Giving a book for the holidays is not exactly original, but a good choice is a gift of love in itself, proving that you understand what makes your person go round. Just an annotated copy of your beloved book is a treasure for the recipient.
But if you do not know where to begin, it can be overwhelming to stand in front of the infinite number of bookshelves in a bookstore. That’s why we have requested our staff reporters and editors at USATodayWorld to recommend a book they would like to gift to friends and family of all age.
The Best Children’s Books To Give This Holiday
From adult fiction to children’s books, here are 12 books USATodayWorld staffers love to tie a bow around (in no particular order):
‘Dolly Parton All the Songs’ by Simon Benoît, Damien Somville and Lalie Walker ($60)
As for me, I don’t know a single person who does not like Dolly Parton, and I don’t think I want to. And so, when I am in a position to need a perfect gift, she is where I go. My current favorite is this stunning coffee table book that like the lady of song herself is multi-layered and packed with stunning images, history of the songs and endless celebrity associations. I also like Dolly’s new cookbook called ‘Good Lookin’ Cookin” which is full of American dishes and costs $35.
Everything I Know About Love By Dolly Alderton ($9)
Ideal for the millennials, I have bought the Dolly Alderton’s wonderful book for friends as many times as I can remember. The journalist and former Sunday Times columnist pens a love letter to female friendship as she navigates the highs and lows of early adulthood. ‘Everything I Know About Love’ has deep discussions about getting older, finding and choosing partners, and reconsidering companionship with booze.
My own copy is highlighted and underlined beyond recognition – this book is hilarious, sentimental and will hold you when you need it most.
‘All Fours’ By Miranda July, $21
It is a great book to gift your female friends and I have gifted it to three people this year. To say it’s a book about midlife crisis is an understatement – it’s quite possibly the best book about perimenopause out there. It is based on a mom, who is supposed to go on a cross-country trip with her family but ends up spending two weeks in a motel nearby. Although the woman quickly goes back to her house, she cannot get back to her life. It is one of the books you can read and cannot lay the book aside even when it makes you feel uneasy.
‘Cribsheet’ By Emily Oster Costs Seventeen Dollars
When I was pregnant with my first baby, a colleague sent me “Cribsheet: The book is subtitled “The Modern Parent’s Guide to Better, Less-Stressed Parenting from Birth to Preschool.” In addition to the book, she provided a note that the guide, written by a professor from Brown University, takes you through all the major decisions you make in the first few years. “But TL;DR,” she wrote, “Everything you decide is totally fine.” You’re not going to screw up. You’ve got this!” I always accompany the book with some form of that message to my friends who are expecting.
‘Invisible Child: The Denial Of Survival To America’s Disappeared Children’ By Andrea Elliott ($12).
As a lover of nonfiction, I always want to read something that will inspire me emotionally. This heart wrenching story of a family in poverty struggling to survive in New York City did all of the above and more.
The main characters of the Pulitzer Prize-winning book are a blended family living in New York’s vast homeless shelter system, and the detailed events and dramatic pages will leave a lasting impression – the book reads more like a novel. This is the book I recommend to friends and family who want to understand how poverty and homelessness define America. The person in your life who cares about social justice will read this epic journey.
Wind And Truth By Brandon Sanderson, 24$
Fantasy lovers have been looking forward to the fifth part of Brandon Sanderson’s “Stormlight Archive” series for years. “Wind and Truth” is the final chapter of the first cycle in the planned 10-volume series by the author. Luckily for all the fantasy lovers out there, it was released on Dec. 6 – perfect for holiday gifting. The grand space opera, which takes place on the harsh world of Roshar, includes magic and a large number of kings, warriors, scholars, and assassins. But be warned: If you decide to give the title as a gift to someone, do not expect to meet them for some time. The tome is well over 1,300 pages.
‘It Was Vulgar And It Was Beautiful: The Book ‘how Aids Activists Used Art To Fight A Pandemic’ By Jack Lowery Costs $20
After reading “It Was Vulgar and It Was Beautiful” I have never wanted to shout to the world that everyone should read a book more than now. The book is about the formation, the pinnacle and the collapse of Gran Fury, an art activist group that campaigned during the AIDS epidemic in the 1980s. Jack Lowery presents a limited number of interviews with Gran Fury members, as well as photos of the art the group produced, which puts the reader right in the thick of things.
‘Thick: And Other Essays’ By Tressie Mcmillan Cottom ($11)
Being a regular reader on the New York subway, I always appreciate the format of a set of essays because it allows you to approach the stories in portions. This is my most preferred collection out of all the collections I’ve read. Cottom’s writing is funny and biting, and she uses humor effectively to puncture the industry of beauty, the self-congratulatory academic and media classes, and the ways that even the most innocuous elements of society reinforce violence. She does a kind of hat trick, presenting an argument in such simple terms that you don’t fully grasp how brilliant it is until you’ve reached the end of the piece. Cottom is one of the great cultural critics of our time and her words are the perfect gift for any young person in your life looking to better understand the world around them.
‘Timeless: Diego And The Rangers Of The Vastlantic By Armand Baltazar – $13
Do not be put off by the weight and width of this book. Children and kids in heart will be immersed in the historical sci-fi/fantasy novel with hints of Riordan and 150 stunning illustrations by the author-illustrator Armand Baltazar. Diego Ribera, the thirteen year old boy of the story, exists in a world where the past, present and future blend, or at least are not sharply divided, perhaps not always. He discovers truths about himself and when his father, Chicago’s number one engineer, goes missing Diego must find a way to rescue him and their delicate situation. My 9-year-old son could not put it down when he read it. He liked that it had different people from different places at different times all together.
‘Sandwich’ By Catherine Newman, $16
Now it appears that every book about families must include a problematic marriage. Newman’s book is a breath of fresh air, portraying a couple in middle age and their parents and children, young adults, in a manner that is poignant and laugh-out-loud funny. This short book takes place in one week during an annual vacation in Cape Cod and is about a family discovering each other, or rather more than they bargained for.
‘Deliver Me From Nowhere: Nebraska By Warren Zanes : The Making Of Bruce Springsteen($18)
Bruce Springsteen has become very selective with his interviews and he rarely gives them. Doesn’t have to. So to get The Boss to sit down for hours to talk about a moody niche album – “Nebraska” – that he recorded by himself in late 1981 in his Colts Neck, New Jersey rental house is quite the feat. But Warren Zanes had the street cred (former musician turned documentary producer) and writing talent to harness those special contemplative interviews into a story about the meaning of artistic expression, passion and genius. This is as close as you’ll ever get to being in a talent’s head – soon to be a movie with Jeremy Allen White playing Springsteen. But do yourself a solid: Read the book first.
The Story, ‘lola And The Troll’ Is Written By Connie Schultz($14)
This book is ideal for a child, but “Lola and the Troll” is as enjoyable for a friend’s child as it is for your own. The book is about a girl named Lola and her cute small dog which is called Tank. Before getting to school, they quickly run by Tom the Troll – a monster made of leaves and sporting fangs – who waves signs that say rude things to Lola. Her hair is too big. Her smile looks funny. Her voice is too loud. Lola being a frightened girl starts changing, and in the process she loses the real herself to the tantrums of Tom.
