Todd Doughty began Little Pieces of Hope: Happy-Making Things in a Difficult World as Instagram posts coincident with the pandemic onset, and has now turned the concept into a delightful book of everyday items and musings, with whimsical illustrations.
His lists are eclectic: Old card catalogs. Someone believing in you. The whistle of a train. Bacon. Roger Angell writing about baseball. The smell of a cut lemon. David Sedaris's recording of Santaland Diaries. National treasures John Lewis and Edna Lewis. "Let's make it a true Daily Double." A starry night. Lingering over that one last drink after the check arrives.
Doughty advises readers to "Hug a little tighter. Take a moment.... Today is a good day." Live with attention, gratitude, curiosity. This is a book to cherish. --Marilyn Dahl