2019 Indie Excellence® Award Winner • 2019 Independent Press Award Winner • 2019 Reader's Favorite Silver Medal Winner • 2019 Book Excellence Award Finalist Kathi Koll's acclaimed and award-winning memoir is both a love story and a survivor's tale in which Koll courageously unveils an unexpected life of joy, adventure, heartbreak, and even little laughter as she shares the realities of life as a full-time caregiver. When her husband, Don, called on his way to the hospital, Kathi Koll had no idea how dramatically their lives would change or how her loving heart and indomitable spirit would fight it. From childhood, her life might have seemed charmed —play dates with Lucie Arnaz, real dates with a future TV idol, and a big brother engaged to film star Dolores Hart. But behind the scenes, her role as a caregiver began early with a mother dying of cancer, a father battling alcoholism, and a brother diagnosed with a debilitating disease. Then Kathi found Don Koll--her "rock"--and their joie de vivre and unstoppable moxie made everything feel possible. Until Don woke up "locked in" after a catastrophic stroke. With raw honesty and refreshing humor, Kathi shares the realities of a life in uncharted territory as a full-time caregiver, from turning her home into an ICU to trying to regain a couples' intimacy. Her ability to share sorrows while laughing at herself helped her find a "new normal" where she and Don could live each day to its fullest. Koll's journey is a powerfully moving tale of resilience and finding inspiration--at the best of times and under the worst of circumstances. Winner 2019 Indie Excellence® Award Winner 2019 Independent Press Award Finalist 2019 Book Excellence Award Winner 2019 Readers' Favorite Silver Medal "In this touching memoir...Koll's stories inspire and uplift." -- Publishers Weekly "Koll offers clear-eyed memories of hospitals, health care, and hope. The subject matter may remind some readers of The Year of Magical Thinking , Joan Didion's 2005 account of coping with her husband's death while tending to her sick daughter. Koll isn't as contemplative as Didion is, but she does know how to make the people in her memories feel real to readers. ... She tells of working tirelessly to improve Don's and her own quality of life; at one point, she asked his doctor if there might be a way for the couple to have "one more roll in the hay." "You never give up," his doctor told her later--a perfect summary of this clever, comforting memoir. An engaging, warts-and-all telling of the ups and downs of a full-time caregiver." --Kirkus Reviews "A standout in the literature surrounding grief, recovery, and illness." -- Midwest Book Review " Kick-Ass Kinda Girl is an entertaining roller coaster of a memoir whose second half will be particularly pertinent to caregivers." -- Foreword Clarion Review, 4 stars "Koll comes across as a potential friend, someone who listens well and willingly opens her heart. Since she can't be everywhere to help those who need her hard-won wisdom for moving forward, Kick-Ass Kinda Girl is a worthy surrogate." -- BlueInk Review "Very compelling...an emotional page-turner." --OnlineBookClub.org "...Beautifully written...this is a book that both inspires and entertains, loaded with the wisdom readers need to cope with challenging situations. A book for keeps." --Readers' Favorite, 5 stars "Turning trial into triumph has been a theme of author Kathi Koll's life." --Modern Luxury Magazine "[Koll's] book chronicles in vivid detail, the meaningful lessons she learned on her journey..." --Newport Beach Magazine "Kathi Koll's passion and spirit shine. Her story is a stellar example of a life fully lived despite devastating circumstances. Read it, read it again, and gift it to someone who needs a dose of laughter-through-tears along with a lot of inspired practical ideas for caregiving as a dynamic, creative, and uplifting act of love." --Ambassador Nancy G. Brinker, founder of Susan G. Komen and New York Times bestselling author of Promise Me "There were no guidebooks for Kathi Koll--she made it up as she went along. What she lived and learned is an amazing story." --Deborah Norville, anchor, Inside Edition "Kathi Koll's creativity and passion put a buoyant spin on her brilliant caregiving strategies, but mostly I love the way this book places caregiving into the context of life. It isn't about surviving as the child of an alcoholic or as the devoted spouse of someone who's suffered a debilitating stroke; it's about living a life powered by joy, motivated by love, and lifted by hope." --Joni Rodgers, New York Times bestselling author of Bald in the Land of Big Hair "True love, selflessness and caring exist in this world and Kathi Koll's story offers proof. This masterful work will touch many hearts and give any child of God a reason to believe in the greatness of life lived and surrendered to love. Now more than ever we