Holiday gift picks from our team

[00:00:09] ANNE BOGEL: Hey readers, I'm Anne Bogel and this is What Should I Read Next?. Welcome to the show that's dedicated to answering the question that plagues every reader, what should I read next? We don't get bossy on this show. What we will do here is give you the information you need to choose your next read.

This week we're back with our annual episode dedicated to holiday gifting recommendations for readers of all ages. We've been doing this since the show's early days and it has become an annual tradition, but this year we're putting a fresh spin on it. Just like in past years, we've been receiving listener requests for gifting help all month long. But this year, for the first time, our team members are here with me to offer their gifting recommendations. Hey, everybody.

WILL BOGEL: Hi.

BRIGID MISSELHORN: Hello: GINGER HORTON: Hi: [00:01:10] ANNE: I want to introduce everyone from our team joining us here today real quick. Would you all say hi?

BRIGID: Hi, everybody, I'm Brigid and I am the Modern Mrs. Darcy Book Club community administrator, and I'm so excited to be here.

SARA AEDER: Hi, everyone. I'm Sara Aeder. I'm the Patron community manager.

SHANNAN MALONE: I'm Shannan. I'm co-host of the MMD Community, and I contribute content in most of the places.

GINGER: I'm Ginger Horton. I'm the book club community manager.

WILL: And I'm Will Bogel, the executive producer here for What Should I Read Next?

ANNE: And joining us by Google Drive Doc, a frequent way of communicating here at What Should I Read Next HQ? is our media production specialist Holly who is under the weather on the other side of the world. But her book recs are here with us today.

We received tons of queries asking for holiday gifting help and we always love to see what you are looking for and who you're shopping for. Our team sifted through them and we pulled a representative sampling of your requests for today's episode.

[00:02:12] We always say that you're never alone in the reading life, and it was so interesting to see how many of you are truly struggling with similar conundrums when it comes to bookish gifts for your friends and loved ones. So today I will share each request and we will offer our team recommendations.

I have to tell you we are going to exercise restraint here. We could talk for a whole episode about some of your reader queries. We're not going to do that. But we are going to have a lot of fun and load up your TBRs and gifting lists.

And let me remind you now, as always, every book we talk about today is listed in our show notes. So you don't have to pull over, you don't have to fumble for your pen. Go to whatshouldireadnextpodcast.com, look for the show notes for this gifting episode. They're all listed here.

Now let's get to it.

[00:02:59] We are starting with gifts for younger readers, and our first query is from Katie, who says, "First off I am so thankful for your podcast and all the great book recommendations I get from it! The person I am needing gift recommendations for is my son. He is 9 years old and loves to read. The problem is he keeps reading the same books over and over again. He loves the Diary of a Wimpy Kid series, the Bad Guys series, and Dogman. Help me broaden his horizons and find him some new great books for Christmas!"

Katie, thank you for this. I have to say, this is making me, and probably Will as well, so nostalgic. We have sons who went through that phase and y'all, am I contractually obligated to say it's okay to read the same books over and over again. But we'll help you find new ones for Christmas gifting. Bridgid, I know you have some ideas here. What do you think?

BRIGID: Oh, I sure do, Anne. Katie, your recommendation looks very familiar to many of the books around our home. And I know Shannan and Sara and I all have kiddos around this age. So those titles jumped right out at me.

[00:04:04] The first one I want to recommend is The First Cat in Space Ate Pizza by Mac Barnett by Mac Barnett and Shawn Harris. It is so fun. It's the first in a series and the second one just came out this month. So it would be a perfect thing to give.

It started as a web cartoon during the pandemic and it has songs that goes along with it. So if your son ends up loving it, you'll have music to listen to in the car together and web cartoons to watch, and a whole slew of fun merchandise to go along with this first cat in space who ate pizza.

I'd also recommend if he happens to like superheroes, one big one in our house lately has been Avengers Assembly Series by Preeti Chhibber and illustrated by James Lancett. It's really fun kind of look at some younger superheroes in the Marvel Cinematic Universe.

The age just seems perfect that I can't help but mention a classic that is one of my very favorites and now my daughter's, who is nine, very favorite. And that's Tales of a Fourth Grade Nothing, and all the rest of the five books by Judy Blume. They are just so fun and they definitely hold up.

[00:05:14] SARA: I'd love to add my suggestions because I have a 9-year-old. We are dealing with the exact same conundrum of wanting to read those same books over and over again. So I'm going to just share some of the books that my children are reading over and over again.

The first one is the Investigators series. So that's investigative alligators. This is a series. I believe there's seven books out so far. Really funny. I think that your son's going to love them. And this might be obvious because you mentioned Dogman, but there is always the Captain Underpants Series by Dav Pilkey. You know, they're very silly and they're very fun and my kids laugh hilariously every time they read them.

The Big Nate series by Lincoln Peirce are also a big hit. And then one last graphic novel series I would add is the Secret Coders series by Gene Luen Yang. This is a series about spies who are able to solve their issues through computer coding. My kids actually got pretty interested in learning how to code. There's tie-ins to the book with coding trading. So that's a cool added bonus. And then going way back for the nostalgia for me, I would recommend the Wayside School Series by Louis Sachar.

[00:06:32] ANNE: Oh, my gosh, that's seriously taking me back. I bought every single Secret Coders book after book one because that's all the library had. Ah, and the Investigators, I think those are still upstairs. Thank you for those. Katie, I hope that gives you some good ideas.

Next, we have Stacy. She really needs help finding a new book for her nephew or book series, she says. He's almost 13 and an avid reader and he's in that complicated period between middle school reads and teenage reads, and she is struggling. He loves Harry Potter and Alex Rider. Any suggestions would be greatly appreciated.

Will, I know you have one here.

WILL: I do. Yes. I'd suggest the Artemis Fowl series by Eoin Colfer. This is the one actually Brenna recommended to us for our youngest a couple of years ago. But like three or four books in, he was like, "Oh, you should read these." I really enjoyed it. Like, there's no concern about them being too young. They've got a really nice age range on them.

[00:07:27] They're definitely fantasy but I enjoyed the fun kind of like Richie Rich, James Bond sort of technology kind of aspect to them as well. I would warn him away from the movie, though. Our kids hated it. They did not pull off the fantasy portion of it very well, especially if you've seen the movie, maybe kind of let them know there's a whole series of books and they're great, and just didn't translate to the screen all that well.

Our 13 year old's also like now working on the Skyward series by Brandon Sanderson. Those are big thick books, too. So this will keep your nephew busy for a while. Again, straight from the horse's mouth, our youngest said that book two was good, but not as good as one, three, or four. So stick with the series. So you can keep going. And hopefully that'll be enough to catch him into a new series that keeps him busy quite a while.

ANNE: I also want to say that Stacy just gave everybody a rec. If you're looking for books that scratch that Harry Potter itch, that Alex Rider series is also really popular with kids who need a series at that age with those kinds of interests we're talking about today. And does that include our youngest? Yes, of course. It is. I know that firsthand.

[00:08:31] Now we have requests from Myra. She says, "This year for Christmas, I'm curating book boxes for my younger siblings and I'm having a hard time shopping for my 11-year-old brother. He does not seem enthused about reading at the moment, so I want to give him a book that reminds him of how fun reading can be. He enjoys stories about survival and history, especially those with a fantastical twist like Imagination Station or the Magic Treehouse series. He's into graphic novels, audiobooks and sci-fi podcast adventures. I'd be grateful for any suggestions." Well, this is such a fun idea. Okay, Brigid, you have ideas. Let's hear them.

BRIGID: I do. I love this one too because our daughter was recently gifted a series by my sister-in-law and she is a history teacher. So it was kind of perfect when I saw this one. And it was Nathan Hale's Hazardous Tales series. These are graphic novels. They are set in different aspects of history and tell different tales.

And it starts with one dead spy, which is Nathan Hale's actual story. Our 9-year-old daughter has just devoured them all. She checking them out from the library.

[00:09:37] And then if your 11-year-old also likes to draw, I would highly recommend they have a little create your own comic activity edition that's called Let's Make History. And it's super fun and would make a great double gift. Like the first one in the series and then a little activity comic book to go along with it.

We also really love, in our house, the Cleopatra in Space. I think that would be a great fit as well because it's so fun and it's definitely got this sci-fi adventure feel to it and the history makes sense. So this is a graphic novel series where Cleopatra actually goes to space and there are ray guns involved and fun cats. It's just a great adventure.

Lastly, I have to admit, I was asking my daughter about, you know, these books and what she would recommend and she said, "Oh, you've got to say The Terrible Two series by Mac Burnett and Jory John, illustrated by Kevin Cornell. This is about two boys and their prank wars that occurred between them. And she said it's hilarious and it really shows how fun reading can be.

[00:10:44] ANNE: Those sounds so good. I also want to put in a plug for Jerry Craft's graphic novels. Those would be New Kid, Class Act, and the new this year, School Trip. So New Kid introduces us to a seventh grader named Jordan Banks, who he just loves to draw. He likes to draw about his life. That's how he processes things.

He wants to go to art school, but instead his parents send them to a really prestigious private school known for its academics. And he's one of the few kids of color in his entire grade. And this book is about that experience. The illustrations are so good and relatable. Our 13 year old just love these, starting when he was about 11. And I'm really jealous that your-11-year old brother has three different books available from Jerry Craft that are on the shelves waiting for him right now.

[00:11:33] All right, next we have Kat's query. She says, "Hi. I have a question about a book for my 11-year-old daughter. She is a voracious reader and I can't find books long enough—but what she really likes is graphic novels. She breezes through things like Calvin and Hobbes and Raina Telgemeier. I'm wondering if there are any LONG graphic novels or maybe books with more words that are heavily and vividly illustrated. Thanks so much."

Sara. I know you have one for Kat.

SARA: Yes. So, Cat, I have one graphic novel series for you and then one that I'm going to slip in there, you can determine whether or not it's right for your daughter, because as far as I know, there are no pictures in it, but I think she might enjoy it.

The graphic novel series is the Phoebe and her Unicorn series by Dana Simpson. There are so many of these and they are very, very funny. They're witty. They're smart. My daughter loves them. It follows a young girl and her best friend who is a unicorn named Marigold Heavenly Nostrils. And they're just a good time and they're one of the series that my daughter loves to read and reread.

[00:12:42] The full-length book that I would suggest is called Not Your All-American Girl by Wendy Wan-Long Shang and Madelyn Rosenberg. This book is the story of Laura, who is half Chinese, half Jewish, and is trying to navigate her school experience with those identities, especially after she loses a starring role in the school play because she's told that she can't play an all-American girl with how she looks. It's very sweet. I think it really will speak to the 11-year-old experience, and I hope she likes it.

ANNE: Thank you, Sara. This one's from Joey. She says, "I need help with my 11 year daughter. She loves to read but is very particular about the books she reads. Past favorites are the Wayside School series, Mr. Terupt series, and the Ways to Make Sunshine series. She enjoys realistic fiction the most. Please help this mama fill up her kiddo's TBR to keep her reading!"

Shannan, I know you have ideas for Joey.

[00:13:47] SHANNAN: Well, I was just wondering, is it too soon to introduce her to some of the classics? What do you think, Anne? I'm thinking Sarah, Plain and Tall by Patricia MacLachlan and maybe even Anne of Green Gables. Very realistic. What do you think?

ANNE: Well, I wonder how to answer that, because I don't want to be like, Well, when I was a kid... But when I was a kid, I like... I'm so thankful nobody handed me like Jane Austin when I was 11. But I loved Sarah, Plain and Tall when I was 10. I remember our oldest, who's not as much of a reader as the siblings, just cracking up reading Anna Green Gables when he was in sixth grade, which is about this age. He thought it was so funny. So I think it's worth a try.

SHANNAN: Mm-hmm.

ANNE: Is it shallow to suggest that you can also find those books in really beautiful editions that make lovely gifts and bookshelf décor? We can value both things.

[00:14:41] Series that came to mind more for their contents than their esthetic appeal or nostalgia factor for us is The Vanderbeekers series by Karina Yan Glaser or The Mother Daughter Book Club series by Heather Vogel Frederick.

I really have enjoyed The Vanderbeekers series as an adult. That's about a large family living in Harlem and the adventures they have in sibling pairs with their family, with grumpy and also delightful neighbors and vendors and just... how do you summarize the series? But I love what they've been getting up to for five books now.

And then The Mother Daughter Book Club series is one that my daughters both enjoyed. Realistic fiction about a mother-daughter book club. There are lots of Jane Austen references, which I like in this story. They read books and go to school and have adventures and campfires and just for that middle-grade age.

Joey, I hope that's helpful and that your kiddo keeps reading.

[00:15:38] Now we have a query from Susan. She says, "I'm writing to ask for recommendations for my 25-year-old son. He is an enthusiastic reader and enjoys Hive, Percy Jackson, Harry Potter, Foundation, Artemis Fowl, and Bartimaeus, plus The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy and Tomorrow, and Tomorrow, and Tomorrow. He is coming home for Christmas this year, and my husband and I would love to buy him some new books. Sarah, I know you have an idea for Susan.

SARA: Yes. And my recommendation is a book that I received from you, Anne. So I really have to credit you with this recommendation.

ANNE: You want to hear something funny? It was our team member, Leigh, that recommended it to me.

SARA: See? The book love-

ANNE: We're just going to pass it around.

SARA: ...keeps going on. Every single person in the world will have read this book by the time we're done. Is the suspense killing you, Susan? The book is Ink and Bone, which is the first book in The Great Library Series by Rachel Caine.

[00:16:41] This felt to me like the kind of really strong worldbuilding fantasy that I loved growing up, whether it was Harry Potter or the Golden Compass series. It's a very realistic alternative universe where libraries play a very important role in the running of society. And I won't say more than that. But basically it's high fantasy and librarians and action and adventure. I really loved it. And I'm excited to read the rest of the series. I've only read the first book so far.

My second recommendation is one of my favorite books ever, Sleeping Giants by Sylvain Neuvel. It's the first in the Themis Files series and it tells the story of these mysterious artifacts that are found on Earth. People don't know what to do with them, they don't know what they are. And then let's just say the world changes in permanent and unexpected ways. I would recommend Sleeping Giants on audiobook. It's a full cast recording and I think it's done extremely well.

[00:17:57] ANNE: I did not know that about the full cast. I read all those in print, and second that recommendation. Also, Holly thinks that Naomi Novik's Scholomance series might be a good pick for Susan's son. It has a magical school setting and somewhat snarky narration that might hit similarly humorous notes to Hitchhiker's Guide.

And she noted that he previously enjoyed some YA fantasy series and wonders whether he would enjoy Rebecca Roanhorse's Black Sun trilogy. That is on the heavier side. So if that's more than her son would like right now. She has a YA series that starts with Trail of Lightning that might really appeal to Susan's son. Hope you find some good ones.

[00:18:34] Next Susan is also looking for a son. This one is 19 years old. He reads nonfiction pretty much exclusively, particularly books about sports, history, and pop culture. He loves comedians Norm MacDonald, John Mulaney, and Chris Rock, and roots for the Yankees, Giants, and Knicks. He's a huge movie buff and especially Wes Anderson movies. She says, "Thanks for your help." Sara, I know you have ideas here as well.

SARA: Yes. Susan, your son and I have very similar interests, so I'm going to tell you about three books that I read and really enjoyed. Or rather two books and an author who I think you can explore anything he's ever written.

The first book is for his interest in comedy. The book is A Very Punchable Face by Colin Jost, who was the head writer of SNL for many years. It's in the line of those Tina Fey, Amy Poehler, SNL backstory books I think it's written very well. This one I would recommend in print. I listened to the audiobook, but the pictures in the print book are really worth the purchase.

[00:19:37] The second book is called The Hot Hand: The Mystery and Science of Streaks by Ben Cohen. It's a sports book of sorts, but it explores this idea of the hot hand, which is when sports players are really been expanded to two outside of sports, are doing well, and then they keep doing well because of that. How do we explain streaks and long runs of excellence? I thought it was really interesting.

And finally, any nonfiction by Chuck Klosterman, one of my favorite authors. I love his collections of pop culture essays. He is so insightful and funny. He just takes the most mundane idea and turns it into something incredibly deep. And you're like, "Oh, wow. Britney Spears does explain the meaning of life." So anything by him I think you can't go wrong.

GINGER: And I've got to give a shout out to my sister-in-law who gave me a great gift last year. The book is Accidentally Wes Anderson. This is such a fun, gorgeous coffee table book and I had the best time all year just flipping through the pages. This is full of gorgeous photos of travel spots from the real world that would be right at home in a Wes Anderson film.

[00:20:57] ANNE: Those sound like wonderful recs. I hope that those two sons of those two different Susans enjoy what their moms pick out for them.

Next, Karen would love help finding books as Christmas gifts. She says, "Last year I scoured your website and bought each of my 10 family members PJ's and a book wrapped in brown paper. My family is made up of readers from ages 21 to 84. The most difficult to buy for were the kids in their 20s who read everything from graphic novels to YA to romance (think Beach Read). I would love some suggestions for this group! One girl is 21 and is into urban planning and rock climbing- I'm stumped! Everyone was so excited to see what their book was. I hope I can do as well this year!" And then she says nice things about our team. So thank you for that, Karen. There's a lot of ground to cover here. I know a lot of us have recommendations. Will, why don't you start?

WILL: Yeah, I'll take the rock climbing. So we, in our household, were fascinated by Alex Honnold and the Free Solo event accomplishment movie. The whole deal. I read Alone on the Wall, which is Alex's book. It was really good story and interesting information about him. I didn't think it was especially well-written.

[00:22:04] But I am interested in The Impossible Climb by Mark Synnott, which I've heard great things about. Mark climbed with Alex. And this book, well, it talks about the free solo event. It also gives a whole lot of history about climbing in general, but then also sort of all the things that led up to the climb on El Cap.

If, instead of Alex Honnold, she'd like women climbers, Holly has recommended a website and podcast too, that she pays attention to called She Explores. And they actually just featured a book called Valley of Giants by Lauren Delaunay Miller. Also, Holly hasn't read it just yet, but it's a collection of nearly forty stories by an editor and climber and the past century of women in the Yosemite Valley and all of the accomplishments they've had there in climbing.

[00:22:53] ANNE: Those sounds fantastic. Although I have to tell you, talking about Alex Honnold in Alone on the Wall just makes my blood pressure skyrocket. Okay. For urban planning, Walkable City is the best. But if your urban planning devotee has already read that, you could go with Walkable City Rules, which is not as common on urban planning nerds' bookshelves, or the newer release that Will keep recommending to me, How Infrastructure Works: Inside the Systems That Shape Our World by Deb Chachra.

For romance, you're going to hear more romance in today's episode, Karen, but the book that I've had top of mind and find myself recommending all the time for all kinds of readers right now is Sarah Adams' The Cheat Sheet. And that's because y'all, I'm invested in this Taylor Swift, Travis Kelce romance. I want them to fall in love and be happy forever, forever and ever.

The Cheat Sheet is about a fake relationship with an NFL star and not with somebody of Taylor Swift caliber, but his high school sweetheart who now teaches ballet for practically free to underprivileged kids. So not quite the same dynamic, but dang it, it is close enough.

Also, something I like for this family gifting scenario is maybe not everybody is as squeamish as I am, but this is a closed-door romance that you won't have to talk about, like the spicy scenes, with your grandma could be a plus. There's a sequel called The Rule Book coming out in April. That seems like important information now. So now you know.

[00:24:19] Next, Heather from Nebraska says, "Hi Anne and team. I am looking for suggestions for books to give to my almost 15-year-old daughter. She is a voracious reader and her favorite genre is historical fiction. She is a Ruta Sepetys completist and also loves The Light in Hidden Places by Sharon Cameron and Carrie Soto is Back by Taylor Jenkins Reid. I would love to find a couple of historical fiction picks for holiday giving and bonus if one has a holiday vibe." Shannan, you have thoughts? Let's hear them.

SHANNAN: Yeah, well, the historical fiction side, I think The Secret Book of Flora Lea by Patti Callahan Henry would work here for your 15-year-old daughter. And if she is a little bit on the mature side, I would recommend dipping into Ariel Lawhon's work. Specifically, I'm thinking Code Name Hélène. It may be a little much, but the story is one that I had never heard until Ariel introduced it to us. And it's fascinating about what a woman can do in a war-torn scenario. And it's a very inspirational read for a young person, I believe.

[00:25:28] ANNE: I mean, yeah, real-life badass woman of history. Oh, it's so fun. All right, Shannan, you've got the historical. I'll bring the historical plus holiday vibes. Last Christmas in Paris by Hazel Gaynor and Heather Webb, they've both written a ton of novels. So if your daughter likes those, there's lots more where those came from. Or to lean all the way into the holidays, Mr Dickens and His Carol by Samantha Silva.

Next, we have Beth, who says, "Books are always a part of my Christmas gift-giving, and I am blessed to be able to shop at the wonderful novel Neighbor in Webster Groves." Oh, that's so fun. Tell them hello for us. "First, Beth's father is a devoted reader who enjoys US History books, but he gets those from others every year and I like to be the one getting him something a bit different. Previous hits include The Professor and the Madman, The Bird Thief and Birding While Black. He also enjoys the classics (and reads in ancient Greek!)" wow, "and a good mystery series—he's read all of Louise Penny and Ann Cleeves, among others. Beth is stuck this year and would love a good recommendation."

Beth would also love ideas for her brother, a 4th grade teacher with limited time to read for pleasure. Boys in the Boat was a good pick, but he hasn’t had time to really dive into it; something related to sports that will be a quick and engaging read would be appreciated.

Will, I know you're chiming in for Holly.

[00:26:51] WILL: Yes. Because Holly suggested a book for Beth's brother that she actually recommended to me a couple of years ago. So this is Sidecountry by John Branch. And this is just a collection of sports stories ranging from everything from backcountry skiing to football to bowling.

The one that stuck with me the most was actually on professional horseshoes, which I'll just leave at that. But they're both like longer and shorter pieces. And it could be the sort of thing that Beth's brother could really just read in bits and pieces as he has time. And again, it doesn't matter what the sport is. They were all just the most interesting snippets of that particular sport. It was great.

GINGER: All right. I've got one for dad. What about Emily Wilson's new translation of the Iliad? This just came out. And her translation choices on the Odyssey a few years ago were interesting to me. As someone who has read it a few times in various translations, I'd be willing to bet as someone who enjoys the classics and who reads Greek, super impressive, that he would find that fascinating.

And then for brother, what about a set of books for him plus his classroom? My best friend's brother is actually a classroom teacher and she does this often. It would be really fun to give the teacher the adult version of say, Born a Crime by Trevor Noah, where they've also done a young adult version.

There are several of these in that series. Just Mercy, I Am Malala and Broken. So look for those young adult versions, and the adult titles will probably be familiar to you, their bestsellers generally. That way he could read something for himself and also pass along a book to his students and they could even discuss.

[00:28:22] ANNE: I love those recommendations. Our next request comes from an anonymous reader looking for a great pick for her husband. He is very much a mood reader and dense or slower-paced writing will not hold his interest. He loves movies and cinematic experiences. Books adapted for screen are consistently good picks.

He recently really enjoyed the Star Wars Thrawn trilogy by Timothy Zahn. A Game of Thrones did not work for him. He enjoys tech industry news, real life space exploration, Formula One racing, and James Bond. A fast-paced, plot-driven recommendation that will entertain him would be greatly appreciated. Oh my gosh, Shannan, I just see you nodding. Tell us what you're thinking.

SHANNAN: I'm thinking that we might be book twins or movie twins, because all of those things he enjoys watching I definitely enjoy watching as well, including Formula 1. So I think he would especially enjoy Anthony Horowitz's work specifically because he writes for television and cinema, so his books have that quality.

[00:29:28] Maybe start him off with the Horowitz and Hawthorne series, which is basically where the writer is almost like a Watson to Hawthorne, who is Holmes and they solve crimes together. It's very meta. And the first book is The Word Is Murder. It is a series. And if he enjoys that, he can just keep going.

SARA: Shannan, you took the words right out of my mouth. That is exactly what I was going to recommend. The team knows that I have been on an Anthony Horowitz binge these past few months, and I've read the entire series. And absolutely, I think that's the right recommendation. I'll add one more, and that's Underground Airlines by Ben H. Winters, which is an alternative version of the United States where slavery is still alive in the South. Very cinematic. You read it and you think you're watching a movie. Might be the right book.

[00:30:22] ANNE: Well, if that's not high praise that you all are both going these books, I don't know what is. I have a car book to recommend. It's called Go Like Hell: Ford, Ferrari, and Their Battle for Speed and Glory at Le Mans. This focuses on a big deal car race in France in the 1960s and how Ferrari and Ford were fighting over auto supremacy and how they basically used this race and the global attention as their marketing efforts. So everything kept getting speedier and sexier.

Ah, this is a really fun truth, is more exciting than fiction kind of story that is only on my radar because I guess Keith Watts brought it to number 100th as a favorite. And I thought, That sounds amazing. Even though I'm not into cars, I really enjoyed it. And I know the car lovers are going to get even more out of it than I did.

[00:31:12] Next, we have Zita, who would love to find a great graphic novel for her boyfriend. While he's not much of a reader, he enjoyed a graphic novel Zita previously gave him. High fives, Zita. That one featured a fictional story about a World War II pilot, and Zita thinks this format would work really well for him. He's most interested in history, politics, science, science fiction, and in the past he's enjoyed nonfiction from Yuval Noah Harari. Zita would especially appreciate recommendations that are available in the UK where she and her boyfriend live. Brigid, I know you've got one for Zita.

BRIGID: I do. I, in fact, asked my husband because he seems to read mostly graphic novels as well. And as soon as they said that he had liked one based on a World War II pilot, my husband, Chad, said, "Oh, he's got to read Captain America: Theater of War by Paul Jenkins and illustrated by Fernando Blanco, and Gary Erskine and John McCrea. And the reason he recommends that is it weaves both fictional and nonfiction stories of World War II and various wars throughout history with the Captain American Saga. And he said it was fabulous.

And then I also immediately thought of the March series, which was written by the late Senator John Lewis and co-written by Andrew Aydin, art by Nate Powell. This has multiple volumes and was written by Senator John Lewis before he passed about his time during the civil rights movement. And I double-checked that both are available in the UK from some various sites, so hopefully, Zita, you'll be able to find them very easily.

[00:32:51] ANNE: Oh, thank you, Chad and Brigid for those recs. Danielle from Nova Scotia is looking for ideas for her husband, particularly his favorite genre of realistic science fiction. He has very specific taste. And the podcast has helped Danielle recommend him books that he's loved in the past. So she's hoping we can help with her holiday shopping.

Books that worked for him lately are Ascension by Nicholas Binge, Recursion by Blake Crouch, Sea of Tranquility by Emily St. John Mandel and Ted Chiang's short story collections. While he enjoyed The Long Way to a Small Angry Planet by Becky Chambers, he said the characters were "too nice" and "got along too easily." She says, "Thanks for making Tuesday my favorite day of the week!" Oh, thank you, Danielle, and thanks for sending in a submission that has Shannan jumping out of her seat with recommendations. Do you want to say anything, Shannan, about Becky Chambers?

SHANNAN: Well, you know, if there's Becky Chambers, as mentioned that I have, I have thoughts. So obviously, Luke, I want to keep pitching for Becky Chambers a little bit and say that Luke might enjoy the sequel to Long Way a little bit more. A Close and Common Orbit. I remember thinking those characters are not as nice as they were in the first book. So maybe he can keep Becky Chambers on the radar.

[00:34:12] My other recommendation is that he take a look at Cloud Cuckoo Land by Anthony Doerr. I remember that this felt very similar to Sea of Tranquility to me. It spans centuries and even into the future. And it's just way, way longer, over 600 pages.

If he hasn't tried or heard of The Space Between Worlds by Micaiah Johnson, I'd see what he thought of this one as well. Maybe not so much on the realistic side. It's set in a multiverse where our protagonist, Cara, works for a tech company that travels to different planets or multiverses searching for usable technology.

However, visiting one where your counterpart is still alive means you will die upon arrival. Cara can go because her life has sucked across the universe and has been cut short in over 300 of them. So she ends up going to a planet and her counterpart is not dead. I have to say this is one of the best books that I've read this year. Five-star rating. So give it a try.

[00:35:21] ANNE: Ooh, high praise. Now we've got three readers looking for similar nonfiction for the men in their lives. First, Kaitlyn, says she's looking for a great gift for her grandfather and feels like she's exhausted her supply of ideas since she doesn't read in his preferred genres. He loves history, nonfiction, and World War II. Books like Ghost Soldiers by Hampton Sides, Operation Mincemeat by Ben Macintyre, and Boys in the Boat by Daniel James Brown have been great books in the past. And she'd love our help with ideas for this year.

Gina from Massachusetts is looking for books her husband will enjoy during this cozy winter reading season. He enjoys narrative nonfiction like Killers of the Flower Moon, the Tana French Dublin murder series, and he's read nearly everything from Erik Larson and Laura Hillenbrand.

And finally, Jenn is on the hunt for ideas for her nonfiction-loving father. He loves history of any kind, but especially American history or World War II, and appreciates a fast-paced story with lots of action and mystery. She says, "Thank you for all the great inspiration you've given me over the years through the podcast and book guides. Maybe you can come through for my dad too." She's laughing with us at that one. So I know we have lots of ideas for these readers and other nonfiction lovers. Shannan, why don't you begin?

[00:36:31] SHANNAN: Well, I'm easy in that if someone likes book by an author, I'm always saying check that backlist. And I know that The Wager that was also by David Grann that came out this year was highly anticipated and highly praised. So if they have a favorite author, look for their backlist.

GINGER: I think I owe this recommendation to Anne via Will, who found Chasing the Thrill by Daniel Barbarisi. It is one of those stories that you would not believe it if it were not true. A centric millionaire hides a treasure chest somewhere in the wilderness after receiving a fatal diagnosis. Chaos, conspiracies, controversies follow. I will not tell you if the treasure is found or not in the end. But the thrill is in the chase.

And just like Shannan mentioned, if you like a title by one author, you might want to look at the backlist there. Daniel James Brown became known for his Boys in the Boat, but he has two others that are just as good or better, in my opinion. Facing the Mountain is an excellent look at the aftermath of World War II Pearl Harbor attack and The Indifferent Stars Above is about the Donner Party. If you’re a reader and you think you can stomach that, it is completely riveting.

[00:37:46] WILL: Well, Boys in the Boat, actually that's a great comparison. For your World War II fans, I'd like to recommend The Matthews Men by William Geroux, which has a lot of the same feel of the kind of story that the Daniel James Brown wrote with The Boys in the Boat. This is about a Virginia community and specifically one family of Chesapeake Bay captains who joined the war effort as Merchant Marines. So there's a little bit of a lesser known tale of like what happened in World War II with the Merchant Marines, but a really important aspect of battling the German U-boats and how we enlisted all of these civilians to do that work.

SARA: And I have two recommendations for those interested in World War II that really focus on some of the aftermath of World War II and specifically the Holocaust. The first is Plunder: A Memoir of Family Property and Nazi Treasure by Menachem Kaiser. Kaiser is the grandchild of Holocaust survivors, and he in recent years wanted to see if he could reclaim his family's home in Poland, which was taken over when his family was sent to the Nazi death camps.

[00:38:54] And while he is navigating this very complicated task with a whole cast of interesting characters, he discovers that his grandfather's cousin not only survived the war and his family had been led to believe that his grandfather had no surviving family members, but this cousin also wrote a secret memoir while a slave labor in the secret Nazi tunnel complex. This memoir is today considered a guidebook for Nazi treasure hunters. And Kaiser is basically adopted as a celebrity, a family member of the famous Nazi Treasure Hunter Guidebook author. Kaiser's story is one that I hadn't heard before. I assume most people haven't heard it, and it makes for really interesting reading.

The second book that I would suggest is called Mengele: Unmasking the "Angel of Death" by David G Marwell. So Mengele is the infamous Nazi doctor who committed atrocious war crimes. And Marwell served as the chief of investigative research at the Justice Department's Office of Special Investigations in the 1980s, when people were trying to find Mengele, who had run away to Argentina. He tells of Mengele's upbringing, his time as the angel of death, and then what people know and don't know about his time after running away to Argentina. The first half is much faster than the second half, but it's an interesting historical read.

[00:40:24] ANNE: Thank you team for all those nonfiction recs. Next, Amy would love our recommendations for cookbooks. Her sister loves cookbooks not only for cooking, but for a great reading experience, and she's hoping for a few ideas for this season.

Well, first of all, this reminds me of a conversation we just had on the podcast with Bri McCoy. That was Episode 397: The ingredients for a favorite read. We talk about what makes for good cookbook writing. Of course, I love a cookbook with great writing. I have ideas. But Brigid and Sara, you do too.

BRIGID: Yes, I do. I am very similar to Amy’s sister, where I love to read a cookbook from cover to cover. And one that I just recently gifted to myself was Let's Eat. It's 101 Recipes to Fill Your Heart at Home by Dan Pelosi. Dan Pelosi is probably better known as his Instagram handle GrossyPelosi. And this book is just... it's like a warm hug in a book. Basically, he is an Italian-American and he shares stories of his family and friends and their recipes. And I just loved it. Plus, the recipes are delicious and not super difficult, and I find that really rare sometimes in cookbooks. So I hope Amy's sister will love it.

SARA: I'm going to make a plug for Food Network star Molly Yeh's cookbooks. Her first is Home on the Range and her second is Home is Where the Eggs Are. Molly Yeh, she's just a delight. She is funny and self-deprecating, and her books also have adorable doodles in them. She is a Food Network star. She is married to a sugar beet farmer and lives on a farm. She's a Juilliard-trained musician. She is a fascinating person who brings both her Chinese and Jewish identities to the page and to her recipes.

And I would also recommend Joan Nathan's whose cookbooks are really sociological, deep dives into Judaism and Jewish culture. I would read them as books with or without making any of the recipes.

[00:42:36] ANNE: Oh, those sound so good. I do love books like that. And I just picked up Cook This Book: Techniques That Teach and Recipes to Repeat by Molly Baz this morning at the library because a fellow reader was telling me that they were delightful and I was really missing out by not having these in my life by now.

I also binged all three Alison Roman cookbooks, just reading them like novels on the couch when it first started getting chilly outside. And that was such a fun experience. I also love Indian-ish by Priya Krishna, The Weekday Vegetarians by Jenny Rosenstrach, and Vegetable Kingdom by Bryant Terry.

Now for Nancy, she is on the Hunts for Nature or animal-focused books for a friend in her early 80s. Nancy's friend enjoyed Fox and I by Catherine Raven, Braiding Sweetgrass by Robin Wall Kimmerer, The Eighty-Dollar Champion, the true story of a rescue-turned-show-jumping horse, and The Feather Thief. Nancy wants to avoid books with major content warnings when gifting her friend a new read. Shannan, I know you have an idea for Nancy's friend.

[00:43:33] SHANNAN: Yes. Margaret Renkl just released a lovely covered book about nature and the changing of the seasons. It’s called The Comfort of Crows: A Backyard Year. Through nature, Renkl also traces our personal transitions through our seasons of life. I haven't read this one but I have read other work by Renkl and this might be up your friend's alley. Renkl also wrote Late Migrations: A Natural History of Love and Loss. Maybe content warnings there, but give it a look.

ANNE: Holly recommends A Line in the World by Dorthe Nors. She calls it a beautifully written nature memoir, an exploration of the north coast of Denmark. It's meditative and lovely, and she thinks it would make a great gift for Nancy's friend. Holly would also recommend the two other mystery series from Ann Cleeves, that's Shetland and The Two Rivers series featuring Matthew Venn. If Nancy's friend hasn't yet read them, those could be fun to try.

[00:44:30] I loved this query we got from Kaitlin. She takes part in an extended family gift exchange and she would love to give a book that might work for anyone in the group, which includes adults between the ages of 24-60. She's thinking a general interest historical or literary fiction pick would work. Her original thought along those lines was Unbroken by Laura Hillenbrand, but she'd love some other suggestions from our team. Shannan, you're up.

SHANNAN: May we suggest I'd Rather Be Reading by Anne Bogel?

ANNE: Yes, we absolutely may.

SHANNAN: I think that would work for the ride span of people. That was mine. Brigid.

ANNE: That's very kind. Thank you.

[00:45:11] BRIGID: That's a great one, Shannan. I totally cosign that. And then I also immediately, when looking at those ages and when she mentioned interesting historical, something about John Green's The Anthropocene Reviewed: Essays on a Human-Centered Planet jumped out at me. This is one book that I feel like you could give to pretty much anyone, and they would find something to love, enjoy, or take away from and be able to discuss with each other.

Now, this is a collection of essays where John tells a memoir of his life, but also is reviewing things in our everyday human life that we deal with, like Canadian geese, Diet Dr Pepper, Scratch and Sniff Stickers, Plagues. And it is done in such a heartfelt manner that I can't help but remember almost every single essay and reread them at appropriate times during the year, for example, Auld Lang Syne. So I think this would be a good fit for almost anyone in that age group.

ANNE: I got to say, wintry mix is the one that really stuck with me. It was surprisingly heartfelt.

BRIGID: Not Kentucky bluegrass?

[00:46:27] ANNE: Well, I get enough Kentucky bluegrass. Amanda is looking for recommendations for her two sisters-in-law, ages 21 and 37. While neither are big readers, they both expressed interest in reading more, and Amanda would love to encourage them so they can join her in her bookish pursuits. She would love our suggestions. Ginger, I know you had one spring to mind immediately.

GINGER: Yes. The Uncommon Reader by Alan Bennet, is one of my favorite bookish books of all time. If it does not ignite a love for reading, I really don't know what will. Not only is it slim, it's very charming and it is full of tons of suggestions for future book lists. The story itself is fiction, but it is about a not-so-well-disguised queen, ahem, who always meant to read more. But she's a little bit busy, she never really got around to it until she did. And that journey of hers to a voracious reader is hilarious and heartwarming.

WILL: I would actually like to recommend Heating and Cooling by Beth Anne Fennely. This is also a short book. It's just hilarious. It's super easy to get into. There are 52 micro memoirs, and so each of them is only seriously, from like a couple of lines to maybe three or four pages. So it seems like it'd be the perfect thing to give to somebody to give them a bit of a reading delight but it could also encourage, you know, further bookish pursuits.

[00:47:49] ANNE: I think those are wonderful suggestions. And I’m wondering about going in a different direction with either something just super fun and frothy like Elyssa Sussman's Funny You Should Ask?. Now, I think this romance is so smartly and sharply written. This is really a hard writing makes for easy reading scenario. Look, I don't know that it was hard to write, but it's easy to read, which makes me think she's got some talent. But it could be fun to talk afterwards about the celebrity journalist who does the profile of the handsome A-lister and how it changes both their lives. I mean, that could be really fun.

I also wonder about something bite-size and punchy like Deesha Philyaw's The Secret Lives of Church Ladies, short story collection. I'm wondering if that's not the kind of book that takes you into the minds of so many different women in so many different scenarios and relationships that makes you go like, Oh, oh, this is what a good story can do. This is what fiction can do. Maybe I want more of this in my life.

[00:48:51] Now we have Abby, who's looking for one sister and two new sisters-in-law that recently married her brothers. She says, "The four of us have discovered that we share a mutual love of reading and I'd love to gift the three of them all the same book this Christmas to read, enjoy, and discuss together in 2024. We have varying tastes, but have found overlap in books with heartwarming, complex characters, memorable writing, and unique formats. Some favorites of all four of us have been Daisy Jones and the Six by Taylor Jenkins Reid, the Beartown trilogy by Fredrick Backman, and the Rose Code by Kate Quinn. Bonus points for a book that is highly discussable or particularly good on audio since all of us do the majority of our reading in that format. This is my favorite episode of the year! Thank you!"

Okay. Thank you, Abby. And thank you for this really cool query that's going to close this out for our 2023 gifting. Sara, would you get us started with our final round of recommendations?

[00:49:49] SARA: Abby, can I join your family reading group? These are all my favorite books. These are my favorite authors, my favorite books. So I feel very confident in recommending other books that have given me the same feeling of having my heart ripped out of my chest and then put together in a more pleasing manner and step back in with really incredible stories and incredible characters that have made me think long after I finish the book.

The first is one that I cannot stop talking about ever since I read it last year. That's The Measure by Nikki Erlich. One of my all-time favorites that just is so filled with characters that I wish I knew in real life, I wish I could be parents like these parents, that is This is How it Always is by Laurie Frankel and finally City of Girls by Elizabeth Gilbert, which is also just evocative, beautiful story that I felt really deeply. I can definitely tell you that this is how it always is. It's excellent on audio. It's narrated by Gabra Zackman, who's one of my favorite audiobook narrators. And so I hope you enjoy those.

[00:51:04] GINGER: I have to chime in because it's on the brain. Our December book club selection is Lillian Boxfish Takes a Walk. I have read this every December for quite a few years now, and it's become a little tradition with friends. So I know that it's popular with a lot of different ages, a lot of different styles of readers. This really does tick all your boxes.

Beloved by readers of all tastes, heartwarming, complex characters, and a really unique format with some flashbacks that takes place over the course of one evening. And because I've read it so many times, I think I've read it in every different format, audiobook, Kindle Book. I've got a physical hard copy and a physical paperback. It is good in all of those. So you can confidently listen on audio and it will be great.

ANNE: To that I'd like to add If We’re Being Honest by Cat Shook, a big-hearted family drama. This could be really fun to read with your family. If you're on good terms with your family, I think. It takes place over the course of a single week in a sweltering small town in the summertime.

[00:52:03] It begins with a shocking revelation at the family… I think he’s octogenarian, patriarch's funeral, and everybody goes, "Whoa. What happened?" And starts debriefing everything they know about the family. And of course, everyone is dealing with their own private dramas as well.

Something else I like about you all who like memorable writing, unique formats, this book is told from almost bewildering number of points of view. It rotates so quickly. It would be dizzying if it wasn't done so very well. It's different, and I think that could be fun. Although I have to say this audiobook is not good, but the story is so good.

Did You Hear About Kitty Karr? by Crystal Smith Paul Smith. You like books that are discussable and have interesting formats and make you go, Wait, I need to know who in my life has read this book because I need to talk about it. So this book has the glitz and glamor of old Hollywood because it's set in that era. But it also takes us back to, I think it's the 30s and 40s Winston-Salem, North Carolina.

[00:53:09] Oh, you know what I just realized is this novel also begins with a shocking revelation. Not at the funeral, but when a will is read. We find out that this iconic White actress left her billion-dollar fortune to the Black daughters of her co-star in a sitcom that aired nearly 15 years ago. The roots of that revelation take us back to its 1930s Winston-Salem, where we meet a young Black girl whose mother is determined to give her a better life than the one she herself had.

So this story traverses the Jim Crow South and 1950s Hollywood. It's got a fascinating cast of characters. It portrays the emerging ties between these two show business families in the story and just as really thoughtful questions about gender, race, privilege, and family. Abby, I hope you all get to stoke the fire of that mutual love of reading. That sounds like such a fun little built-in book club you have going there.

[00:54:04] Thank you so much, team, for joining me to recommend books to our listeners this holiday season. This was a first, and I'm so excited about what I want to read next. Like forget who I'm shopping for, I need to load up my nightstand with everything recommended. Thank you so much, everybody. That was a lot of fun.

GINGER: This was fun.

WILL: Yeah, it was great to be here.

SARA: Thank you.

SHANNAN: Thank you.

BRIGID:I love giving gifts, so this was really extra special.

[00:54:33] ANNE: Well, I love reading great books, and I really value your recommendations.

And listeners, I hope you got lots of good ideas out of today's conversation. I hope you enjoyed listening. And thanks again to everyone who sent in a question or shared a memory or story. We read every one. And we'd love to hear what you are looking for and meeting in your reading life right now.

Remember, find links to the episodes mentioned today and a full list of book titles discussed on our show notes page. Those are always at whatshouldireadnextpodcast.com.

You can get updates on what's happening around here at What Should I Read Next HQ by joining our email list. Sign up at whatshouldireadnextpodcast.com/newsletter.

And thanks to the people who make this show happen each week. Readers, that's it for this episode. Thanks so much for listening. And as Rainer Maria Rilke said, "Ah, how good it is to be among people who are reading." Happy reading, everyone.

TOGETHER: Happy reading!