The ideal holiday gift must be personalized and thoughtful; it should show how much you care; and it should “keep on giving.” There is no better gift that fits the bill than a book.
English author Neil Gaiman said it best: “Books make great gifts because they have whole worlds inside of them. And it’s much cheaper to buy somebody a book than it is to buy them the whole world!”
From the flurry of books recently published in Canada and beyond, here are some titles, recommended by Greater Victoria Public Library’s collections services librarians, for people on your gift list.
Adults – fiction
American War by Omar El Akkad
The Essex Serpent by Sarah Perry
A Mariner’s Guide to Self-Sabotage: Stories by Bill Gaston
My Favorite Thing Is Monsters by Emil Ferris (graphic novel)
An Old, Cold Grave: A Lane Winslow Mystery by Iona Whishaw
Son of a Trickster by Eden Robinson
A Stranger in the House by Shari Lapena
Adults - non-fiction
Feeding my Mother: Comfort and Laughter in the Kitchen as My Mom Lives with Memory Loss by Jann Arden
First, We Brunch: Recipes and Stories from Victoria’s Best-Loved Breakfast Joints by Rebecca Wellman
The Inner Life of Animals: Love, Grief, and Compassion – Surprising Observations of a Hidden World by Peter Wohlleben
Original Highways: Travelling the Great Rivers of Canada by Roy MacGregor
Victoria’s Most Haunted: 30 Ghost Stories from BC’s Most Historic Capital City by Ian Gibbs
Teens - fiction
The Hate U Give by Angie Thomas
One of Us Is Lying by Karen McManus
Turtles All The Way Down by John Green
Children
Hello Humpback! by Roy Henry Vickers & Robert Budd (board book)
I Am Canada: A Celebration by Heather Patterson & various illustrators (picture book)
The Lost Gift: A Christmas Story by Kallie George & Stephanie Graegin (picture book)
The Night Garden by Polly Horvath (children’s fiction)
The Big Book of Hockey for Kids by Eric Zweig (children’s non-fiction)