Pretty Fun: Creating and Celebrating a Lifetime of Tradition

by Kate Hudson

Celebrate all of the special moments in your life, big and small, with this warm and welcoming, illustrated lifestyle and entertaining guide, complete with delicious, healthy recipes, from actress, fashion icon, entrepreneur, and New York Times bestselling author of Pretty Happy Kate Hudson.
In Pretty Happy Kate Hudson shared her wisdom and advice for living a healthy, strong, and mindful life. In Pretty Fun she shares her philosophy behind gatherings, how to be in the moment, make them uniquely yours, embracing occasions to just be together. A beautiful, fun, and nourishing guide filled with dozens of dazzling color photos, fabulous recipes for healthy and even some more indulgent snacks and beverages, and infused with Kate's mindful and healthy approach to life, Pretty Fun will help you plan a year of special events, while remembering the healing power of gathering and celebration.

Genres: Nonfiction, Cookbooks, Food, Audiobook, Self Help, Cooking, Lifestyle

272 pages, Hardcover

Published October 31, 2017

About the author

Kate Garry Hudson is an American actress. She rose to prominence in 2000 for playing Penny Lane in Almost Famous, for which she won a Golden Globe and was nominated for an Academy Award for Best Supporting Actress. Hudson also co-founded Fabletics, a fitness brand and membership program operated by JustFab.

Reviews

[Donna Craig]

A very pretty book about entertaining and it’s benefits. Lots of family love and gorgeous photos in here. The book contains ideas for events, decor, food (recipes), and more. I think this one will be useful.

[Dawnny]

Pretty Fantastic!
This isn't so much a party book as it is a book about family traditions and the importance of gathering with the people you love. The book is delightful.Kate shows you how to make parties "pretty fun"and without all the stress.Do it right,do it light,do it easy is her motto. Pretty Fun shows you how to throw a great party with concepts from some of her favorite occasions,time honored family traditions,seasonal classics and jazzed up rotational staples.There are pretty healthy recipes that are big on flavor but light on ingredients. I love all the cheap tricks,wonderful guide charts and the theme decor ideas.You name it it's in there which is pretty cool. This is definitely my go to celebrations book from now on. It offers so many great ideas. Some recipes seem a bit challenging but I found the book to be pretty fantastic.

[❄️✨ Kat ✨❄️]

3.5

I kinda ended up just skimming through the pages in this book. Throwing parties isn't really my thing so it doesnt have much relevance for me.

[Marina]

This is one of the better books of this genre. I would have given it 5 stars if it hadn't been for the self-indulgent waffle at the start of the book - I suppose Hudson doesn't want to look shallow by writing a book about parties. Also the 'Pretty This' and 'Pretty That' motif was unnecessary.
The party ideas are interesting,the pictures are pretty and there are some useful sections on,for example, tablescapes. All these are interspersed with her homespun memories of momma with her big pots of stew ......her momma's Goldie Hawn you know!!!!

[Meghan]

Kate Hudson delivers another insightful take on a tradition that is meant to bring joy everyday! PARTIES!! From decorative ideas, guests to invite, food to prepare and an insight of what her family values have lead her to bring joy in everything she does! Great Read!

[Kerry Stewart]

A very charming cookbook enjoyed reading the stories about Kate's family.

[Kate]

Pretty Fun By Kate Hudson
So I really enjoyed her first book Pretty Happy. This one is about entertaining. Creating memories, and pretty but casual atmospheres for you and your guests. There are some beautiful pictures in here. And for someone who entertains a lot or wants to more this is probably a very helpful book. I did enjoy some of her tips and recipes.

[Suzanne Fournier]

Picked this up at the library and thought it looked interesting. I haven't read her other book Pretty Happy. This is about party planning and entertaining, I'll be honest I skimmed through most of it. I would try some of the recipes but thought there could have been more and found some of the tips silly or ridiculous.

[Aisha Manus]

Another nice audiobook to listen to while I sew. Some great ideas in it and I do think I am going to start hosting more gatherings with friends. Maybe not grandiose ones but meals just because. We need more human connection and I want to make those connections. 3.5 stars.

[Sarah]

She's so fun and has such great ideas! If only I had the income for all these parties! lol
I will definitely use some of her fabulous ideas though! LET'S PARTY!

[Katie]

This has a recipe for a veggie chili that I am dying to try out! Once I have a whole day off with my roommates, you better believe that I'm gonna be making it for us!

[Stefanie]

Guys, I adore this book. Hudson gives tips, ideas, encouragement and inspiration for gathering together friends and family to celebrate life together. She gives specific seasonal examples pulled from her own life... as in her own life as a mom, a friend, a daughter. Although I don't have a Kate Hudson payroll, I can easily see myself or my tribe having these celebrations. She gives tips on making it light for the health conscious or make it easy. Some of these inspire making the most of family meals or impromptu gatherings. At first glance you may think this is just a 'how to throw a party' book, but what Hudson has here inspires be present and making life fun. You can see that she feels strongly that love, relationships add play are important to a happy, healthy life. Her philosophy in life feels so real to me. I plan on picking up her other book Pretty Happy.
Modern Mrs Darcy 2018 Reading Challenge 'Recommended by a Librarian* or Indie Bookseller"

[Becki Iverson]

This was a very meh offering but a nice fluffy weekend read. I enjoyed Kate Hudson's first book a lot more than I expected and I thought this would be in the same vein. It's focused solely on entertaining, which is not a great interest of mine, so I didn't get as into it. If you are someone obsessed with Pinterest boards and Etsy crafts you'll probably love this book - it just wasn't in my sweet spot. I will say that there are still some interesting home decor and recipe ideas here, particularly for some quite creative cocktails, so that was useful. Otherwise this is fine but not a must-read and not something you'd enjoy unless you're very focused on a DIY/crafty ambiance and home hosted events.

[Bibi]

I loved her first one, Pretty Happy, but this one just didn’t do it for me. I wish it had easier recipes, and maybe more pics on the actual party themes? It was an ok book for me. Beautiful pics though, and I loved the part of the stones.

[Brindi Michele]

Perfect for ideas on hosting and enjoying your people :) And a great gift idea for the entertainer in your life...

[Rhina M. Finley]

Loved it especially the Fall section.

[Anna]

While I wasn't the target audience and therefore am not taking away much from this book, I did enjoy it. Pretty Happy was more my style and what really inspired me to try this one out.

One take away I did have was, Polished is not the same as prim and proper . In this idea, Hudson goes on to explain that blending cheap cutlery and elegant appetizers or vice versa can make a party look put together but not stuffy. Two examples she used was beer in crystal glasses and champagne in plastic tumblers.

[Lisa]

I don't think that I have had people over for a dinner party or planning any kind of party. If I did I would use this book. She had many great ideas, some for adults, some that include children. I think that I enjoyed her first book better but this ranked right up there with fun. I would buy this except for the fact that I do not throw parties or get togethers like that. However, this is a must.

[Wendy Miller]

Some decent ideas, but seemed kind of self-indulgent. A lot of photos, pretty much all centering on her. Would have preferred more shots of food & entertaining ideas. I just don't care about her prancing around in p.j.'s looking effortlessly cute. Also, there's a section on mother's day & other parts refer to her mom's cooking or recipes, but never stating her mom's name. Considering who her mom is, that seemed odd.

[Bre]

To summarize this book:

If you want to be the hostess and don’t know where to start, read this book.

I “read” the audiobook version I got from my library and there are many references to “The Enhancement” in the book and I was not able to reference it because the book was borrowed. It wasn’t so good that I wanted to buy the book just so I could see The Enhancement, either.

[Suzanne]

Worse than the first book she published. I wasted my money. IT is expensive book, because of the hard cover and a lot of colors inside the book.

I give two stars because of the cover page and nice colorful pages within the book, and because I love Kate as an actress.

All the info, you can find for free on Internet.

Do not buy this book.

[Danielle]

It's no secret I love Kate Hudson... and I love this book! It's fun, and pretty (ha!) and the audiobook (read by Kate) is the perfect break from heavier books. She also has some fun ideas I'd like to try. Also, I wish we were friends because I want to go to all her parties.

[Hannah Warner]

Wonderful book for entertaining inspiration and creating sacred memories with your family. Information for all seasons, broken down into fun planning elements and including beautiful pictures of Ms. Hudson and her family. I very much enjoy having this book in my collection!

[Bode Cauthon]

Filled with beautiful photographs and delicious recipes this is a great book to use as reference for any gathering.
Lots of great ideas when it comes to food, decor and entertainment. I can’t wait to host my next gathering.

[Terri]

Beautiful formatting and photos good advice on party planning. Especially good advice to about keeping in mind the purpose of gathering - to keep bonds strong. Kudos to the author for pushing this integral point.

[Sam]

No complaints! I honestly had no idea what I was getting myself into when I pressed play on this audio book but I’m glad I did! Kate Hudson just gives you all of the tips, tricks, and advice behind hosting your loved ones. It was cute! She talks to you like she’s chatting with a friend!

[Sue Snyder]

I was expecting more. Don’t give me a close up picture of a girl at the party, instead give me a picture of the decor at the party, the food or the table setting.
I’m glad I borrowed a copy from the library before buying a copy.

[Stefanie]

More pictures please, but some really fun ideas

[Sheila]

fun book

[Abby]

fine, some cool pics, but wouldn't buy it