Books to Gift

By Kate Duggan

Books make great presents, especially when you can borrow them back in January…

Big Panda and Tiny Dragon James Norbury

Fans of The Boy, The Mole, The Fox and The Horse, and other illustrated books will love this new offering by James Norbury. Each of the hand-drawn illustrations is accompanied by a short conversation between a panda and a dragon, offering words of wisdom we can all learn from. A book to treasure and to dip into time and time again. All In Billy Jean King

Former tennis pro Billy Jean King famously defeated Bobby Riggs in what would become known as the ‘Battle of the Sexes’. Since then, King has fought many more battles, from striving to be taken seriously as a female athlete to campaigning for LGBTQ+ rights. Her long-awaited autobiography also reveals the more personal challenges King has overcome, from an eating disorder to near-bankruptcy. A must for tennis fans and autobiography lovers.

Freckles Cecilia Ahern

Allegra has made a life for herself in Dublin, working as a traffic warden with a sideline as an artist’s model. She enjoys the routine and the rules, but she’s in Dublin for a reason and needs to pluck up the courage to see her mission through. A chance encounter with an angry driver makes Allegra re-evaluate her life and gives her a new purpose. A light-hearted, humorous tale with some darker undertones, Freckles is sure to appeal to a range of readers.

The Exiles Christina Baker Kline

Buying for a fan of historical fiction? Exiles is a solid choice. Several characters’ lives become entwined when pregnant Evangeline is sentenced to hard labour in Australia in 1840. On the ship, she meets teenage Hazel. Meanwhile, Mathinna is faced with losing her family and indigenous community when the governor and his wife decide she needs ‘refining’. A rich, multilayered story with some shocking plot twists, The Exiles is the perfect book for curling up with on Boxing Day. Ottolenghi Test Kitchen: Shelf Love Yotam Ottolenghi and Noor Murad

If you’re buying for someone who loves poring over recipe books, you can’t go wrong with Ottolenghi. For his latest book, Ottolenghi has partnered with head chef Noor Murad. The result is a book packed with recipes to help home cooks to impress with less stress. The recipes are also adaptable, so the reader can bring their own twist to a dish or use up leftovers. Just make sure the person you’re buying for promises to make you the Upside-Down Lemon, Maple and Vanilla Pudding…

The Replacement Melanie Golding

A delicious thriller for a reader to sink their teeth into on a cold winter’s night, The Replacement centres on Ruby and her sister, Joanna. The book starts as Ruby claims a seemingly abandoned child as her own. Soon after, police detective Joanna is called to investigate the attempted murder of Ruby’s neighbour. Elements of folk lore and mythology are woven into the story, adding a unique twist to a familiar genre.

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