And this year especially, as we see the country and the world in such choppy waters economically, we’re hoping that many people will agree with us that a book – relatively low in price, requiring no batteries, conveying hours of pleasure, wisdom and entertainment – is truly the perfect gift in tough times.
So how do you find just the right book? Below are a few tips as you begin your holiday searching. And remember: If you ever need help we are just an e-mail away. Just Ask Us. Give us a bit of information about yourself, or the person you’re buying for, and we’ll respond with a recommendation within 24 hours.
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The art of selecting just the right book often begins with a question.
For example: What magazines does your loved one read? That will give you a sense of the kind of writing that appeals to them.
If they read Forbes they’ll surely be interested in The Ascent of Money: A Financial History of the World by Niall Ferguson. If they love reading fiction in the New Yorker they might enjoy Philip Roth’s new book, Indignation, or The Nobel Lectures. If they read Vogue they might like Annie Leibovitz’s gorgeous new collection of photographs, At Work.
Here’s another question: Are they in a book club? If so, there are four new titles that are great discussion books: Toni Morrison’s A Mercy; Andrew Greer’s The Story of a Marriage, Jhumpa Lahiri’s Unaccustomed Earth and Home by Marilynne Robinson.
So now let’s match your questions with some specific gift ideas for loved ones.
• For those who love history: American Lion: Andrew Jackson in the White House, by Jon Meacham.
• For the person who wants a fast, entertaining read: Nelson DeMille’s The Gate House or Candace Bushnell’s One Fifth Avenue.
• For the reader looking for unconventional new fiction: Atmospheric Disturbances by Rivka Galchen.
• For a high school or college-aged boy who’s looking for the new, dense, utterly absorbing read: Roberto Bolono’s 2666.
• For a ten-year-old boy: the 60th anniversary edition of My Father’s Dragon by Ruth Stiles Gannett.
• For the boy who’s a non-reader: Cool Stuff 2.0: How It Works, by Jon Woodcock and Chris Woodford.
• For the golf nut: The Seven Personalities of Golf by Darren Gee.
• For the ten-year-old girl: My One Hundred Adventures by Polly Horvath and Wild Magic by Tamora Pierce.
• For the young adult girl: The Adoration of Jenna Fox by Mary E. Pearson.
• For the young adult boy: Antsy Does Time by Neil Shusterman.
• For the man or woman who loves epic novels: Serena by Ron Rash and Sashenka by Simon Montefiore.
• For the person who loves art and history: America: A History in Art: The American Journey Told by Painters, Sculptors, Photographers and Architects, by William Scheller.
• For someone who loves great narrative non-fiction: Brad Matsen’s Titanic’s Last Secrets by Brad Matsen.
• For the poetry lover: Billy Collins’s new collection, Ballistics, and the wonderful A Child’s Anthology of Poetry edited by Elizabeth Hauge Sword.
• If you’re not planning to get a present for each person in the family this year, here’s a glorious one for the whole household from the National Geographic Society: Exploration Experience: The Heroic Exploits of the World’s Greatest Explorers.
• If you want to give someone a knock-their-socks-off illustrated book: the beautiful, endlessly fascinating Cities of the World: Complete Edition of the Colour Plates 1572 - 1617.
• For the reader who loves memoir: For a new book, we recommend the new Donald Hall book Unpacking the Boxes. And if you know someone who hasn’t read Greg Mortenson’s Three Cups of Tea, it is an inspiring, riveting, important book that belongs in any stocking in the family.
Happy reading, happy holidays, and please shop local!
Roxanne