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If you have a book lover on your gift list this holiday season, here’s a handy guide to a few hot gifts that are sure to make their day.
Kindle
Kindle is the newly launched wireless reading device from Amazon.com. It’s a completely portable gadget that lets you download and read books and magazines wherever you may be. Just connect to Amazon from your Kindle (no internet connection necessary), order a book (generally around $10 for a new hardcover title) and it will be uploaded within a minute. This saves you money on books over the long term. It also decreases the weight you carry around with you, since the Kindle weighs only 10.3 ounces, much less than your average hardcover novel. You can load several books onto your Kindle and take it on a trip with you without worrying about having enough space in your carry on bag. If the book lover in your life is also a gadget lover, look no further than Kindle for the perfect gift.
Audible.com is a website that allows you to download audio books directly from the internet to your iTunes account. Simply transfer the file onto your iPod and you can listen to a book while you’re in your car or at the gym. The process is quick, easy and fairly inexpensive. For $7.49 per month you’ll receive one credit, which is equal to one free download. Even brand new books and bestsellers are generally one credit, so that’s a fantastic price. There are other plans available if you’d like to get more than one credit a month. If there’s someone on your list who’d enjoy listening to audio books, you can purchase an Audible gift certificate which will be emailed to them within minutes. If you purchase a $50 gift for someone else, you’ll receive a coupon for $50 off an iPod Nano. Not a bad deal.
Happy Potter Box Set
The final book in the Harry Potter series was released in 2007. What better way to commemorate the occasion than by gifting the Harry Potter Box Set to the Harry Potter fan in your life, or perhaps even someone who has always meant to read the books but hasn’t done so yet. The Box Set includes hardcover versions of all seven books in the Harry Potter series. They arrive packaged in a customizable cardboard trunk, complete with handles and lock—the very sort young Harry would have put on the train to Hogwarts at platform 9 and 3/4. This collection is a Potter fan’s delight.
Fiction: Best of 2007
Give the reader on your gift list one of the best fiction titles released in 2007. There are a number of lists ranking these notable books, including those by the New York Times and the editors at Amazon.com . Skim through the titles and descriptions to find the book that sounds right for your loved one. Choices range from Khaled Hosseini’s A Thousand Splendid Suns, a searing and emotional tale set in Afghanistan, to Then We Came To the End by Joshua Ferris, a comic story set in a failing Chicago advertising agency at the end of the dot com boom. You can also check out the titles that ConstantChatter’s readers recommend most frequently in the CC’s Most Recommended Books thread. Remember that all these titles can be purchased through ConstantChatter’s Amazon.com affiliate program , which benefits the site.
NonFiction: Travel Writing
The runaway success of Elizabeth Gilbert’s memoir, Eat, Pray, Love: One Woman’s Search for Everything Across Italy, India and Indonesia has sparked a renewed interest in travel writing amongst lovers of fiction and nonfiction alike. You might consider giving your favorite reader a travel classic, such as Peter Mayle’s A Year in Provence or any of the ever-popular titles by Bill Bryson. For those who prefer shorter stories, the Best American Travel Writing series is an excellent way to sample the very best of that year’s travel writing. Check out the Travel Writing Thread here on ConstantChatter for some more great suggestions.
Rosebud
This is excellent! In-laws are both big readers so this helps a lot!