Bittersweet- GIVEAWAY and book review

Author and foodie Shauna Niequist has graciously given me a signed copy of her new book Bittersweet to giveaway to one of my readers! I just don't know where to start. Bittersweet is Shauna's second book....I loved her first book Cold Tangerines, and was anxiously awaiting this book. Bittersweet really struck a cord in me, so much so I want everyone to read it!

There aren't any recipes in this book, but there is plenty of talk about food. The third chapter is titled What we ate and why it matters. Now I am here to tell you my memories mostly revolve around the food that was eaten and who it was eaten with. Shauna writes: Food is one of the ways we acknowledge our humanity, our appetites, our need for nourishment. And so it may seem trivial or peripheral to some people, but to me, when I'm telling a story, the part about what we ate really does matter. Sing it sister! Like she said.......ever read something and think, "Oh I wish I could have said it like that"?

I should tell you Bittersweet is not entirely about food or what Shauna had for dinner. It's about SO much more. Shauna has such an amazing voice in her writing. It just draws you right in and makes your heart ache for more. She has a way of making stories of everyday life meaningful and extraordinary. Helping us to look at the "everydays" of our lives with hope, and truth, and to consume each day with a thankfulness for what was, not what could have been.

Here's an excerpt from Bittersweet...a teaser (wink):

The idea of bittersweet is changing the way I live, unraveling and re-weaving the way I understand life. Bittersweet is the idea that in all things there is both something broken and something beautiful, that there is a sliver of lightness on even the darkest nights, a shadow of hope in every heartbreak, and that rejoicing is no less rich when it contains a splinter of sadness.

Bittersweet is the practice of believing that we really do need both the bitter and the sweet. Sweet is nice enough but bittersweet is beautiful, nuanced, full of depth and complexity. It's courageous, gutsy, audacious, earthy.

This is what I've come to believe about change: it's good, in the way that childbirth is good, and heartbreak is good, and failure is good. I've learned the hard way that change is one of God's greatest gifts, and most useful tools. Change can push us, pull us, rebuke us, and remake us. It can show us who we've become, in the worst ways and also in the best ways. I've learned that it's not something to run away from, as though we could, and that in many cases, change is a function of God's graciousness, not life's cruelty.

I am so excited that I get to give a copy of Bittersweet away. Bittersweet is a great read anytime of year, but for this time of year...it will open your eyes and heart to embrace all the bittersweet moments that we so often, as humans, have to endure over the Holidays.

To WIN a signed copy of Shauna Niequists book Bittersweet....

Leave a comment:

1. Tell me about a sweet time in your life that you were able to celebrate.

2. Or a bitter time in your life that allowed you to grow.

3. Or if you'd rather tell me your favorite chocolate dessert, that works too!

ONE comment per person unless...

Because I want to shout about Bittersweet from the rooftops I will give two extra entries for Twittering this GIVEAWAY or linking it to your Facebook page!

A winner will be chosen Thursday, December 9 at midnight.

With luv,