By Beatrix S
There are many reasons books are good gifts: they can fit any taste, provide hours of entertainment, and make you smarter, all at an affordable price. If you need ideas for gifts, perhaps for a good book for a birthday or a good book for Christmas, then think about choosing the following books as gifts.
The Ascent of Money: A Financial History of the World by Niall Ferguson is not only a good gift for accountants and economists, but also people who have a broader interest in money and the way the financial world works. If you believe that money is the root of all evil, that money corrupts people, then this book might give you reason to think again, and consider how important money has been for the development of the human race. Published in 2008, this book is a good gift for a coworker, a friend, and even your boss.
The Philosophical Baby: What Children's Minds Tell Us About Truth, Love, and the Meaning of Life by Alison Gopnik is a particularly good gift for a new mother. The book explains that you can learn from your children even when your children are still babies. The writer is a psychologist and the main idea in the book is that babies are much more conscious than we think. Filled with a lot of research about babies, this book is not all about theory; it also comes with beautiful stories about how babies can cope, sometimes coping even better than adults. The book was published in 2009.
The Dreamer by Pam Munoz Ryan is intended for a book for children in grades 4 to 9. The story is about a boy who feels poetry around him, in spite of the negative feelings his father has about everything. The whole book explodes with color, happiness, and beautiful scenery. After reading this book, you will want to go outside and celebrate the planet and everything around you. The book also contains poetry and illustrations, so if you want a book that combines good art with good writing, then this is a good book for you. The Dreamer was published in 2010. The book might seem a little to deep for a child, but the book is meant to be motivational, entertaining, and a little bit challenging, all at the same time.
Switch: How to Change Things When Change Is Hard by Chip Heath and Dan Heath is an especially good gift for people struggling with a decision. The book teaches you how to survive change and how to cope with reality when things aren’t comfortable anymore. The book also contains a lot of psychological research about change and offers a lot of answers to questions like “Why is change hard?” and “Why people don’t like change”. The book was published in 2010.
Traveling with Pomegranates: A Mother and Daughter Journey to the Sacred Places of Greece, Turkey, and France by Sue Monk Kidd and Ann Kidd Taylor is a sensible book about a journey that bonds a mother and her daughter, who discover beautiful places and find out who they really are. A great book for Mothers’ Day or for your mom's birthday, the book provides not only an inspiring story but also a gift that shows how much you love your mom. The book was published in 2010.