How to find a book lover-nerd a book for the holidays: Well, good news, here are some "book hacks" to find that friend the perfect book because in the past, I have blown it by guessing. I gave a Stewart O'Nan book to a friend who likes Anything Zombies, think about that, O'Nan, Zombies. I know she tossed the book to the bottom of a pile and it remains there praying for an unobtrusive O'Nan reader to rescue it.
Either join a book group with all your friends then you will be in the know. OR Goodreads, you can silently scout around their TBR list. Pinterest is another favorite, most book lovers have a TBR board to make things even easier.
The Interwebz is a wonderful place to find out what people want, especially book nerds.
So here are two ideas just to get you started:
The Storied Life of A.J. Fickry is a favorite. I will put the description here from Goodreads:
(I am pressed for time, forgive..)
On the faded Island
Books sign hanging over the porch of the Victorian cottage is the motto
"No Man Is an Island; Every Book Is a World." A. J. Fikry, the irascible
owner, is about to discover just what that truly means.
A. J. Fikry's life is not at all what he expected it to be. His wife has died, his bookstore is experiencing the worst sales in its history, and now his prized possession, a rare collection of Poe poems, has been stolen. Slowly but surely, he is isolating himself from all the people of Alice Island-from Lambiase, the well-intentioned police officer who's always felt kindly toward Fikry; from Ismay, his sister-in-law who is hell-bent on saving him from his dreary self; from Amelia, the lovely and idealistic (if eccentric) Knightley Press sales rep who keeps on taking the ferry over to Alice Island, refusing to be deterred by A.J.'s bad attitude. Even the books in his store have stopped holding pleasure for him. These days, A.J. can only see them as a sign of a world that is changing too rapidly.
And then a mysterious package appears at the bookstore. It's a small package, but large in weight. It's that unexpected arrival that gives A. J. Fikry the opportunity to make his life over, the ability to see everything anew. It doesn't take long for the locals to notice the change overcoming A.J.; or for that determined sales rep, Amelia, to see her curmudgeonly client in a new light; or for the wisdom of all those books to become again the lifeblood of A.J.'s world; or for everything to twist again into a version of his life that he didn't see coming. As surprising as it is moving, The Storied Life of A. J. Fikry is an unforgettable tale of transformation and second chances, an irresistible affirmation of why we read, and why we love.
A. J. Fikry's life is not at all what he expected it to be. His wife has died, his bookstore is experiencing the worst sales in its history, and now his prized possession, a rare collection of Poe poems, has been stolen. Slowly but surely, he is isolating himself from all the people of Alice Island-from Lambiase, the well-intentioned police officer who's always felt kindly toward Fikry; from Ismay, his sister-in-law who is hell-bent on saving him from his dreary self; from Amelia, the lovely and idealistic (if eccentric) Knightley Press sales rep who keeps on taking the ferry over to Alice Island, refusing to be deterred by A.J.'s bad attitude. Even the books in his store have stopped holding pleasure for him. These days, A.J. can only see them as a sign of a world that is changing too rapidly.
And then a mysterious package appears at the bookstore. It's a small package, but large in weight. It's that unexpected arrival that gives A. J. Fikry the opportunity to make his life over, the ability to see everything anew. It doesn't take long for the locals to notice the change overcoming A.J.; or for that determined sales rep, Amelia, to see her curmudgeonly client in a new light; or for the wisdom of all those books to become again the lifeblood of A.J.'s world; or for everything to twist again into a version of his life that he didn't see coming. As surprising as it is moving, The Storied Life of A. J. Fikry is an unforgettable tale of transformation and second chances, an irresistible affirmation of why we read, and why we love.
I loved this book. I loved the characters, all of them. I felt it was a well executed plot and though I have found people who were not impressed (that's okay) there are those of us (many) who love this story, it's a whole-book-love, no complaints kind of read. For me, the best parts of the book was A.J. Fickry's life in his bookstore, his thoughts on books and the people who surround the business or buys them. He is right out there with such a concentrated bluntness (said by him or thought by him) and I had a good chuckle over the realities of the reading world.
My advice: give it as a gift, the book nerd will love you forever.
Another book (Series) I would give out to my Sci Fi Friends. Just because they have to read this series.
Books one through four, five underneath...
I took one of those great Facebook leaps and made friends with David Simpson. I have known him a long time (as well as his lovely wife, Jenny) and I cannot tell you how much fun it is to be a friend of someone not only writing a series but going under all kinds of great things to make it a movie. Plus he is one of the coolest authors, he LOVES his fans and will keep up with us no matter how busy he is. He's a gem.
I had picked up Post Human first, and loved it. It's fast paced, it's A.I., people and it's just damn good. Each book brings so much more and I highly recommend them not just because he is my friend but because he is a great author. I will link the books/descriptions via Goodreads here:
I hope that link works! I will spend one blog strictly on his books later on.
I will also bring more great holiday books to pass on, it's the holidays, we all could use a bit of help when it comes to buying books for our friends.And it's one of the hardest times for me to sit down and read, so I find writing to be the fix (a very temporary one!)
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