Novel gift ideas

June Lee singles out the books that will steal the spotlight from the candy canes and trinkets in your Christmas stocking

A book is always a nice present – provided you get the right one for the recipient. If it’s your first attempt at book gift-giving, you could do worse than Schott’s Original Miscellany. A slim and entertaining collection of trivia released in 2003, it was hailed by UK broadsheet The Guardian as ‘the publishing sensation of the year’. It has already spawned numerous copycat works that aim to make you the ultimate know-it-all. But if lists of little-known facts don’t float your boat, here are four more stocking stuffer ideas to fill that book-shaped hole in your Christmas shopping list.

Lose Weight! Get Laid! Find God!
Ben Carey and Henrick Delehag (Benrik Limited, $28)
This subversive planner follows the anarchic style of This Diary Will Change Your Life; the only difference is, it tracks key moments from age zero to 100, so you get a slew of almost-serious suggestions. At the age of 42, it says, you should move to the suburbs; at 43, join the swingers scene. These recommendations even come with an illustration of a suburban house with secret codes to indicate readiness. See that outdoor light switched on during the day? It means ‘we are naked and tied up; please walk in’. These boldly designed pages see you through those mad crushes on teachers, that rock band you started, your doomed attempt to stay in shape, and your diseases. Good for a laugh, the book also includes oddly useful morsels – like a classical music primer – that might come in handy for 2009.

Ultimate Adventures
Greg Witt (Rough Guides, $42)
The 177 adventures in this book were chosen for their ‘achievability’. The author hikes more miles a day than most of us do in a year, so his definition of ‘achievable’ might differ somewhat from ours, but what you do get is an inspirational travel guide that doesn’t just send you out there to see the world (which is divided into seven regions, including the polar ice caps), but makes sure you see nature in all its jaw-dropping glory. Consider fat-burning Hawaiian foot trails and vertigo-defying Nepalese summit climbs, or sea kayaking in Phuket and wildlife viewing in Borneo. Though the last two may score low on the physical and skill scales, they still score modestly high on the ‘wow’ scale. Hurry up and give this to your buddies.

Secrets of Gorgeous
Esther Blum (Chronicle Books, $23.30)
Got a horrible hangover? Pop a whole umeboshi (Japanese pickled plum) into your mouth and slowly let the salt counterbalance the effects of alcohol. Blum’s personal mission is to give everyone the right tools to achieve gorgeousness; she’s like a best friend who just happens to be a supermodel, career woman, nurse and personal trainer rolled into one. This can only mean that you get a lot of know-how, such as trading carb-rich spaghetti for lean buckwheat soba, and anaemia-fighting tips that will get ‘your rump ready for a hump’. This small but compact 220-pager is also perfect for twentysomethings, as chapters deal smartly with mental health and nutrition.

The Compendium of Nosh
Jack McLean (John Murray, $43.70)
If you’re slightly acerbic, curious and have regular flings with imported aerated water and homemade rendang, you have just found your ideal book. McLean, a food critic and master wit, has created an A-to-Z listing based entirely on his principles of good food provision. This includes the ability to distinguish between amaretti (macaroon biscuits) and amaretto (liqueur), and a disdain for soya-based quorn, a meat substitute (‘truly, deeply, awful’). Encyclopedias on food terms have long clogged bookstore shelves, so what makes Nosh special? It is the feeling you get of the author directly addressing your needs, with a bunch of rib-tickling insights thrown in – even if he describes ‘belachan’ incorrectly and doesn’t like chicken feet, escargots or frogs’ legs. But then this book can make you a trivia expert. Who knew that the word ‘avocado’ was derived from the Portuguese word for a testicle, or that wontons are translated around the world as ravioli, kreplach, manti and pierogi?


This stocking stuffer is perfect for...
A chance to laugh at yourself.
A kick into action
Insiders' beauty tips
Food for though