We all want to buy a gift friends and family will love unwrapping this Christmas. Here are five tips for picking a book they'll want to devour.
Picking a gift for booklovers can sometimes be a challenge. With so much to choose from it can be hard to know what they have read or what is exactly on their wishlist.
To make your Christmas shopping that little bit easier this year, we’ve put together five tips to help you pick a book they will love.
1. Know their interests
Are they a crime and thriller junkie, romance obsessed or a music fan? Knowing what your loved one enjoys reading is the most important thing to keep in mind when choosing a book as a gift.
For the crime fans, Australia’s own Candice Fox and international bestseller James Patterson have collaborated on 2 Sisters Detective Agency following the success of The Inn.
If you’re buying a gift for a foodie you can’t go wrong with a cookbook, with Ottolenghi Test Kitchen: Shelf Love, Nat’s What I Reckon’s Death to Jar Sauce and Jamie Oliver’s Together our top Christmas picks.
For the music fans we recommend the Led Zeppelin biography, The Lyrics by Paul McCartney and Renegades by Barack Obama and Bruce Springsteen.
If you’re buying for someone who is constantly watching TikTok, we have a raft of books written by some of our favourite influencers, including Joshua Weissman and Ash Magic.
If you're looking for a gift for somebody younger, LEGO Christmas Ideas, The LEGO Games Book and LEGO Harry Potter Hogwarts at Christmas could be the perfect stocking addition for those who love building.
For the child interested in dinosaurs or cooking, we recommend Dinosaurs and other Prehistoric Life and Made By Morgan.
2. Check out their bookshelf
If you’re not sure what kinds of books your loved ones like to read you might want to sneak a peek at their bookshelf. That way you can see what they already own, the authors they love and the genres they devour.
If they mostly use an e-reader, ask if you can borrow it and have a quick flick through their library.
3. Buy a book about someone (or something) they love
If someone you know is a huge fan of somebody in particular, perhaps it’s worth checking out if they have got a book out.
Journalists Annabel Crabb and Leigh Sales, who host the popular Chat 10 Looks 3 podcast, have just released Well Hello, while renowned actor Will Smith is publishing his much-anticipated book Will this November.
We all know kids are obsessed with Bluey and we have some great new releases ahead of Christmas any fan will love.
We recommend Bluey: Christmas Swim and Bluey: Sleepytime for those who can't get enough of the TV show.
4. Buy them the latest book in a series they devour
If they have been reading a series, buying the next book to keep them going is a perfect choice they are guaranteed to love.
If the booklover in your life is obsessed with the TV series Outlander, you could consider gifting them the latest novel in the book series, Go Tell the Bees that I am Gone.
It is the ninth instalment in the series from bestselling author Diana Gabaldon.
Ahead of Christmas this year James Patterson is also releasing Fear No Evil, a new novel in the globally bestselling Alex Cross series.
The new book in the Jack Reacher series, Better Off Dead, is another pulse-pounding read from Lee and Andrew Child that is sure to be a hit with people who have loved the previous novels.
For those who read The Thursday Murder Club by Richard Osman, the perfect gift for them could be the sequel, The Man Who Died Twice.
There are also some great series for kids who are looking to escape into an adventure.
The Gilded Cage by Lynette Noni is the second book in the Prison Healer triology, and anybody who loves the Ranger's Apprentice series can get their hands on Ranger's Apprentice The Royal Ranger 5: Escape from Falaise.
For Diary of a Whimpy Kid fans, a great gift idea could be Big Shot, book 16 in the series.
5. Think about helping them out
Everybody has had a lot going on this year with arduous Covid lockdowns and being separated from loved ones. Maybe they are trying to get back into some good habits or are really focused on looking after themselves right now.
Atomic Habits could help your loved one get back into a healthy routine they feel they’ve lost this year while Let Go, from the author of The Resilience Project Hugh van Cuylenburg, is all about overcoming our feelings of shame, our quest for perfection and the toxicity of social media.
The best thing about buying books as gifts is there is something for everyone and if you’re looking for more inspiration you can find our best books ahead of Christmas here.
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