Tuesday, December 15, 2015

A Slightly Better Gift Guide: Books Are Awesome.

I did this last year and it confirmed that some of y'all are definitely my book-nerd people, so I thought  I'd make some new recommendations. I am one of those people that love getting books for Christmas because nothing makes me feel more content than a stack of new, as yet unread, books. YESSS. 

For the lover of beautiful-yet-devastating:



What if you had the chance to live your life again and again, until you finally got it right? This is a WWII story told in a post-modern multiverse timeline. This sounds complicated, but at the heart of this book is a compelling story and wonderful characters that feel like real people. Atkinson's follow up, A God In Ruins is also ridiculously good. 


For the dreamy little girl in your life:



This is better than The Secret Garden. Yeah, I said that. It was a favorite of mine as a kid because it has everything: orphans, a hidden cottage, secret passages, and a brooding handsome dad character. I mean, Julie Andrews wrote this! 


For the closet supernatural/sci-fi fan, I have two suggestions:



This was O'Malley's debut novel and it's a little X-Files and a little Buffy and a lot of fun. Great for dudes but I also really loved it and I wish he would quit his day job and get to writing book #2. (Edited to add: Oops, book #2 comes out next summer. Well done, O'Malley.)




This one is a classic time travel story (historical fiction complete with photos/illustrations) and, delightfully, has never been made into a movie even though Robert Redford really, really wanted to. It's a favorite of mine that I re-read it every 4-5 years. It's completely satisfying. 


For Fashion-Forward Folks: 



You cannot go wrong with Vreeland. She was just so crazyballs and I adore her. Diana Vreeland Memos: The Vogue Years also looks like a good time and, if you haven't see this documentary I highly recommend it. 

7 comments:

  1. Yay, books! Totally the best present.

    Have you read anything by Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie? She's amazing (I especially love Half of a Yellow Sun).

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  2. I have Americanah by her. Hope to read soon

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  3. Also her TED Talk on the danger of a single story is fabulous!

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  4. Also her TED Talk on the danger of a single story is fabulous!

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  5. This looks like a seriously great list. Thanks!

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  6. I love LOVE that Mandy is on this list. It was one of my absolute favorites growing up and can't wait for my daughter to read it!

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