Best Gift Books to Give 2021: Forget the shortages, there’s something on this list (Marvel, art history, Beatles lyrics, sex advice) for everyone
You’ve probably heard that the supply-chain crisis has been particularly hard on bookstores. These next few weeks, the most sought-after titles could be frustratingly sought after, even after you’ve stopped soughting on Christmas Eve. Santa is facing ships stuck outside ports, nonexistent warehouse space and manufacturing stoppages. Laying a finger aside of his nose, while laying another finger astride the shipping options of online merchants, Santa appears primed for an ulcer. Or as my Italian grandmother would say, “Madone!”
But here’s what I say:
Great gift books — great gifts! — come out of left field. Plus, most likely, the best readers on your shopping list are curious by nature. In other words, don’t sweat that supply chain this year, and forget what’s expected. Focus on what would be unexpected. What follows here are oodles of conveniently grouped ideas for book lovers, but with a twist: Very little here is obvious. Maybe one or two ideas. But the rest are helpful reminders: What everyone is desperate for is not usually what gets a smile on Christmas morning.
So take a deep breath, and ...
The child’s keepsake: One of my favorite book gifts to give has been something, anything, from the posterity-minded folks at the Folio Society in the UK. (Don’t worry, they also have a U.S. shipping point.) New this fall is a handsome box set of Roald Dahl classics ($115) with Quentin Blake illustrations: “Charlie and the Chocolate Factory,” “James and the Giant Peach” and “The Twits.” The cover fabric is nearly tweedy.
The big splurge: If you missed — or loved — that blockbuster Frida Kahlo exhibit at the College of DuPage earlier this year, two things: It was not a cheap ticket, and Taschen’s gargantuan, bottomlessly interesting survey, “Frida, the history is free of art speak, and the archival materials — diary pages, personal photos, even architectural plans for her home — feel fresh. If there’s money left: “Mexico: The Land of Charm” ($35, Dec. 7) is a fascinating compendium of roughly 50 years of travel brochures, calendars, hotel directories and auto club advertisements designed in the early 20th century to encourage Americans to vacation in Mexico. (Speaking of Kahlo, even husband Diego Rivera painted a few travel ads.)
