Sleepless Nights and Kisses for Breakfast: Reflections on Fatherhood

This is a charming and delightful look at fatherhood by first-time author Bussola, whose chronicles of his family life over a two-year period became incredibly popular on Facebook. This memoir, featuring more than 100 short and insightful observations collected from those Facebook entries, examines the joys and complications of fatherhood from the perspective of a stay-at-home dad who’s juggling his work responsibilities with the clearly more enjoyable task of taking care of his three daughters, who are now eight, four, and two. Gathering “stories, reports, reflections and near-daily snapshots” of his daughters’ growth, Bussola shows how “being a father has made me a better man, a more confident artist, and a more attentive partner.” Throughout, he describes beautiful, loving, and often hilarious scenes, such as his daughter Ginevra’s complaint that Bussola won’t let her jump on the fog and clouds she sees from her grandparent’s cabin in the mountains (“Put Mommy on and I’ll ask her. You don’t let me do anything”) as well as a heartfelt reverie about hoping that his parental role “to guide and protect” could always help his children “feel surrounded by beauty.” (May)