Friday, December 5, 2008

Books=Great Gifts

2 comments:

Samatakah said...

Books I like to give:
Frederick (Leo Lionni)
Free To Be... You And Me (and accompanying CD) (Mary Tyler Moore & Friends)
The Phantom Tollbooth (Norman Juster)
Illusions (Richard Bach)

What books do you like to give?

Saipan Writer said...

Hi, Samatakah!

Books run through my fingers like water. Whatever I've got at the present moment becomes a gift.

For little kids, I like everything from alphabet books (like the Wild one, exact title forgotten) to teeny tiny board books. Fave picture books--I've given Leo Lionni books (one about a library lion that I remember); and my dd loved MONSTER MAMA. I don't even know what's on my shelf for giving now (I keep a stack of books handy, after I've read/reviewed them, etc.)

When the Harry Potter books were coming out/new, I gave those out.

I also give "Popular" books --like manga/graphic novels--which go over well. Everything from Fruit Basket (?) to steam punk (Samantha?), to anything by Gipi or from FirstSeconds. (As you can already tell, I'm bad at remembering titles!) I loved when THE INVENTION OF HUGO CABRET came out and included that in book gifts, but it met with only moderate success.

On the adult side, I give books I've recently read (new copies, though, because I typically keep my books). THE UNNATURAL HISTORY OF THE SEA by Callum Robert (or Robert Callum?) for my nonfiction-reading friends. Trashy detective fiction for my family (yes, we love to read these!).

And for my reluctant reader nieces and nephews, I typically slip a $5 bill between the pages of the book somewhere, so they've learned to think positively about getting books as gifts and not be deflated by receiving a "book." I've found that even kids who don't typically think of themselves as readers, who don't "like" reading, will at least start a book that you give as a gift. It it's a good book they may keep reading.

Some successes--HOOT, MANIAC MAGEE, and SIDEWAYS STORIES FROM WAYSIDE SCHOOL (not sure about that last title...)