2021 Gift Guide: Best Giftable Books
I read a comment recently that “books are making a comeback.” The English major book lover in me was a little defensive at first, like “uh, when did they ever go away?” But I have to admit there might be some truth to that statement. There was such a race to make everything digital, and now that we’re basically there, maybe the pendulum has started to swing the other way just a little.
For the person that appreciates the weight of an actual book in their hands, the smell of that first crack open, the sound it makes when you quickly thumb through the pages, here are the best new(ish) giftable books of the 2021 holiday season.
Cooking & Entertaining Books
Best New Cookbook
Mister Jiu’s in Chinatown: Recipes and Stories from the Birthplace of Chinese American Food by Brandon Jew is much more than another Chinese food cookbook. This beautifully designed book interweaves recipes and cooking techniques with stories about Jew’s life growing up and starting a restaurant (now Michelin-starred!) in San Francisco’s Chinatown.
It features 90 recipes that are influenced by the melding of Chinese and American cultures, including Orange Chicken Wings, Sizzling Rice Soup, Spicy Crispy Peanuts, and Dutch Crunch BBQ Pork Buns.
MSRP: $40 / Lowest Price on Ben’s: N/A
Best Cookbook That Doubles as a Coffee Table Book
Black Food: Stories, Art, and Recipes from Across the African Diaspora by Bryant Terry is another cookbook that aims (and brilliantly succeeds at!) being much more than just a collection of recipes. Over 100 Black “cultural luminaires” from all over the world have contributed original poetry, essays, and yes, recipes for this visually stunning 320-pager.
As Bon Appétit writes in a review, “it’s almost hard to call it a cookbook, because you’ll be gaining more than a few recipes from it.”
MSRP: $40 / Lowest Price on Ben’s: N/A
Best Cookbook for Entertainers
Charcuterie (I still don’t know how to actually pronounce that) is having a moment right now. The kids who grew up begging their parents for Lunchables are real grown up adults now, but there’s still a part of us that desires to eat cheese and crackers for every meal.
Beautiful Boards: 50 Amazing Snack Boards for Any Occasion is cheese and crackers, but make it fancy. Okay, there’s a bit more than that here–it includes dinner boards, breakfast/brunch boards, dessert boards and even holiday themed boards. A fun one to have around now that in-person hangouts are a thing again!
MSRP: $25 / Lowest Price on Ben’s: N/A
Best Quirky Cookbook
Let’s Make Ramen!: A Comic Book Cookbook is described as a “hybrid cookbook/graphic novel” with 40 illustrated recipes/stories. A unique take on the standard cookbook format that reinforces that idea that cooking (and eating) should be fun. Also a great way to subtly “encourage” your teenager to start making their own gosh darn food!
The follow-up, Let’s Make Dumplings! was also released this year.
MSRP: $20 / Lowest Price on Ben’s: N/A
Best Cocktail Book
I mean, you’re gonna need drinks to go along with your The Batman viewing (out March 2022), and Gotham City Cocktails: Official Handcrafted Food & Drinks From the World of Batman is here to “save the day”.
It includes 70 drink and appetizer recipes based on characters and places from the Batman universe, including the Dark Nightcap (inspired by Batman) and The Full Deck (inspired by The Joker).
The runner-up in this category is clearly Can I Mix You a Drink? by T-Pain.
MSRP: $25 / Lowest Price on Ben’s: N/A
Travel, Pop Culture & Other Giftable Books for Adults
Best Travel Book
The Art of the National Parks is described by one Amazon reviewer as “The most beautiful thing I own.” It includes write-ups and really awesome art posters for 59 parks like Death Valley, Big Bend, and Grand Teton.
The Rainbow Atlas: A Guide to the World’s 500 Most Colorful Places also looks really cool.
MSRP: $45 / Lowest Price on Ben’s: N/A
Best Actual Coffee Table Book
Father/son duo Dan Levy and Eugene Levy are so wonderfully wholesome and adorable that I’d blindly buy whatever they decided to sell me. Thank goodness Best Wishes, Warmest Regards: The Story of Schitt’s Creek actually looks like it’s “simply the best”! This massive (368 page) book includes multiple pages of behind the scenes stories and commentary for every single episode.
If you somehow haven’t watched Schitt’s Creek yet, go do it now and don’t come back until you’ve finished. Then immediately watch it again with this book in hand. I love this journey for you.
MSRP: $40 / Lowest Price on Ben’s: N/A
Best New Memoir
Dave Grohl has done everything else, so he might as well write a book. In The Storyteller: Tales of Life and Music, the self-proclaimed “guy from Nirvana” turned leader of the Foo Fighters turned Emmy-winning director, shares the lessons he’s learned from 30 years in the entertainment business.
I’m really hoping he also shares what was going through his mind when he went against Animal from the Muppets in this epic drum-off!
MSRP: $30 / Lowest Price on Ben’s: N/A
Best New Humor Book
It seems you really love Seth Rogen or you really hate Seth Rogen. I happen to be in the first camp so sorry/not sorry, Yearbook has made the list. In his debut book, the writer of true masterpieces like Superbad and Pineapple Express shares a collection of personal essays sure to make you laugh.
And if don’t, no need to worry, it comes with a guarantee of sorts: “I hope you enjoy the book should you buy it, and if you don’t enjoy it, I’m sorry. If you ever see me on the street and explain the situation, I’ll do my best to make it up to you.”
MSRP: $28 / Lowest Price on Ben’s: N/A
Best Gift for the Tolkien Fan
Pictures by J.R.R. Tolkien comes out on 12/14, right in time for gifting! Includes original watercolor paintings, sketches and drawings of places and events from The Hobbit, The Lord of the Rings and The Silmarillion. J.R.R. Tolkien’s son, Christopher Tolkien, selected the pieces that are included in this collection.
The Hobbit & The Lord of the Rings Boxed Set: Illustrated Edition is another gorgeous (and expensive) gift idea for the Tolkien lover in your life.
MSRP: $35 / Lowest Price on Ben’s: N/A
Best Graphic Novel
2021 is not the first time Frank Herbert’s Dune has been adapted into movie form, but it is the first time the beloved sci-fi epic has been transformed into graphic novel format. DUNE: The Graphic Novel, Book 1: Dune: Deluxe Collector’s Edition is a nice (very lovely packaged) step between watching the new film and jumping right into the bazillion page original novel.
MSRP: $50 / Lowest Price on Ben’s: N/A
Best Comic Book Collection
One of the biggest movies this holiday season will no doubt be Spider-Man: No Way Home. Instead of buying whatever book adaptation they come out with, why not go back to the beginning. Mighty Marvel Masterworks: The Amazing Spider-Man Vol. 1 contains the original Amazing Spider-Man issues 1 through 10 (from 1963!) in one book–that’s 256 pages to discover what made the world fall in love with Spidey in the first place.
There are 54 other volumes waiting when you’re done!
MSRP: $16 / Lowest Price on Ben’s: N/A
Best Special Edition Boxed Set
One of these days we will get Breath of the Wild 2, but in the meantime, Zelda fans can enjoy the The Legend of Zelda Legendary Edition Manga Box Set. It includes five volumes of the The Legend of Zelda manga series, an exclusive poster drawn by author Akira Himekawa and a super cool storage chest.
MSRP: $125 / Lowest Price on Ben’s: N/A
Best Reference Book
Feeling overwhelmed and confused by the multiverses and variant timelines going on in all the latest Marvel shows and movies? Periodic Table of Marvel is available to help make sense of it all.
This new release profiles 130 characters from the MCU and promises to “reveal the properties that bind them, the catalysts that created them, the chain reactions that energize them, and the underlying structures and formulas that underpin the Marvel Universe.”
Sadly it doesn’t look like Alligator Loki is included, but hopefully he’s working out his own origin story book deal as we speak.
MSRP: $20 / Lowest Price on Ben’s: N/A
Best Poetry Book
Call Us What We Carry: Poems by Amanda Gorman has to be the most highly anticipated poetry collection in a very long time. The presidential inaugural poet/rising star’s debut will be released on 12/7, and she already has a deal with Penguin Random House for two more books to follow. Her children’s book, Change Sings: A Children’s Anthem, also just came out in September.
The historic poem that started it all, The Hill We Climb : An Inaugural Poem is also available in gifable book form. Girl’s been busy!
MSRP: $25 / Lowest Price on Ben’s: N/A
Kids & Babies Books
Best Pop Up Book
Jurassic World: The Ultimate Pop-Up Book is Matthew Reinhart’s newest pop-up book, but literally everything he’s done is awesome. Simply calling these books seems wrong–they are true works of art! Out 12/7, this new one includes scenes from all the Jurassic Park and Jurassic World films.
Keeping my fingers crossed for a pop-up of the T-Rex eating guy in porta potty scene.
MSRP: $73 / Lowest Price on Ben’s: N/A
Best Book for New Babies (and their Parents)
O is for Old School: A Hip Hop Alphabet for B.I.G. Kids Who Used to be Dope is one that’s really for the moms and dads. Promises to make you “freshest parent in your playgroup while your kid learns their ABCs like a G.”.
ABCs for the little g’s The Remix is another funny alphabet book–for young sneaker heads in training!
MSRP: $16 / Lowest Price on Ben’s: N/A
Best Kids’ Picture Book
A Pizza with Everything on It starts with a premise as mundane as choosing pizza toppings and culminates in the destruction of the universe! This silly and heartwarming debut from popular TikToker Kyle Scheele is getting wonderful reviews. Would be a cute one to gift along with a pizza place gift card and/or pizza making supplies.
I also can’t not mention The Office: A Day at Dunder Mifflin Elementary here. Looks like it would make a great present for a young Office fan, because as we all know, “Presents are the best way to show how much you care. It’s a tangible thing you can point at and say, ‘Hey man, I love you. This many dollars worth.’”
MSRP: $18 / Lowest Price on Ben’s: N/A
Best Girl Power Kids’ Book
Good Night Stories for Rebel Girls 3-Book Gift Set contains the first three volumes of the Good Night Stories for Rebel Girls series–that’s 300 stories of extraordinary real-life women told in fairytale form. Volume 4: 100 Real-Life Tales of Black Girl Magic was just released this fall and can also be purchased on its own.
And finally, just because I really like Jane Austen, A Most Clever Girl: How Jane Austen Discovered Her Voice looks absolutely delightful.
MSRP: $72 / Lowest Price on Ben’s: N/A
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