December 11, 2019
Give a Book as a Holiday Gift!
I’m linking up today with That Artsy Reader Girl for a December Freebie. I decided to dedicate my Top Ten Tuesday Freebie to books you might give as GIFTS! And….ahem…there are a few more than ten! (You’ve been warned!)
As you plan your holiday gift giving, you might be looking for book recommendations. Check out a few of my FAVORITE suggestions below!
Some of these are fairly new releases while others are a few years older. All titles are Amazon affiliate links. Many of these books have been reviewed on the blog and my available reviews are linked.
Books Men Might Enjoy
(I’ve also read most of these!)
The River by Peter Heller (wilderness survival, thriller) My review.
The Boys in the Boat:Nine Americans and Their Epic Quest for Gold at the 1936 Berlin Olympics by
Wait Till Next Year by Doris Kearns Goodwin (baseball memoir, Boston Red Sox fan) My review.
Grant; Washington: A Life; or Alexander Hamilton (all) by Ron Chernow (narrative nonfiction biographies) My husband recommends these.
Just Mercy: A Story of Justice and Redemption by Bryan Stevenson (social justice) My review.
News of the World by Paulette Jiles (histfic, western, movie coming in 2020) My brief review.
Beartown by Fredrik Backman (sports, hockey, intense issues, competition, community, family) My brief review.
The Deal of a Lifetime by Fredrik Backman (poignant, reflective, meaning of life, novella) My review.
Books Women Might Enjoy
(my husband has enjoyed a few of these!)
The Dearly Beloved by Cara Wall (marriage and family, *a favorite of the year*) My review.
The Book Woman of Troublesome Creek by Kim Michele Richardson (histfic, Kentucky, *a favorite of the year*) My review.
The Things We Cannot Say by Kelly Rimmer (histfic, WW11, romance) My review.
The Stationery Shop by Marjan Kamali (diversity, Iran, histfic, *a favorite of the year*) My review.
A Place For Us by Fatima Farheen Mirza (family dynamics, *my favorite read of 2018*) My review.
Ribbons of Scarlett by Kate Quinn et al.(histfic, French Revolution) My review.
If You Want to Make God Laugh by Bianca Marais (histfic, diversity, South African post Apartheid, sibling relationships, found family) My review.
Last Christmas in Paris by Hazel Gaynor and Heather Webb (WW1 histfic, epistolary format, *a favorite two years ago*) My review.
We Were the Lucky Ones by Georgia Hunter (WW11, histfic, themes of survival, family, and faith, *a favorite of last year*) My review.
Cilka’s Journey by Heather Morris (histfic, WW11, concentration camp hardships and atrocities) My review.
My Dear Hamilton by Stephanie Dray and Laura Kamoie (histfic, biographical, *a favorite from two years ago*) My review.
A Fall of Marigolds by Susan Meissner (a “backlist” title that I just read this year, histfic, 9-11) My review.
Where the Crawdads Sing by Delia Owens (contemporary fiction, against the odds, *trigger: child abandonment) My review.
The Dream Daughter by Diane Chamberlain (science fiction, time travel, *trigger: high risk birth, adoption) My review.
The Lighthouse Keeper’s Daughter by Hazel Gaynor (histfic, brave and independent women) My review.
The Map of Salt and Stars by Jennifer Zeynab Joukhadar (histfic, magical realism, mythology, folk tales, coming of age) My review.
I’ll Be Your Blue Sky by Marisa de los Santos (beach read, chick lit, #3 in a series but can be read as a stand alone)
How to Find Love in a Bookshop by Veronica Henry ( beach read, romance, chick lit) My review.
The Secret Daughter by Shilpi Somaya Gowda (adoption) My review.
For a Bookworm
How to Find Love in a Bookshop by Veronica Henry ( beach read, romance, chick lit) My review.
I’d Rather Be Reading: The Delights and Dilemmas of the Reading Life by Ann Bogel (nonfiction, essays on the reading life)
The Lost For Words Bookshop by Stephanie Butland (quirky, memorable character) My review.
The Bookish Life of Nina Hill by Abbi Waxman (some crude humor) My Goodreads review.
Memoir, Inspirational, or Spiritual
Finding Chika by Mitch Albom (memoir, TW: childhood cancer, death of a child) My review.
The Girl With Seven Names by (memoir, North Korean defection)
Save Me the Plums by Ruth Reichl (gourmet food memoir)
Tell Me More: Stories About the 12 Hardest Things I’m Leaning to Say by Kelly Corrigan (humor, memoir,*trigger: cancer) My review.
The Ministry of Ordinary Places: Waking Up to God’s Goodness Around You by Shannan Martin (reflection, hospitality, Christian issues, family, social justice, memoir)
Present Over Perfect: Leaving Behind Frantic for a Simpler, More Soulful Way of Living by Shauna Niequist (Christian living, spiritual growth, women’s issues, for fans of Bread and Wine and Savor)
For Middle Grade Readers
Refugee by Alan Gratz (mature Middle Grade histfic, refugees, adults will enjoy too) My review. (*one of my fav MG reads*)
Amal Unbound by Aisha Saeed (diverse, indentured servitude) My review.
More to the Story by (diverse, Little Women retelling) My Goodreads review.
Louisiana’s Way Home by Kate DiCamillo (found family) My review (scroll down page).
Crenshaw by Katherine Applegate (homelessness, imaginary friend) My review (scroll down page).
Inside Out and Back Again by Thanhha Lai (diversity, Viet Nam, bullying, friendship, kindness) My review (scroll down page).
Wonder by R.J. Palacio (compassion, acceptance, kindness) My Goodreads review.
The War That Saved My Life and The War I Finally Won (both) by Kimberly Brubaker Bradley (histfic) (these are favorites!)
Wild Robot (series) by Peter Brown (younger Middle Grade science fiction)
The Mysterious Benedict Society by Trenton Lee Stewart
For Young Adult (or adult) Readers
Fountains of Silence by Ruta Sepetys (histfic romance, 1950s Spain) My review.
The Hate U Give by Angie Thomas (racial injustice, black lives matter) My review.
The Librarian of Auschwitz by Antonio Iturbe (histfic, WW11) My review.
Paper Hearts by Meg Wiviott (histfic, WW11, heartfelt, memorable, free verse) My review.
The Map of Salt and Stars by Jennifer Zeynab Joukhadar (histfic, magical realism, mythology, folk tales, coming of age) My review.
See more Middle Grade and Young Adult suggestions in this post.
I hope you have found some useful gift ideas. These are some of the books that I can personally and wholeheartedly recommend. Please share in comments if you found a gift on this list or have a recommendation or question.
Tech Support for Your Book Worm!
QOTD:
Are books on your holiday shopping list?
Did you find something interesting here?
Do you have any favorite books that you like to give as gifts?
Happy Reading Book Buddies!
“Ah, how good it is to be among people who are reading.”
~Rainer Maria Rilke
“I love the world of words, where life and literature connect.”
~Denise J Hughes
“Reading good books ruins you for enjoying bad ones.”
~Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Pie Society
“I read because books are a form of transportation, of teaching, and of connection! Books take us to places we’ve never been, they teach us about our world, and they help us to understand human experience.”
~Madeleine Riley, Top Shelf Text
Looking Ahead:
My Winter TBR and Best of the Year posts coming soon!
My Fall TBR:
Let’s Get Social!
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***Blogs posts may contain affiliate links. This means that at no extra cost to you, I can earn a small percentage of your purchase price. This money will be used to offset the costs of running a blog and to sponsor giveaways, etc.
Unless explicitly stated that they are free, all books that I review have been purchased by me or borrowed from the library.
Book Cover and author photo are credited to Amazon or an author’s (or publisher’s) website.
Holy moly Carol this is SO HELPFUL! I’m definitely sharing this . Great job!
Thanks Jaymi! I finally had to make myself stop!
What a great list! Yes, it’s definitely time to get all of those shopping lists checked off.
My TTT.
Thanks for commenting and leaving your link! Hopping over now!
I’m always up for a good biography on historical figures like Washington and Hamilton. Wow you recommend a lot of boos for all different kinds of readers. https://pmprescott.blogspot.com/2019/12/ttt-freebie.html
Thanks for your comment and for leaving your link…..I’m hopping over now!
Amazing list Carol. I may not be buying any of these as gifts, but there are a few that I will be adding to my TBR. Thanks for posting this one.
Your welcome Carla and thanks for the kind comment!
Reblogged this on Carla Loves To Read and commented:
Carol, at The Reading Ladies, posted this list and it is so amazing, I wanted to share it with you all.
I love this idea of everyone gets a book. As a kid, every birthday and Christmas my favourite present was the new book I knew was coming from my grandparents. Toys paled in comparison.
Right?! I treasured Book gifts! 👍😍 Thanks for commenting!
[…] Also…..ICYMI…..there are some ideas for book gifting in this post. […]
[…] Also…..ICYMI…..there are some ideas for book gifting in this post. […]
What a great list! I loved Beartown! And my husband has become obsessed with Hamilton this year, so I’ll be checking out your recommendations. 🙂
My TTT
Thanks for commenting and I hope you find your next great read! I’m hopping over now to take a look at your TTT👍😍
[…] Also…..ICYMI…..there are some ideas for book gifting in this post. […]
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