It’s December, and this crazy year has made coming up with good gift ideas even harder than normal. I always give my kids books for their birthdays and Christmas, and will definitely be doing so again this year. If your looking for some gift ideas for the people on your list, here are some of my families favorite books.
The Inkheart Series – This is a really fun fantasy trilogy about a girl and her father who read so deeply they pull characters directly out of books. This middle grade series is great for readers ages 10 to adult. It also works as a wonderful read aloud for younger children, since it is literally a book about the power of reading out loud.
Artemis Fowl Series – The movie that came out on Disney+ early this year may have been a dud, but this book series is fabulous. Artemis is an Irish 12 year old turned villain who manages to kidnap a leprechaun and cause all sorts of mischief in the fairy world. Kids who love fantasy and adventure stories will love this middle grade series.
Turtle Island – This is a non-fiction picture book about Indigenous American history before the arrival of Europeans. We read this book in our homeschool earlier this fall and both of my children absolutely loved it. It’s one of the best history books I’ve ever seen. Great for children or adults who want to see a different perspective on US history. Note: even though this is a picture book, it’s long and dense. It reads more like a well written illustrated text book.
Ghost Boys – If you want a BLM themed book appropriate for kids, this book is great. It’s about a modern 12 year old boy, Jerome, shot by a police officer in Chicago who watches the officer’s trial as a ghost. The only living human able to see Jerome is the 12 year old daughter of the man who shot him. Jerome also meets several other ghost boys, including the ghost of Emmett Till.
Glitch – This is a time-traveling sci-fy story that my 13 year old recently read and LOVED. I haven’t actually read this book myself. But based upon the glowing review my son gave, I would recommend it to tweens or teens who enjoy science fiction and/or suspense novels.
Hazardous Tales – This is a graphic novel history series that my kids absolutely love. The graphic novel format makes it very readable for younger readers, but the humorous writing style still makes it entertaining for teens. This is a great way to make kids excited about reading history.
Olympians Graphic Novel Series – The Olympians is another great graphic novel series that my kids adored when they were younger. We listened to the audiobooks of the Percy Jackson series (hopefully you already know about this series, which is why I’m not recommending it) when my kids were 7-10. They both got super excited about all things Greek mythology. This comic book series about the Greek pantheon excited them just as much as the longer novels about Percy and Annabeth. I would definitely recommend this series to any kid who loves superhero’s and/or mythology.
Going Bovine – This is a young adult novel I’m planning to give my 14 year old son for Christmas this year. Because he hasn’t read it yet, I can’t tell you how much he enjoys it. I do remember thinking it was hilarious when I read it several years ago. It’s a book a humorous YA novel about a teenage boy who gets mad cow disease.
There are lots more wonderful books out there, but I’m going to stop my list here. I do want to say one thing about buying books though. I liked all of the titles on my list to Powell’s. If you’re buying books this year, you don’t have to buy them from Powell’s, but I implore you not to buy them from Amazon. Many wonderful independent book stores are really struggling this year. Please support your favorite local independent book store this holiday season. Even if you aren’t able to shop in person, these stores offer shipping and need your business way more than Jeff Bezos.
New Schooling 