Holiday Gift Ideas: Ten Terrific Books to Give this Season

Jhumpa Lahiri once wrote, “That's the thing about books: they let you travel without moving your feet.”

This holiday season, give your loved ones, your writer friends, and even yourself the gift of experience—the feeling of unwrapping a present only to find it contains your imagination.

 Here’s a list of books we recommend for this holiday season:

1. Hopscotch by Julio Cortázar
Because a little experiment keeps the mind on its toes.

2. Carried Away: A Selection of Stories by Alice Munro
Because we always need to be reminded that the small things are the big things.

3. And the Mountains Echoed by Khaled Hosseini
Because there’s more to Afghanistan than war.

4. Faces of Love: Hafez and the Poets of Shiraz (trans. Dick Davis)
Because a little poetry keeps the blood flowing.

5. The Goldfinch by Donna Tartt
Because we are all searching, and one day it will lead us somewhere.

6. The Cuckoo’s Calling by Robert Galbraith (J.K. Rowling)
Because we all need consoling since Harry Potter grew up.

7. Man’s Search for Meaning by Viktor Frankl
Because learning how to be a better person never goes out of style.

8. Love Is a Dog from Hell by Charles Bukowski
Because there's no lesson quite like one of unrequited love.

9. My Heart Is Broken by Mavis Gallant
Because we are all outsiders in our own way.

10. What I Talk About When I Talk About Running by Haruki Murakami
Because how to live life wasn't taught to us in school.

Around the Word

In defense of adverbs: Though Stephen King said, "The road to hell is paved in adverbs," one writer is coming to the much-maligned part of speech's defense. Atlantic writer Lily Rothaman argues that many famously, fantastically memorable phrases would be duds without adverbs -- would we "give a damn" about Rhett and Scarlett without "frankly"? Where do you weigh in on the adverb debate?

NYPL woes: The New York Public Library has been a vital resource for scholars, writers, and readers in NYC for over 100 years. But with budgets tightening and a large renovation planned, the library is in an unprecedented state of upheaval. Check out the Nation's in-depth article on the changes at America's largest library.

So-so sentences: Is "so" the new "um"? That's the question the Chronicle of Higher Education's Lingua Franca blog is asking, after the New York Times pointed out a pattern of starting sentences with "so" earlier this year. Microsoft employees take credit for starting the "so" phenomenon, but its been picked up by everyone from politicians to NPR (a chronic offender). What do you think about this connector-turned-sentence starter? Is "so" so over?

For the policy wonk who has everything: The gift-giving season is upon us, and you might be debating which books to put on your shopping list. The Guardian has compiled several different lists of the best books to give in 2011, but our favorite is the list of political books. From manifestos to biographies to political thrillers, you're sure to find something on this list for the current events connoisseur in your life.