It's that time of year again, I'm buying gifts for friends and family and getting ready for the holidays.
I wanted to make this post decently early because the word going around the book reading community is that as we get closer to Christmas/later into the year, we may be looking at a shortage of new published books. Luckily by buying early, buying ebooks, or buying used, book lovers should still be able to read most of what we're excited to read but this does mean being ready now for the holidays if you're planning on gifting books to anyone. And of course, I have some recommendations!
For the literary fiction lover:
Migrations - Charlotte McConaghy
Migrations was one of my top reads of 2020 and one that I've passed into the hands of many others who have also enjoyed it. It follows Franny Stone, a wanderer by nature, as she follows the predicted last migration of the Arctic Terns. Told from past and present we're given a life and a journey of such heartbreak and hope that is full is surprises.
For the young adult:
Firekeepers Daughter - Angeline Boulley
This has been a popular book this year, having made the Reese's Book Club YA list. I found it to be a bit deeper and more fleshed out than some other YA I've read and it kept me hooked the whole time. It gave me a peak into the culture of the area while involving a crime mystery and the other coming of age aspects of a YA novel.
For the lover of spooky mysteries:
The Sundown Motel - Simone St. James
Okay, I found this one creepy! I loved the reading experience it gave me. It was a great balance of mystery, suspense, and supernatural. You could actually feel the atmosphere change at the motel when things got weird. The best part was how badly I wanted to keep reading to find out what happened next!
For the rom-com lover:
The Unhoneymooners - Christina Lauren
This was one of my first rom-com novels and I loved it. It is a great beachy read but doesn't need to be either. I laughed out loud at many parts and in this particular case really enjoyed the enemies to lovers trope.
For the non-fiction lover:
From The Ashes - Jesse Thistle
One of the best memoirs to hit the Canadian shelves in the last few years (in my opinion). Thistle tells us of his life raised by his grandparents after being taken from his fathers home, falling into addiction and homelessness, and what it took to bring him back from it all.
For the audiobook listener:
Son of a Critch - Mark Critch
Another memoir for your list, this one NEEDS to be listened to though! Though it is narrated by Mark Critch himself and he does have a bit of an accent so be warned of that, some parts may be a little hard to understand if you're not used to it. Critch recounts many stories from his childhood growing up Catholic and going to Catholic school in St. John's Newfoundland. He is hysterical. I truly think this is one of the best audiobooks I've ever listened to, I laughed a ton, and I gifted it to my parents for Christmas last year.
For the movie or HBO lover:
We Begin at the End - Chris Whitaker
This is another that has been all over instagram and best books of the year lists. Truthfully this one wasn't as big of a hit with me as I expected BUT it is SO well loved and I absolutely see why. If you have a movie or HBO lover in your life, this book reads like a gritty, dark, HBO modern day western. Its a slow burn crime novel with characters you grow to love.
For someone who needs an uplifting story:
Under The Whispering Door - TJ Klune
This one is brand new and I recently listened to it and it captured my whole heart. Hot on the heels of his other uplifting book The House in the Cerulean Sea, Klune gave me another novel I wanted to start again immediately upon finishing it. It literally made my heart sing and made me feel all sorts of feelings and think about it long after I finished. Complete book hangover in the absolute best way.
For short story lovers:
How to Pronounce Knife - Souvankham Thammavongsa
Last years Scotiabank Giller Prize winner Souvankham Thammavongsa really did a masterful job putting together this collection of short stories. Many of them were based on Lao characters gave me an insight of a culture I didn't previously know about. In additon, one of the stories, "Randy Travis", hit my heartstrings so hard I still think about it today.
I could have picked 2-3 books in each of these categories but since I'm tied to one, this is what I recommend! Happy shopping!
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