15 book-shaped gifts to give this Christmas
A truth not quite universally acknowledged is that books can be successful gifts even to those who are not ardent bookworms. The fact is that reading is a tool and a book is a medium, and the possibilities are endless. I could have had this list up to a hundred and still not cover the many kinds of people you may be giving gifts to this year.
As the holidays draw nearer, however, it can be increasingly stressful to browse a bookstore for a gift with a deadline looming. This list is meant to be a bit of a quick-fix, or at least a point in the right direction without falling back on books that are literally about Christmas. Nothing beats checking out the shop for yourself, but with the height of holiday frenzy approaching I can’t say I blame anyone who needs some shorthand.
And so, without further ado, and for your convenience:
Crazy Rich Asians, Kevin Kwan
This glitzy brick-of-a-book might seem daunting to throw at someone for the holidays, but if you know your recipient is off the beach for the New Year then this is a fun companion. A comedy derived from the absurd, the book details the tale of an American Born Chinese woman who is invited by her boyfriend to his home in Singapore for the summer. The trip becomes like a tumble into the (sparkling, glamorous, deadly) rabbit hole when it becomes apparent that the boyfriend is actually the heir to one of Asia’s super powerful and crazy rich families. Hijinks all around.
Legend, Marie Lu
If you know someone who’s still Hunger Games-starved, there’s room on that person’s shelf for Lu’s trilogy. In the ever-increasing pool of YA dystopian fiction, Legend reads as one of the better ones. While the premise reads as somewhat unremarkable—two teens on opposite sides of a war in the future Republic of America—the book itself is one-sitting deal, and may send your recipient out to the bookstore on Christmas day to pick up Book Two.
The Ocean at the End of the Lane, Neil Gaiman
If you wanted to give the gift of emotion this Christmas, this is probably a good way to do it. Gaiman has long written for both children and adults, and maybe this book is meant for adults—but it will feel as though your childhood is reading it as well. There’s nostalgia, there’s looking back, there’s the remembrance, and there’s pain. And there’s growing up. If you’d like to inflict this type of emotion at someone this year, you get this book to do it for you.
The Hobbit pocket edition
There’s nothing like a film franchise to bring out the best of book editions, but this pocket version of J.R.R. Tolkien’s children’s book has slain all others by being a mini version of the original first edition. It’s the kind of thing one will want, simply for being what it is. If anything, you will be able to give the gift of astonishment to any fan of the film series—how a trilogy of movies was born out of a little book like this is anyone’s guess.
Shakespeare on Toast, Ben Crystal
Admittedly these may sound like exclusives for the English major crowd, but far from it—Ben Crystal has long been making Shakespeare accessible without compromising the intellectual discussion to be had. His book is particularly fun to arm students with because it’s definitely not on the curriculum, and anyone interested in theatre would do well to become familiar with his work. (Alternative: How Shakespeare Changed Everything by Stephen Marche, a collection of essays that tell you things about Shakespeare you better hope your teacher knows.)
Fangirl, Rainbow Rowell
If you don’t immediately know what the title means, then this may not be relatable to you. In fact it steers toward a generation that gets the internet and fandom and a range of things that baffles anyone older than millennials. But Fangirl is also a refreshing pick for anyone simply looking for a light read this break. It’s neither action-packed nor drama-ridden, just cleverly written substance with a satisfying beginning, middle, and end. A coming-of-age-tale set in college starring a girl who does not get raped, maimed, emotionally abused, or killed? In new adult fiction, what about this isn’t a gift?
Cuckoo’s Calling, Robert Galbraith
While the hullabaloo over Galbraith’s ‘secret identity’ being one J. K. Rowling has only slightly calmed down despite months of public knowledge, it’s worth picking up this book for anyone who likes crime novels. Rowling’s strong points as a writer lie in her storytelling and her characters, and Cuckoo’s Calling delivers in spades. With this book you may give the gift of a good mystery this Christmas.
Dillinger in Hollywood, John Sayles
Does anyone remember 2010’s Amigo? This is that John Sayles. Apparently he had some stories to tell, each of them touching on a whole scope of things. And they’re great stories, probably because he was a writer before he was a filmmaker. This short story collection is an excellent gift, in part because short story collections are like a chocolate box rather than a loaf of pudding, but also because Sayles is masterful in his storytelling. It is no wonder he makes good movies.
Steampunk! Kelly Link & Gavin J. Grant
Speaking of short story collections, here is something that skews younger. Giving the gift of a genre is now possible with books like these. If you’re not of a certain generation the title may not mean anything to you, but steampunk is simply a genre maybe considered part of science fiction that will typically have steam-powered machinery. Its most popular designation is Victorian England, but this book actually strives to diversify a bit, through a handful of authors your YA reader will probably be familiar with.
The Politically Incorrect Guide series
Sensationalist as some book titles can be, they make great gifts. And sometimes you just know someone in your life will appreciate this sort of thing, and the real question is whether you want to make them more insufferable than they already are. Like ice cream flavours in an American parlour, there are so many titles to choose from—there’s American History, the Bible, Western Civilization, The British Empire, Darwinism and Intelligent Design, and many more—that it may be a lot of trouble for someone who annoys you anyway. But it beats wandering around the mall for a shirt.
The White Queen, Philippa Gregory
It would be a mistake to assume that this book will only interest the period drama fans, since the setting of this historical fiction novel, the War of the Roses, was the period that inspired much of the political drama in A Game of Thrones. In The White Queen you give someone the chance to immerse in the period through Elizabeth Woodville, eventual consort to the King of England. Gregory is known as the ‘Queen of Royal Fiction’ for a reason, with her most famous work being The Other Boleyn Girl; she has a handle on her fictionalized historical characters like no other. Oh, and there’s a BBC adaptation.
Breadcrumbs, Ann Ursu
Speaking of adaptations, the younger and more engrossed reader crowd who was not particularly impressed by Disney’s Frozen may want this for Christmas. It’s a brave adventure of a book that modernizes two of the original fairytale’s strong points—the way of children in a world of adults, and the cold rationalization that comes with growing up. It may sound too mature, but then maybe we adults could stand to trust children a bit more. Besides, it will tickle that sense of snowy adventure, and what more could we in the tropics ask for?
The School For Good and Evil, Soman Chainani
And while we’re on the topic of fairytales, and the meek challenge of them in Frozen, The School for Good and Evil is the product of someone who ‘practically created’ his own Fairy-Tale major at Harvard and went on to get a background in film. Chainani’s book is a crazy hilarious read for kids that will be interesting to them the moment they unwrap it on Christmas day and see the cover art. If you really want to give the little ones a chance to think critically about fairy tales, you need this book to show them what it means to slap conventions in the face.
The Silver Donkey, Sonya Hartnett
Some books managed to capture the Christmas spirit without actually being about Christmas, and Hartnett’s book is one of them. Set during the First World War and dealing with the sudden friendship between an English deserter and two young French girls who keep their new friend a secret to continue to listen to his stories. Beautiful inside and out, and a quiet read worth having. A nice edition of this book would not go amiss as part of the family collection, as something the kids can read once again as adults with some sadness but with strength of heart.
Amulet series, Kazu Kibiushi
Graphic novels are slowly being recognized as a medium and not a genre here in the Philippines, but the old misunderstandings can sometimes still put off parents who might otherwise be getting their kids some good reading material. Kibiushi is here to show you that the you can get good reads out of graphic novels for your kids. Amulet is a good quality series—a cinematic fantasy adventure with memorable characters, as well as some thought-provoking family dynamics and very strong visuals that will put you in the mind of higher quality animated cartoons like Nickelodeon’s Avatar or The Legend of Korra.
