss it. Peonies cannot be taken for granted.

 I love how peony blossoms are like tight little fists that slowly begin to unclench and unfurl.

 This opening can happen in a matter of hours. Don't blink or you'll miss it.

 I'm not sure of the name of this particular type of peony but it makes me think of eggs. I call it Peonies Sunny Side Up. And they are so fragrant. These are about twenty yards from my house, but with the windows open and the breeze just right, their perfume pervades every room of my home. Ahh...

#393: Robin's Egg Blue

Reason to be Happy #393:

Robin's Egg Blue

 One of the cheeriest, soothing, peaceful colors on the planet. And so few things are actually this specific color.

 These lovely nest photos were taken in the yard of my good friend Maggie Hewitt. Don't those eggs look like little gems nestled in a jewelry box?

The only other thing I've seen that is actually the same shade of blue is a glacier pool—that rare, other-wordly shade of calming blue (like this one in Glacier National Park).

#392: Riding with the Top Down

Reason to Be Happy #392:
RIDING WITH THE TOP DOWN

Or...more specifically, cramming a bunch of friends into a car, wedging together, and then riding to lunch with the top down. It was like a clown car in the circus! (We were so contorted, my bra actually came undone!)

 Nice hair, huh? But we laughed. You know how it feels so good to laugh hard and not be able to stop? Add to that already good feeling: the warm sun on your face, wind rushing over you, and the feeling that you're on a roller coaster. Not a bad thing to experience on a Monday afternoon. Not a bad thing at all.

And yes, due to repeated requests from friends and readers, the Reasons to Be Happy will be re-appearing. I'm not promising daily, but they'll be more frequent than they have been. Be sure to send ideas for future reasons…not that there's ever a shortage when you really stop to think about it.

#391: Torching the Sugar on Top of a Creme Brûlée

 Reason to Be Happy #391:

Torching the Sugar on top of a Creme Brûlée

I've already told you that cracking the top of a creme brûlée is one of my reasons to be happy (Reason #235 to be exact). But I only recently had the opportunity to witness the making of this—one of my top five desserts—in person, and to use the torch myself.

 

Scorching the sugar on top is a VERY satisfying activity. Who doesn't love to play with fire?

Who especially doesn't love to play with fire...with such delicious results? Many thanks to Libbie Burgan, who is truly the Queen of Creme Brûlées!

#390: Mashing Ice Cream Into Cake

 Reason to Be Happy #390:

Mashing Ice Cream Into Cake

 It's an art. Each bite must be carefully mixed with a fork to contain just the right amounts of cake, icing, and ice cream. It looks messy, but it's well worth the effort.

 Some of you inquired if I wasn't very happy in November? I'm pleased to report that although I didn't post any reasons to be happy in that month, it was indeed a very fine month. I have no complaints—other than not enough hours in the day. Just in case you're joining this party late, I set out to list a reason to be happy every day for a full year on July 1, 2011. I did it. Never missed a day all the way through July 1, 2012. Since then I've been continuing to list reasons when they occur to me and I have time. All of this, of course, was to commemorate my novel Reasons to Be Happy, which came out in August 2011.

Book Gift Suggestions Part Three

Here’s Part Three of my holiday gift book suggestions (be sure to check out Parts One and Two if you missed them).

Books make amazing gifts—they’re not perishable, and you don’t have to worry about versions, sizes, or colors. If you give any of the following books, the recipients will owe you. Bigtime. Oh, there are so many! How do I decide? Here are some of my true loves from this year.

You want to get your hands on Martha Moody’s SHARP AND DANGEROUS VIRTUES, just released this fall. Set in 2047 in Dayton, Ohio, it is mesmerizing. In response to food and water shortages, the U.S. government has developed a successful agricultural area—known as "the Heartland Grid"—just north of the city. The Grid and its valuable human and agricultural resources are now being threatened—or possibly, seduced—by a multinational enemy force, and all of America feels threatened, too. I heard Martha read from this two summers ago at the Antioch Writers’ Workshop and was so taken, I thought it would kill me to wait for this book’s release! Obviously it didn’t kill me...and it was well worth the wait!

I highly recommend the haunting, beautiful, poetic THE SALT GOD’S DAUGHTER by Ilie Ruby for any woman on your list. The Huffington Post called this novel a “…a lyrical, luxuriantly mystical meditation on being female.” The gorgeous imagery and exquisitely drawn characters haunt me still.

 I love Marisa de los Santos’ newest FALLING TOGETHER (but you can’t go wrong with any of her work!) I fall head over heels for all of her characters, but this protagonist—Pen Calloway—takes the cake for embedding herself in my heart. A book about our deepest human connections, and study in life long friends looking at the truths about who they were before and who they are now. You’ll want to read everything she’s ever written (if you haven’t already). I’m such a fangirl that I can’t help but mention how thrilled I was to get to have coffee with Marisa in NYC two summers ago. She’s lovely and wonderful in “real life,” as well as being a kickass author who makes my Christmas shopping so easy.

Looking for a mystery? Thriller? Perfect for men or women: GONE GIRL by Gillian Flynn. This is dark, twisted fun. I find that, reading as a writer, it’s rare that I’m truly surprised anymore. Something about a third of the way through this novel made me say “Holy shit!” aloud, totally alone, (well, except for the cat in my lap who looked up in alarm). I was so delighted and enthralled to be genuinely startled by a plot twist. But I tell you what: Flynn did it to me that drastically two more times before that book’s end. It’s fantastic, delicious suspense. 

Barbara Kingsolver has a new novel out, which is always cause for celebration! FLIGHT BEHAVIOR would make an excellent gift for any literary book lover. I haven’t read it yet, but you can’t go wrong with Kingsolver. Most of you know she’s my very very very favorite (and meeting her last year was a dream come true—the photographic evidence has a place of honor on my fridge). I’ve read everything else she’s written multiple times.

Remember, if you’re in the Dayton area and thinking of buying one of my own novels as a gift, please please email me and I’ll happily make arrangements to personalize it for you however you like. katrinakittle (at) gmail.com


If you’re in another state, please check out the wonderful bookstore Saturn Booksellers in Gaylord, MI. They have all my titles, already signed, and will ship anywhere!

Shop your local, independent book stores!

Happy Holidays & Happy Reading!

Book Gift Suggestions Part Two

 Here’s Part Two of my holiday gift book suggestions (be sure to check out Part One if you missed it).

Books make amazing gifts. Here are some that will make the recipients want to kiss you! (You know...if that’s appropriate. Or they may just feel really warm and grateful, and that’s okay, too).

Just finished THE ROUND HOUSE by Louise Erdrich and was crazy in love with it. Just gorgeous and haunting, like her works always are. After a brutal attack on a woman living on an Objiwe reservation in North Dakota, the novel is narrated by the woman’s thirteen-year-old son Joe. Joe’s father is a tribal judge, but when the quest for justice bogs down in complications, Joe sets out to get answers and justice of his own. One reviewer said this will come to be known as the “Native American TO KILL A MOCKINGBIRD” and I think that’s perfect. Note: don't skip or skim ANY of it (why would you want to?!). Every single detail, image & story counts and is vital to the plot. Genius.    

 Looking for inspiration? Kick-ass advice? Need a gift for a reader who never sits still long enough for a novel? Then pick up TINY BEAUTIFUL THINGS by Cheryl Strayed. A compilation of the “Dear Sugar” advice columns on The Rumpus. Don’t know “Dear Sugar” at the Rumpus? Oh, do yourself a favor and remedy that, Sweet Pea. Full of quotes like “Nobody will protect you from your suffering,” “Forgiveness doesn’t just sit there like a pretty boy in a bar,” and “Be brave enough to break your own heart.” I now own a coffee mug with my personal favorite quote on it: “Write like a motherfucker.”

Kristina Riggle’s latest THINGS WE DIDN’T SAY is fantastic. (As would be ANY of her previous novels). You know when you hold things in and keep secrets and bite your tongue? You know how none of those things are sustainable and eventually something has to give? Well, this is a gorgeous, moving book about what happens when a woman hits the point where she has to start speaking the words no one else will say. (And Kris Riggle is a fun, warm, wonderful person in “real life.” I love when we’re at book events together, but I don’t envy folks trying to introduce us—our names together sound like a comedy act!)

Have someone on your list who loves historical fiction? You can’t go wrong with the newest novel from Kelly O’Connor McNees. I was lucky enough to read a galley of IN NEED OF A GOOD WIFE and fell head over heels for it. Set in the American West, centering around main character Clara Bixby’s business venture into mail-order brides for an isolated Nebraska town, this is a book about second chances and new beginnings. I was honored to write a blurb for this book! The three central, compelling women are each, in turn, terribly lost and deeply brave. I adored them all and rooted for them in their struggles.

So…if you're considering buying one of my books as a gift, not only would I be eternally grateful, but I'd happily personalize it for you. If you’re local, email me at katrinakittle (at) gmail.com and we’ll make arrangements.


If you’re in another state, please check out the wonderful bookstore Saturn Booksellers in Gaylord, MI. They have all my titles, already signed, and will ship anywhere!

Where ever you are, always do your best to patronize your independent book stores!

HAPPY HOLIDAYS & HAPPY READING!