November 21, 2024 Comments Off on 2024 Gift Guide Kicks Off: Novelty & Nonfiction Books
It’s that time of year again, and I’m excited to kick off my Kids & Teens Holiday Gift Guide! This year’s guide will have five installments (Novelty & Nonfiction, Picture Books, Short Chapter Books, Elementary Books, and Books for Tweens & Young Teens), with over 65 recommendations for ages 2-15. As always, the focus is on books that published this fall, so you can be sure the young readers in your life won’t already have them. Every year, in preparation for this guide, I read hundreds of books with the aim of finding something for every kind of reader (and every kind of gift giver). This year, my amazing colleagues helped me vet what to read, particularly in the elementary and teen spaces.
We begin, as we do every year, with the showstoppers: these are the novelty or nonfiction books with mega gift appeal. Readers are born in browsable books like these: the fact that you don’t have to read them from cover to cover—you can flip through and pause wherever you fancy—puts readers in the driver’s seat of their own experience. At a time when we are seeing an unprecedented decline in kids reading for fun, owing largely to a decline in stamina, we should be embracing books whose very format is inviting, not intimidating. Reading is reading and nonfiction and novelty books prove that again and again.
If you’re inclined to purchase, I hope you’ll consider supporting my work as the buyer for Old Town Books, a delightful indie in Alexandria, VA, which this fall got a gorgeous new space for kids and teens (now you know the reason why I’m quieter on this blog than I used to be). If you can come in person, I promise you’ll feel like you’ve stepped into the magic of storytelling. If you can’t, I hope you’ll still let us ship you books. And if you don’t choose either of those routes, I hope you’ll support an indie bookstore near you, because bookstores will only remain places of discovery, passion, and expertise in our communities so long as we support them with our wallets. Thank you, kindly.
Alfie Explores A to Z: A Seek & Find Adventure
by Jeff Drew
Ages 4-8
Move over Waldo and I Spy, because in Alfie Explores A to Z, Jeff Drew has given us the seek-and-find book that beats all! Each of these oversized spreads focuses on a different letter of the alphabet, pairing a silly, alliterative poem about Alfie the bookworm with an incredible retro-styled illustration packed with up to 120 creatures, objects, and actions that begin with that letter. (Don’t worry, there’s an answer key in the back.) As a bonus, kids get to find Alfie and his lost pet dust bunny, Betty, on every page. But can we talk about this artwork?! Cue hours of (maybe even independent) entertainment.
Atlas of Cats
by Frances Evans; illus. Kelsey Heaton
Ages 6-9
It has been a kind year to cat lovers—thanks, Tay Tay—and with it have come some terrific books, but none have been more popular out of the gate with my customers than Atlas of Cats: Discover the Claw-Some World of Cats. It follows up Atlas of Dogs to showcase diverse species of cats across time and space. That’s right: an animal and geography book in one! Interspersed throughout this catalog of domestic and wild cats around the world are spreads about kitten development, cat shows, cat cults (yup, it was a thing in Ancient Egypt), and how to speak cat. Purrrrrfect.
Colossal: Heavyweights of the Vehicle Universe
by Stéphane Frattini; illus. Studio Muti
Ages 5-9
If you’ve got a transportation nut, get ready to level up their game with Colossal, a large-trim book that boasts seriously impressive cross-section diagrams of the largest, tallest, and most powerful transportation giants on Earth. We’re talking excavators that have break rooms and kitchens, a dump truck that can carry 800,000 pounds of cargo, a crane that’s more than twice as tall as the Statue of Liberty, a warship with steam-powered turbines that create enough electricity for a small city, and a helicopter that can fit a large fire truck in its hold. (Yes, the technical names are given for each—and many more—but that’s above my pay grade.) The path to engineering has never been more fun.
Patience…
by Rachel Williams; illus. Leonie Lord
Ages 5-9
Growing up in the age of instant gratification might seem fun much of the time, but what about when you inevitably have to wait and you’re terribly out of practice? Across eighteen soft vignettes, Patience showcases nature’s proof that some of the best things in life take time. A barn owl stalks its prey for an hour every night, while a camel crossing the desert has to wait two weeks for the sweet taste of water. A baby develops in the womb for nine months, while a century plant in the Mexican desert takes thirty years to fully open its bud. Little ones will enjoy charting the subject’s progress through the enticing paneled vignettes and maybe even hold onto the sentiment until the next time they have to wait for their birthday party…or for you to finish talking on the phone.
Wonderful Words That Tell a Tale
by Tom Read Wilson; illus. Ian Morris
Ages 8-12
When these two originally paired up to write their first book, Every Word Tells a Story, they didn’t expect it would be so popular with kids as to warrant this second title, Wonderful Words That Tell a Tale, a standalone look at the stories behind 100 more everyday words. Then again, words have fascinating origin stories, especially when presented in Tom Read Wilson’s invitingly conversational tone. Then, add in Ian Morris’ warm, whimsical illustrations, which bleed into the text on every page, and you have a book to revisit again and again (and maybe even help kids get a leg up on those dreaded standardized tests they’ll have to take someday?). It’s just as fun to discover that “ingredient” comes from the Latin word meaning “step”—consider that your garlic and oregano are literally stepping into the pot!—as to realize the Australian dingo has an Indigenous name which roughly translates to “dog that is tame,” an odd choice for a “dangerously wild” beast!
She Speaks: The Women of Greek Myths in Their Own Words
by Honor Cargill-Martin; illus. Camelia Pham
Ages 8-12
Has your mythology reader grown complacent? Time to flip the script and let them hear a different side to the Greek myths they know so well. In She Speaks, women from eight popular Greek myths—Pandora, Medusa, Medea, Atalanta, Ariadne, Helen, Circe, and Penthesilea—take center stage to share their version of the stories. These highly entertaining first-person retellings have been meticulously researched by Cargill-Martin, an acclaimed classicist whose life’s work has been around the imbalance of power in Western mythology. Pair this with Katherine Marsh’s new middle-grade fiction series, The Myth of Monsters, which similarly flips the script and whose opening title, Medusa, has been met with mega love by my young customers, girls and boys alike (some saying they think it’s even better than Percy Jackson!).
Kid Musicians: True Tales of Childhood from Entertainers, Songwriters, and Stars
by Robin Stevenson; illus. Allison Steinfeld
Ages 8-12
Every famous musician has a story of where they came from and how they discovered they had a talent to share with the world, and in Kid Musicians, the latest in Robin Stevenson’s popular series—Kid Olympians was a big hit with my customers this past summer—we are treated to the origin stories of a diverse group of musicians, including Taylor Swift, Dolly Parton, Beyoncé, Louis Armstrong, Yo-Yo Ma, Paul McCartney, Bob Marley, Stevie Wonder, and more. The book is set up like a chapter book: each musician receives a dozen or so pages, and the biographical text is broken up by spot illustrations in color. Kids will appreciate that among the successes, we also hear about the occasional mis-step, like when Ella Fitzgerald got mixed up in an illegal lottery scheme to make money, or Harry Styles spread a terrible rumor about his sister. After all, half the fun is remembering that these are real people!
Bang: The Wild Wonders of Earth’s Phenomena
by Jennifer N. R. Smith
Ages 7-10
Bang is the largest title on this year’s Gift Guide, and if that wasn’t enough of a show stopper, it also uses luminous HV printing, allowing the impressive subject matter to literally glow, sparkle, and pop! It’s not smoke and mirrors, though: the content is scientifically accurate, with phenomena like underwater volcanoes, explosive geysers, crystal-clad caves, breathtaking auroras, and dancing stars explained through captivating second-person narration and clear, impressive diagrams. It’s a book that won’t let you forget that even though our planet might seem solid and stationary, it’s continually changing, twisting, and transforming—in the most amazing ways!
Checkups, Shots and Robots: True Stories Behind How Doctors Treat Us
by David Rickert
Ages 8-12
Some of you will recall David Rickert’s popular title from last year’s Gift Guide, Pizza, Pickles and Apple Pie, about the history of the food we eat. Now, in Checkups, Shots and Robots, he uses the same engaging comics-prose hybrid to tackle the history of medicine, from the race to find the polio vaccine and the origin of x-ray technology, to why we need annual checkups and the way things like virtual reality are shaping the future. It’s bound to blow young (and old) minds, especially in the way it leans into the gross (think leeches, unhygienic amputations, and trust me you’re glad you dodged smallpox). But perhaps most impressive is its introduction to notable scientists through time, including the Ancient Greeks, William Osler, 1930s brain surgeons Harvey Cushing and Louise Eisenhardt, and unsung heroes like the enslaved Onesimus, who introduced Cotton Mather to the practice of variolation, whereby a bit of a disease is given to a healthy person in order for their bodies to learn to fight it off.
An Anthology of Rocks and Minerals
by Devin Dennie
Ages 6-10
At the shop, I get asked all the time to recommend a book for a kid who is rock-obsessed, and I’m embarrassed to say I don’t always have something, owing to the fact that most of these books have zero aesthetic appeal and it pains me to put them on the shelf (I know, I know, that’s not centering the child, and I aim to do better!). So, imagine my excitement when I got my hands on DK’s new An Anthology of Rocks and Minerals, which not only brings together a collection of rocks, minerals, and gems from around the world, but it does it in a gorgeous smallish-trim package—a leveled-up field guide, if you will—with gold sprayed edges, a ribbon bookmark, and page after page of gorgeous close-up photography and clear, uncluttered descriptions and labels. It’s easy on the eye, while allowing the rocks themselves to be front and center, which is exactly what rock-obsessed kids want!
A Natural History of Dragons
by Emily Hawkins; illus. Jessica Roux
Ages 7-12
Everyone knows dragons are real. Correction: all the cool kids know dragons are real. And in the lavishly illustrated, gold-foil-embossed tome that is A Natural History of Dragons, believers will have a chance to dive deep into dragon lore, superstition, anatomy, behavior, habitats, hatchling care, and the heavily guarded secrets behind dragon flight. The vintage-styled art design, with its sepia tones and intricate sketches, is intended to look like a handbook from the late 1800s, written to give the students of the prestigious Acadmie Solomonar a chance to master the ancient knowledge surrounding the world’s diverse dragons, with the hope that learning to treat these majestic creatures with the respect and kindness they deserve will translate into a chance to “take to the skies.” After all, riding dragons isn’t just fun; it’s also a way to “manipulate the weather, thus preventing storms and ensuring plentiful rain for good harvests.”
Due to popularity right out of the gate that exceeded publisher expectations, A Natural History of Dragons is currently in reprint; we expect more stock to arrive in mid-December.
The Dollhouse: A Pop-Up Book
by Grace West
Ages 6-10
Growing up in Manhattan, one of my favorite things to do was to walk up to the Museum of the City of New York and ogle at their exhibit of period dollhouses, some of which stood three to four feet tall, and all of which were lit from within for easy viewing through their tiny windows. Why miniature things are so enticing, I don’t know, but I do know that Grace West’s The Dollhouse is a treasure trove of cuteness. With spectacular pop-ups and lift-the-flap elements, children will adore meeting Lucy the doll and touring the buildings that make up her town, including her home, school, and local shops like the Buttercream Bakery and Enchanted Emporium. Each 3D building spread is followed by a page with additional information about some of the things you’ve glimpsed and the way they enrich Lucy’s life. (I especially enjoyed lifting the flap to read the card that Lucy and her classmates make their teacher, Miss Maple.)
Priceless Facts About Money
by Mellody Hobson; illus. Caitlin Stevens
Ages 8-12
Where was this book when I was a kid?! (Wishful thinking that I’d be better at budgets?) Thankfully for our kids, Mellody Hobson, one of today’s leading financial experts and the co-CEO and president of Ariel Investments, the first African American–owned mutual fund company, has taken it upon herself to demystify money for a young audience, providing a guide to financial literacy alongside a history of currency, banks, and trade. The best part? Priceless Facts About Money is heavily illustrated, including role-playing sequences and skits that show vocabulary and concepts in action. (Give this book alongside a gift of cash…or a gift card to your favorite bookstore.)
Spin to Survive: Deep Space Danger
by Giles Sparrow & R. Fresson
Ages 8-12
It will come as a surprise to exactly no one that this is on here, because since this Spin-to-Survive series kicked off four years ago, I’ve included the newest title on every Gift Guide. After all, what screams gift louder than a game-in-a-book?! These books are a riff off the favorite format of pick-your-own-path stories, only instead of the reader deciding which outcome to pursue, the decision is left to fate—or, more precisely, to the spin of a compass on each page. But what I love most about this series isn’t just the adventure component, it’s the myriad of STEM content woven into every page. Here, in Deep Space Danger, while we’re on a spaceship headed for disaster, we’re also learning about solar flares, asteroid belts, what actually happens if you’re exposed to space without a spacesuit, and much, much more.
Why We Went Extinct: An Illustrated Encyclopedia of the Species That Just Didn’t Make It
by Tadaaki Imaizumi & Takashi Maruyama; illus. Masanori Sato, Yoko Uetake, Kenta Kaido & Nasumisoitame
Ages 8-12
I can’t remember the last time a nonfiction title nailed voice as cleverly or with more fun as Why We Went Extinct does. Translated from Japanese, it introduces kids to the concept of Survival of the Fittest by letting them hear it straight from the animals themselves: the dinos, mammals, insects, fish, and birds who ended up on the losing end of evolution. These days, we think about endangered and extinct animals as the depressing victim of things like climate change and human interference—and that’s increasingly true—but the emphasis in these pages is on what history has born out for billions of years: that extinction is the fate awaiting all species; survival is the rare exception. Here, we get the animals’ own hot takes, rooted in science but served up with a touch of snark, on what happened to them. We learn the fate of the Lyall’s wren (cat massacre), the platybelodon (chin was too heavy), the pakicetus (commitment issues), or the Polynesian tree snail (edged out by snail warfare, plain and simple). A special section is reserved for species that, for no fault of their own, did manage to dodge extinction, including the nautilus, whose ability to survive the meteor that killed off the dinosaurs was because it “couldn’t be bothered” to compete in shallow water so took off instead for the solitary deep of the ocean.
The Hidden Life of Trees: A Graphic Adaptation
by Peter Wohlleben & Fred Bernard; illus. Benjamin Flao
Ages 10+
Peter Wohlleben has been called a real-life Lorax for the way he sought to decode the language of trees in his groundbreaking adult book, The Hidden Life Trees, which posits that forests are vast social networks, functioning not unlike human families in their ability to nurture and support their children, share nutrients with the sick or struggling, and even warn each other of impending danger. Now, the book has been adapted as a large hardcover graphic novel, with 240 pages of full-color illustrations and Peter as the main character, and while it’s still considered an adult book, its accessible format and conversational tone—think fireside chat vibes—give it massive legs for tweens and teens alike, especially those with love for the natural world. From decades of Peter’s forest observation, we learn how trees impact weather and climate, communicate with each other, and interact with fungal networks deep within the ground, among different personal details of Peter’s life.
Shakespeare’s First Folio: All the Plays, A Children’s Edition
by William Shakespeare; illus. Emily Sutton
Ages 8-12
Have I saved the best for last? Certainly, it’s the heaviest and most special in feel (also price). I’ve said this before and I’ll say it again: if we’d had half the early exposure that today’s kids have to things like mythology and Shakespeare, we would have been a lot less intimidated when we got around to studying them in high school or college! Created for the 400-year anniversary of Shakespeare’s First Folio, this gorgeous tome contains the 36 original plays, abridged for children but without compromising Shakespeare’s language. For young thespians, each play is designed to be performed by children in just twenty minutes. But the real standout here are Emily Sutton’s spectacular illustrations, replete with medieval and Renaissance flourishes on every page.
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