My favorite radio stations are NPR stations, KCRW for news and KUSC for music. I like to think NPR followed our lead by talking to independent bookstores about books that would be perfect gifts for readers, but I don’t think the blog is that popular, yet.
NPR talked to three bookstores who each gave five book recommendations. I listed them below, but check out the story (you can read it or listen to it while wrapping presents) because the booksellers give a summary of each of the books.
The Bookmark in Atlantic Beach, FL
- Cellist of Sarajevo by Steven Galloway
- Esther’s Inheritance by Sandor Marai
- Gone Tomorrow by P.F. Kluge
- The Man Who Invented Christmas by Les Standiford
- Serena by Ron Rash
The Bookshelf in Winona, Minn
- So Brave, Young and Handsome by Leif Enger
- A Splintered History of Wood: Belt Sander Races, Blind Woodworkers and Baseball Bats by Spike Carlsen (if you really read the title, you’re laughing)
- Downtown Owl: A Novel by Chuck Klosterman
- Mudbound by Hillary Jordan
- The Gargoyle by Andrew Davidson (on my desk to read next month)
Portrait of a Bookstore in Studio City, CA
- The Oxford Project with photographs by Peter Feldstein and text by Stephens G. Bloom
- The Economist Book of Obituaries by Keith Colquhoun and Ann Wroe
- Pinocchio by Geoffrey Brock
- All Art is Propaganda: Critical Essays by George Orwell (I just added this one to my Christmas list)
- The Ecco Anthology of Contemporary American Short Stories by Joyce Carol Oats
Now is the time for all good gift givers to visit their local independent bookstores and buy those holiday gifts.
Tags: California, Florida, gifts, Minnesota, NPR
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