As the holidays draw closer, you might be looking for ideas on what to give the readers in your life. Well, we have our own annual "books to gift" conversation.
Two of Boswell Book Company’s book buyers share some of the titles that stood out to them this past year. Jason Kennedy has book recommendations for adults, and Jen Steele specializes in children’s books.
Jen Steele's Picks
The Little Shrew by Akiko Miyakoshi
"This is a beginning reader's novel, translated from Japanese," says Steele. "It's three short stories. It starts with him going to work, explores his dreams and ends with him having a holiday celebration with his little animal friends. It's very sweet."
Impossible Creatures by Katherine Rundell
"I think I have to chalk it up as my all-time favorite fantasy read," says Steele. "There's humor, it's a fast-paced book, the main character has a coat that lets her fly, there is pirates and dragons and it's a lot of fun."
Santa's First Christmas by Mac Barnett (Author), Sydney Smith (Illustrator)
"It's your jolly graybeard Santa, and the elves see all the hard work he does and decide he deserves a Christmas," says Steele. "It's a modern classic. I feel like this could be one of those go-to picture books to cozy up with and read as a family."
Bedtime Blitz! by Matthew Van Fleet
"This is perfect for two-year-olds," says Steele. "[Van Fleet] does interactive slide books with little windows, and you pull the tabs. In this one, it's a primer for getting ready for bed."
Spooky Lakes by Geo Rutherford
"I feel like this is a great book for kids and adults," says Steele. "It's spooky-light, it focuses on 25 mysterious and spooky lakes around the world. It's like a coffee table book for kids."
The Bletchley Riddle by Ruta Sepetys and Steve Sheinkin
"This is another one of my favorites. It's a historical middle-grade novel, and what I loved about it is that it made me want to research and look things up. [The authors] are both historical fiction writers and did a fantastic job," says Steele.
Jason Kennedy's Picks
Vanishing Treasures by Katherine Rundell
"This looks at a bestiary of extraordinary endangered creatures," says Kennedy. "You have a lot of interesting creatures in here, some that we know and wouldn’t realize are endangered, like the wombat, the seahorse, and the stork."
The Book Censor's Library by Bothayna Al-Essa
"This one takes place in the near future," says Kennedy. "It has a lot of correlation with what we're going through now, especially with libraries having book bans and all this stuff. It really reads like a warning."
An Atlas of Endangered Alphabets by Tim Brookes
"[Brookes] has taken a look at the world's languages, the alphabets, everything and how many people are still speaking them and writing in them. It's a great way to see how diverse our world still is," says Kennedy.
Challenger by Adam Higginbotham
"This is the story of the Space Shuttle Challenger that blew up in 1986," says Kennedy. "NASA scientists are amazing people, and this book shows what they can do. Even with the tragedy, everybody still agreed, 'We need to keep moving forward.'"
_
