In my last post, I went on a breathless tirade against consumerism and materialism.
Enough righteousness.
Christmas is fast approaching and, to counteract all the indignation (that I’m still feeling, in all honesty) I say it’s time to honor those you care about by offering them a token of your love. Peace and goodwill toward all men (and women), and all that.
See, I’m not a total Grinch after all.
Let’s face it, gift giving, at its core, is about making others feel good. Albeit reluctantly – and crass commercialism aside – it does get my vote as a worthwhile, positive human activity.
Soooo, here are a few suggestions you may wanna think about as stocking stuffers for friends and family – courtesy of yours truly. Since this is a book blog, they’re all biblio-centric of course.
First off, here’s a slightly off-beat idea. Vintage book clocks…
This Etsy store has a ton of them. The covers are all hand re-created and they would look hunky-dory on the right retro book lover’s wall.
One (or more) of the New York Times’ 10 best books of the year is something they’ll probably appreciate:
The Art of Fielding by Chad Harbach
Swamplandia! By Karen Russell
Ten Thousand Saints by Eleanor Henderson
The Tiger’s Wife by Tea Obreht
Arguably by Christopher Hitchens
The Boy in the Moon by Ian Brown
Malcom X by Manning Marable
Thinking, Fast and Slow by Daniel Kahneman
A World on Fire by Amanda Foreman
And, finally, for those who want to give the children in your life something a bit more interesting than the latest Playstation game, here’s a list of some slightly, shall we say, different kids’ books. Among the titles, you’ll find stuff like: Monsters Eat Whiny Children, All my Friends are Dead, I’d Really Like to Eat a Child, Naked Mole Rat Gets Dressed, Lemony Snicket, and even an Edward Gory book. Fun!!!
Okay, before I go, I’d like to stress that I much prefer presence (as in actually being w/someone) over presents any day…but this year, I’ve made an exception.
Don’t expect the same next year.
Bah humbug.
