Today Sofie Kelly, author of A Night’s Tail, a Magical Cats mystery, is joining us at Ascroft, eh? to tell us some fun facts about popcorn. I’ll turn the floor over to you, Sofie:

In A Night’s Tail, the latest Magical Cats mystery, readers learn that librarian Kathleen Paulson’s boyfriend, Detective Marcus Gordon has developed a taste for gourmet popcorn. That happened, in part, because a friend of mine has become, in her words, “a popcorn connoisseur.” After picking her brain—and trying her popcorn—and after a little time spent on the Internet, here are a dozen fun facts about popcorn:

1. The US is the world’s largest producer of popcorn according to the USDA.
2. Popcorn comes in two shapes, snowflake and mushroom. Because snowflake-shaped popcorn is bigger, movie theaters typically sell that shape.
3. Nebraska produces more popcorn than any other state in the country, followed closely by Indiana
   4. Orville Redenbacher brand is the top-selling popcorn.
   5. Popcorn is a type of maize, a member of the grass family.
4. When they pop, kernels can travel up to three feet in the air.
5. Making popcorn is one of the number one uses for microwave ovens.
6. Charles Cretors, introduced the world’s first mobile popcorn machine in Chicago in 1893. One of its attributes was the fact that it could supposedly be moved by a small pony…or a boy.
7. Archaeological evidence found in Peru suggests that popcorn existed as early as 4700 B.C.
8. In the early 1950s, as televisions became popular, popcorn sales decreased because people were staying home to watch TV instead of going out to the movies. Once popcorn became readily available to make at home, sales went up again.
9. Some of the most popular popcorn flavorings include ranch, jalapeno, dill pickle, sour cream and onion and caramel corn.
10. According to popcorn.org, Americans consume close to 14 billion quarts of popcorn each year. Other sources put the number closer to 17 billion quarts. That’s about 42 quarts per person. If you’re reading all the Magical Cats mysteries as you’re eating your popcorn, that works out to 3.5 quarts per book. Enjoy!

Thanks for this fun insight into the novel, Sofie, and good luck with A Night’s Tail, the latest novel in the Magical Cats series.

Readers can learn more about Sofie and her writing by visiting her website.

The novel is available at the following online retailers:

 Amazon    –    Barnes and Noble     –       Indiebound

About Sofie Kelly: Sofie writes the New York Times bestselling Magical Cats mysteries that feature librarian Kathleen Paulson and her two very special cats, Owen and Hercules, who have a magical knack for solving crime. As Sofie Ryan she is the author of the New York Times bestselling Second Chance Cat mystery series. She lives on the east coast with her husband and daughter.