You knew this was coming.
You knew that you were going to have to finish your holiday shopping soon, but it snuck up on you, didn’t it? And even if you’re close to being done, there are always those three or five people who are impossible to buy for, right? Remember this, though: books are easy to wrap and easy to give, and they last awhile, too. So why not head to the bookstore with your Christmas list and look for these gifts.
FictionIs there a better book to give your BFF than “How to Kill Your Best Friend” by Lexie Elliott? I think not. This is a book about three friends who’ve been inseparable since college. Sadly, one of them, a strong swimmer, drowns under mysterious circumstances. Is there a murderer in their rapidly-shrinking friends circle?
Fans of thrillers will absolutely want to unwrap “Bullet Train” by Kotaro Isaka, the story of five assassins who find out that their respective assignments have a little too much in common for comfort. Give this book for a gift, along with two movie tickets, since it’s about to become a motion picture.
The person on your gift list who loves mythology will be very excited to see “Daughters of Sparta” by Claire Heywood beneath the tree. This is a story of two princesses of Sparta, of which little is expected but birthing an heir and looking beautiful. But when patriarchal society becomes too overbearing, the princesses must decide what to do. Far from your normal “princess” tale, this one has shades of feminism in ancient times.
MysteriesThe whodunit fan on your list will be happy to see “A Slow Fire Burning” by Paula Hawkins beneath the tree. It’s the tale of a nasty murder on a London houseboat, and the three women who had big, big reasons to want to see the victim dead.
For the reader who genuinely loves time-period mysteries, look for “Dead Dead Girls: A Harlem Renaisance Mystery” by Nekesa Afia. It’s Harlem, 1926 and young Black women are showing up dead all over the area. This is too close for comfort for Louise Lloyd, and so when she’s given an ultimatum – go to jail for a past transgression or help solve these murders – well, the choice is clear, isn’t it? This is the first book in a planned series, and your giftee will be looking for the rest after New Years’ Eve. Or make it an even better gift by adding “Public Enemy #1” by Kiki Swinson, a novel about a new detective and a police department filled with corruption.
If you’ve got someone on your list who likes westerns and mysteries, why not marry the two by wrapping up “Dark Sky” by C.J. Box. It’s another in the Joe Pickett series (but it can be read alone), and it’s the story of a wealthy man, poaching, and murder, and it could send your giftee scrambling for the rest of the Pickett books.
General nonfictionNo doubt, there’s someone on your gift list who’s concerned about climate change. And so the book to wrap up is “Hurricane Lizards and Plastic Squid” by Thor Hanson, a natural historian. Here, Hanson reveals how climate change is driving evolution. And what will happen to us? Pair it with “A (Very) Short History of Life on Earth” by Henry Gee, a small book that looks at the Big Picture, where we came from and where we might go. . .
For the reader who’s new to America, or for someone welcoming a new immigrant to these shores, look for “A Beginner’s Guide to America” by Roya Hakakian. Nearly forty years ago, Hakakian came to live in America from Iran, and she noticed a few (ha!) differences that she writes about. This book is a bit humorous, a bit tongue-in-cheek, and a lot helpful for new Americans and for Americans who were born here, so that we might see ourselves as others do. Wrap it up with “How Iceland Changed the World” by Egill Bjarnason, a small island with a big world footprint.
True crimeThe true-crime lover on your gift list will absolutely want to unwrap “Rogue’s Gallery: The Birth of Modern Policing and Organized Crime in Gilded Age New York” by John Oller. The title says it all; wrap it up with a couple mysteries for the best gift ever.
For the social activist on your list, or for anyone who wants to know more about the death penalty, look at “Let the Lord Sort Them: The Rise and Fall of the Death Penalty” by Maurice Chammah. Specifically looking at Death Row in Texas prisons, this book takes a look at penal punishment and how it affects the condemned and those who know them.
A true crime lover knows that nothing is better than a great book as a gift, so wrap up “Death on Ocean Boulevard: Inside the Coronado Mansion Case” by Caitlin Rother. Rebecca Azhau’s death was ruled a suicide. Rother shows that that might not be the case. . .
The Bookworm is Terri Schlichenmeyer. She has been reading since she was 3 years old and never goes anywhere without a book. Terri lives on a hill in Wisconsin with two dogs and 11,000 books. Terri can be reached at [email protected].
For the sports loverThe fisherman on your list will love opening “The Unreasonable Virtue of Fly Fishing” by Mark Kurlansky this year. The thing to know is that this isn’t a how-to, it’s more of a how-to-love the art of casting and catching, from coast to coast and around the world.
No doubt, there’s someone on your list who plays favorites, when it comes to sports. That’s why you’ll want to wrap up “Talking to GOATs” by Jim Gray. It’s a book full of interviews with sports’ Greatest Of All Time competitors (GOATs, get it?). Surely, there’s more argument in this book, just as there’s more to know about superstar professionals.
Want to make a home run this holiday? Then wrap up “42 Today: Jackie Robinson and His Legacy,” edited by Michael G. Long. It’s a collection of essays on the impact Robinson left on folks today, and memories that others have of the great man.
For the woman on your list who has a love-hate relationship with sports, wrap up “Sidelined: Sports, Culture, and Being a Woman in America” by Julie DiCaro. It’s a book that looks at pro sports’ “thorny issues”of sexism, exploitation, and the toxicity that women sometimes face when competing. Not for the faint of heart, for sure.
HistoryThe reader who can’t have enough World War II history will relish reading “Into the Forest” by Rebecca Frankel. It’s the true story of a family that escaped the Nazis by hiding in a nearby wooded area and they were able to stay safe for two years. Decades later, long after their liberation in 1944, another miracle happened and so did love. Wrap it up with a tissue. It’s that kind of book.
History lovers will love unwrapping “Travels with George” by Nathaniel Philbrick, a book that chronicles the author’s trip across America to see how our country has change, including the way we see George though modern eyes.
Memoir and biography
For the fan of police procedurals and courtroom drama, “Redeeming Justice” by Jarrett Adams is a no-brainer gift. When he was just a teenager, an all-white jury convicted Adams of a crime he didn’t commit, and they sent him to prison. Ten long years later, he was exonerated and released but not without help and a long fight to prove his innocence. He’s now an attorney and this is a must-read tale. Wrap it up with “The Prison Guard’s Daughter: My Journey Through the Ashes of Attica” by Deanne Quinn Miller, whose father was murdered in the 1971 Attica Prison uprising.
The reader who’s also a fan of World War II stories will want to unwrap “Eva and Eve” by Julie Metz. It’s the story of Metz’s cosmopolitan, ultra-urbane mother and the side that Metz didn’t know about: when Eve was a child, she lived in Nazi-occupied Vienna. Wrap it up with a bookmark, though your giftee won’t need it.
Hollywood biography lovers will truly enjoy unwrapping “Elizabeth and Monty: The Untold Story of Their Intimate Friendship” by Charles Casillo. It’s the story of a deep friendship, but that’s not all; it’s also a dual-biography of two of H-wood’s most beloved stars.
The Bookworm is Terri Schlichenmeyer. She has been reading since she was 3 years old and never goes anywhere without a book. Terri lives on a hill in Wisconsin with two dogs and 11,000 books. Terri can be reached at [email protected].
As your daily newspaper, we are committed to providing you with important local news coverage for Sullivan County and the surrounding areas.