But for the average person, books remind them of the bad old days of homework and report cards. For these folks, books and bookstores are the last resort, the last desperate option for befuddled holidaymakers who have run out of ideas for presents for people they don’t know that well. Books rank somewhere between a tie and a box of chocolates. It’s a book or go home empty-handed—and empty-handed means again facing the stores and parking lots that one frightening day closer to Christmas.
This got me thinking about how much I love getting books for Christmas. Each year I put on my Christmas list either Amazon vouchers, or book tokens or actually specify books that I want to read, and each year I am disappointed. For some reason everyone thinks that books are boring. Not me.
Thinking about this reminded me of one Christmas when I was about 12 and I got this book for Christmas:
The Secret Diary of Adrian Mole Aged 13 and 3/4 by Sue Townsend. I'd never heard of the book and wasn't sure whether I was going to like it. I needn't have worried though. I started reading it after the Queen's speech when all the grown ups were either sloshed or asleep and spent the rest of Christmas Day giggling furiously to myself. Since then I've always had a fondness for poor old Adrian Mole, plus the book is now a fascinating look at life in the 80's, through the eyes of a boy struggling with that awkward stage of finding girls and getting on at school when he's so obviously a nerd. The book has stayed with me after all these years and it's the only present I can actually remember getting that year - although I'm sure I had much fancier and more expensive presents.
So when you might be at your wit's end, looking for a present for your niece or nephew or cousin or godchildren or any other child or YA who you don't know very well but are obliged to buy a present for, don't look at books as the last resort. You never know, that book may be the best present they get this year - or at the very least the one which stays with them after the tacky electronic stuff has bitten the dust.
Do you have any Christmas books which have stayed with you, or did you think that books were boring?
I've just remembered that I blogged about something similar to this last year HERE (another one of those posts that nobody read but me *g*), and look! I posted it on exactly the same date as this one, a year ago. Spooky.
I love getting books for gifts, too, but don't get them too often, probably because my family has no idea what I read or what I've read. Strangely, I'm thinking I WON'T be sending them over to my librarything... ;)
ReplyDeleteGift cards for bookstores are my favorite gift! Even my husband can't keep up with what I've read, so that way I can choose my own indulgence, and I don't have to wait for the library or used bookstore. :)
ReplyDeleteChris: Heh, heh. I won't be sending people to my Good Reads account either! I'd like to ask them to give me ARe vouchers but even that would probably lead to 'difficult' questions :).
ReplyDeleteJaney: Gift cards are a great idea - which is why I also like Amazon vouchers.
My family knows that I'm always happy to have books as gifts. My Amazon wish list is primed and up to date for them to check!
ReplyDeleteMy Dad likes books as gifts too, though is more a non-fiction person. Anything about history, politics or football and he's happy. If there was a book called "The History of Polictics in Football" he'd think all his Christmasses had come at once. ;-)
Funny you should post this because I made a decision a couple of days ago that everyone would be getting books for Xmas, including me!!
ReplyDeleteI love getting vouchers for Xmas. I say vouchers because I've received some shocking books over the years because people think I'm 'a reader' which means I'll apparently read everything. Umm, no.
A couple of years ago I received a voucher to Borders and was able to get nearly an entire manga set that I'd been eyeing off for ages. I was in heaven! LOL.
Hey JFM
ReplyDeleteHow about this one for your Dad:
http://www.amazon.co.uk/Power-Plays-Politics-Football-Sports/dp/157806404X/ref=sr_1_14?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1259875712&sr=8-14
There are several others too. There you go, I've sorted out your present for your Dad for you :).
Hi Kris
ReplyDeleteYeah for every Adrian Mole book there were plenty of others which never got read, so vouchers is always the better option.
I never got books since my parents were (are) great believers in the library. They think it a waste of money to buy books when you can get them for a small annual fee from the library
ReplyDeleteIngrid: Well in theory that's a good plan, but the libraries in this country are woefully underfunded so the chance of them having the book you want is nil as I discovered when I started reading m/f romance and they didn't have any books by even some of the most popular authors - Lisa Kleypas = none, Loretta Chase = none, etc.
ReplyDeletePlus there are definitely no m/m romance books in our library system :).
I love getting gift certificates for books. That's what I've asked for for Christmas and birthdays the past couple of years. I have a bunch of books on my amazon wishlist all waiting to be bought.
ReplyDeleteRichelle: Using the Amazon wishlist is a good plan. Especially if you have family members who can understand how to use it :).
ReplyDeleteJenre, I think that's the wrong type of football. ;-)
ReplyDeleteJFM: Oops. Didn't look close enough at the book. Never mind, I'm sure there'll be something at Amazon for him :).
ReplyDeleteI used to always ask for books for Christmas. In fact, I once had a boyfriend with whom I exchanged nothing but antiquarian books from a wonderful, dim little shop in St. Paul. And the volumes were inexpensive, too. *sigh*
ReplyDeleteNow, I don't have a hope of getting books. Nobody wants to bother shopping for them.
Books for Christmas are a must in my family. My parents are both avid readers and I guess that rubbed off on us kids. I find picking out books can be tricky, so gift cards to Barnes and Nobel or Amazon are great!
ReplyDeleteNo surprise, but books are my favourite thing to get. Unfortunately, it often doesn't work the other way. I always give books for presents and get that half-second of disappointment reflected on that person's face, followed by the cover up of "Oh, great! This looks... interesting."
ReplyDeleteOf course, that still isn't as bad as the year I decided to give my nephews and nieces Oxfam gifts because I thought they got enough shit they didn't appreciate.
I've never ever thought of books as boring presents. I've always loved them. When I was younger my parents and my godmother used to give me a bundle of books for my birthday and Christmas (only 6 days between the events, it makes presents bigger ;) and I was so very happy. I compiled long and accurate wish lists every year. Two books stands out in my memories: Michael Ende's Neverending Story because it was the longest book I've ever read up to that date. I was ten ears old and when I excitedly told the librarian of my town about it, he had the gall to tell me to my face that I wouldn't be able to read it, it was too long and complicated for me. Ha! I was so indignant. I think his careless observation was the only reason I finished it at the time, because it was long and complicated. But I loved it nontheless. And the book itself was a joy to the eye! Printed with different colours, with miniature-like first letters for every chapter... a thing of beauty. The second book was actually three books, The Lord of the Rings trilogy. I was... fourteen I think, my Mom gave it to me and it remains my most re-read book of all times *lost in dreamy memories*.
ReplyDeleteAnyway, at some points everybody started to give me clothes. I wonder why?!
Love getting books as gifts, but prefer gift cards ever since both Borders and Barnes & Noble tightened up their exchange/return policy. I'm not going to ask people for gift receipts, so better to get gift cards instead of duplicate books. One year I got three copies of the latest Dean Koontz book, so have to be careful! *L*
ReplyDeleteVery thoughtful post Jen...
ReplyDeleteI am a big book giver at anytime, not only during the holidays..
My problem is my kids read alot, seriously alot - so I always feel like scrooge if I give them another book for the holidays...
More than likely I'll cave in and give them something that increases my electricity bill...
The nice things with boys - is that I can go into a shop and just buy it and they are good... no fuss about gift wrapping and trees and all that... sometimes I miss not having a girl....NOT
E.H>
Sean: I'm buying my parents a goat in Africa this year for Christmas. LOL I think they are reciprocating. We all have enough crap.
ReplyDeleteUnfortunately I grew up as a weirdo in a family of non-readers. I did get a few Nancy Drews when my family finally clued in, but not much else. There wasn't even a book store where I grew up, not sure there is now.
I LOVE to get books, I'm always leary about buying books for other people, well fiction books, because you don't know what someone has read or really likes. But there are so many beautiful books about every subject that you can usually find something that fits. I get my daughter books every Christmas. She's getting Josh Aterovis this year and a pasta cookbook since she seems to have developed an interest in making her own. Sometimes she loves 'em, sometimes not so much. Now that she's older I can read them too. :-)
KZ: But what about the delights of Amazon. Book buying has never been easier! As long, that is, that the books you want are easily available. Old, dusty, out of print books are not quite so easy to get on Amazon ;).
ReplyDeleteSean: My aunt bought the kids one of those Oxfam presents a couple of years ago. They were suitably unimpressed. A nice idea but kids are selfish beasts on the whole and don't really understand the concept of giving your present to someone else - even if you didn't want a chicken or a goat yourself.
Sara: I've not read Neverending Story, but I can quite understand why you want to prove the snooty librarian wrong!
ReplyDeleteAlexia: Good list writing is essential. I've quite often been bought books that I know I'll never read, just because people know that I like reading, therefore I must like any old genre. Being given a voucher - no matter how dull the giver might think it is - is far better to avoid an unwanted book - or in your case, three books the same :).
EH: I do get my kids books for Christmas. It's one of those 'extra presents' that are used to bulk up the pile. Especially as they are all getting old enough that the boxes are getting smaller and smaller - as the price gets larger and larger!
ReplyDeleteTam: They sound like great presents for your daughter. I've got a Pippi Longstocking book, a Horrid Henry book, a book on mythical creatures and a My Naughty Little Sister book for my Kids. Even hub's getting a book from me too.