MotherReader

There’s a great post by Fuse#8 in which she asks which ONE 2009 Young Adult book she should read. Fortunately, she hadn’t been able to resist Fire, Catching Fire, or Leviathan, so they could be removed from the equation. Very helpful, because the feud between the Fire and the Catching Fire teams could have gotten ugly. The comments are abuzz, topping seventy-five votes for various titles — many which are repeated enough to see the true possibility of that book being That Book.

Personally, I haven’t been reading much YA this year, so I can’t say that I come to this conversation with any real authority in comparing the plethora of publications from 2009. However, I love three books that are coming up in the comments over and over again, so I’d like to make my case for each of them.

In staying with my theme of the month of Ways to Give a Book, these are also three I’d suggest to give to a teen in your life with a gift card to a café and a coupon for a one-on-one talk. As a mother, I’ve found that my thirteen year old and I have had some wonderful talks starting from discussing books. It’s a defenses-down way to share how you feel about many things, but sometimes even the difficult things, like sex and drugs. So here’s what I’d give to a high schooler, read myself, and set up a book discussion coffee date.

Marcelo in the Real World
Francisco X. Stork
This is one of the few books that I actually read twice in the same year because I enjoyed it so much. I was really drawn in to the story of a teen with Asperger’s showing his father that he could make it in the real world, and then going beyond that to solve a mystery, right a wrong, and get the girl. The book is interesting and well written. Look for discussions about the complicated nature of family, the head games people play with each other, the true nature of our acceptance of differences, and the need to venture out of our comfort zone.

Going Bovine
Libby Bray
Okay, I haven’t even finished this yet, but honestly the author had me at the first sentence of the acknowledgments page: “I would like to thank everyone I’ve ever kissed or punched and anyone who has ever kissed or punched me.” She continued to win me over with her wild ride of a story of a sixteen-year-old boy who thinks he is going to die of mad-cow disease and sets off on a road trip for a cure — and the meaning of life, I suppose. The conversation questions are best captured by the jacket flap — so forgive me for quoting jacket flap copy, which is such a no-no. “A dark comedic journey that posed the questions: Why are we here? What is real? What makes microwave popcorn so good? Why must we die? And how do we really learn to live?”

Liar
Justine Larbalestier
For Fuse#8, this is the one book I’d suggest. It’s perhaps not as literary (whatever that means) as Marcelo or as unconventional as Bovine, but it’s a Read-Now book more than the others. For the most part, reviewers have been good about keeping the surprises of Liar under wraps, but that won’t last forever. And while what happens in the book is really open to interpretation, knowing what’s coming changes the way you read the book. Intriguing, huh? That’s why it would make a great discussion book for mothers and daughters (aunts and nieces), because it comes down to interpreting the story of an unreliable narrator. The other reason I’d suggest this book to both Fuse#8 and mother/daughters is the controversy that arose over the original cover, which featured a white girl for a book that was about a biracial protagonist. The publisher, in an amazing move, changed the cover to what you see now. While white-washed covers have long been lamented and long been an issue, with this particular book it changed the nature of the book. If you trusted the cover and decided that the main character was lying about something as basic as her race, what in the story can you believe at all? Great discussion topic there. Also a great lead-in to a discussion about race in books in general, how teens are seeing racial issues as opposed to us “old” moms... the topics are endless.

I’ll be interested to see what ONE book is chosen by Fuse#8. And by you.

Mission Accomplished! Here’s one more list of gift suggestions, this time with a number of adult titles that should also be fine for older teens. Thanks to Boni Ashburn and Lorie Ann Grover (where are your blogs, ladies?), who gave great suggestions — and made my job that much easier.

I hope that you find these lists helpful in giving books for the holidays and for gifts through the rest of the year. Hey, tell your friends. December is the only time of year I can really earn any money as an Amazon Associate, and that tiny referral fee allows me to rationalize my enormous amount of time on this blog.

1. Pair Toy Boat with toy boats.
   


2. Give Go to Bed, Monster! with a pack of fat crayons and a stack of copy paper from an office supply store.
   


3. Give little superheroes Wombat And Fox along with a superhero cape.
   


4. Pair Abe Lincoln Crosses A Creek with Lincoln Logs.
   


5. What else can go with Monkey With A Tool Belt but a tool belt?
   


6. Inspire young builders with Iggy Peck, Architect and a building set.
   


7. Take to the ice with book choices Angelina Ice Skates or Katie Kazoo, On Thin Ice or Mia (American Girl) and passes to the local ice-skating rink.
   


8. Pair fantasy book Savvy with with an assortment of temporary or henna tattoos.
   


9. Take a road trip with Could You? Would You? and passes to a museum or zoo or activity some distance away, so you can use the driving time to ask each other the interesting questions from the book.
   


10. Blooming fashionistas will appreciate Paper Fashions (Klutz) (all thirty-five Amazon reviews gave five stars!) along with Fashion Kitty.
    


11. Give Inkheart with a movie theater gift card to see the film in January.
    


12. Give Looks with the CD Acoustic Soul.
    


13. Pair House of Dance with ballroom dance lessons.
    


14. Give Life is Sweet with chocolate, any kind.
    


15. Buy two copies of The Geography of Bliss: One Grump’s Search for the Happiest Places in the World  — one for you, one for a friend — and make a lunch date to talk about the book and one’s personal quest for happiness.
    


16. Give This I Believe II with the first book This I Believe and a journal to capture great revelations of inner truth.
    


17. Election withdrawal? Buy Dreams From My Father and The Audacity of Hope or Life’s The American Journey of Barack Obama and throw in an Obama finger puppet just for fun.
    


18. Give nonfiction book Fruitless Fall with real honey from a whole foods store.
    


19. Match travel memoir-themed books with the... um, drink of the region. Like In a Sunburned County with Yellow Tail wine from Australia or The Sex Lives of Cannibals: Adrift in the Equatorial Pacific with coconut rum. (Adults only for this gift, obviously.)
    


20. Colbert fans and soon-to-be converts need I Am America (And So Can You) along with the greatest gift of all, the DVD A Colbert Christmas: The Greatest Gift of All.
    


21. Give The Devil Wears Prada, Bitter Is the New Black: Confessions of a Condescending, Egomaniacal, Self-Centered Smartass, or Why You Should Never Carry a Prada Bag to the Unemployment Office, and This Little Piggy Went to Prada in a Prada bag (from eBay! C’mon, a girl can dream...)
    

All right, here are 2008 books with gift suggestions. Thanks to Abby the Librarian, whose suggestions got me a quarter of the way through the list. She is also running twelve days of great book suggestions, so stop on by and pick up more ideas. Fresh ideas also came from The Reading Tub — where you’ll also find more wonderful titles to read and give — and from The Kiddosphere — now with comments!

I’d like to do one more list and bring the total suggestions up to a hundred. For this one, I’m taking suggestions for any book from any year. I’m also looking to include some new title suggestions to my original ideas. Maybe there’s another great bathtime or bedtime book I should highlight. The only thing I ask is that the book be something that you know and would recommend. Have fun.

1. Pair Monsters on Machines or Building with Dad with toy construction vechicles.
   


2. Give your little dragon-lover Hush Little Dragon or Guess What I Found in Dragon Wood with the cutest dragon ever.
   


3. Is there a doctor in the house? There will be with picture book Doctor Ted along with a doctor kit.
   


4. Future firefighter? Give Firefighters (People in the Community) and Firefighters A to Z and firefighter gear.
   


5. Pair picture book stunner How I Learned Geography with an inflatable globe.
   


6. What else can go with Lester Fizz, Bubble Gum Artist other than gum — and perhaps an early apology to the parents.
   


7. Nature lovers will enjoy Birdsongs along with a guidebook like Backyard Birds and some binoculars. (BTW, these look like a good deal.)
   


8. For more nature, pair Velma Gratch and the Way Cool Butterfly with a butterfly garden kit.
   


9. Cat lovers can enjoy three new picture books, Grumpy Cat, Katie Loves the Kittens, and Wabi Sabi with a cat card game.
   


10. Expand the idea of giving with Two Bobbies: A True Story of Hurricane Katrina, Friendship, and Survival and a Pawsitively New Orleans T-shirt, and throw in some Mardi Gras beads.
    


11. Give One Hen — How One Small Loan Made a Big Difference with a loan to Kiva or a donation to Heifer International to buy chicks.
    


12. Give What the World Eats with a promise for an international dinner out or in.
    


13. Give Moxy Maxwell Does Not Love Writing Thank You Notes with, um, cute stationery.
    


14. Pair Every Soul a Star with The Kids Book of the Night Sky and plan a date to look at the stars together.
    


15. You can’t go wrong with the funny poems and outstanding art in Frankenstein Takes the Cake along with a cake-baking session, followed by reading the book together. As a matter of fact, throw in Frankenstein Makes a Sandwich and make a whole day of it.
    


16. Speaking of the amazing Adam Rex, give the hilarious book The True Meaning of Smekday with a the related T-shirt Regarding Stickyfish Teams, I Favor the Bigfield Fighting Koobish.
    


17. Buy a teen My Life the Musical or Dramarama along with tickets to a show.
    


18. Give Young Adult book A La Carte with personal cooking lessons


19. Match casino gambling themed Drop with a deck of cards and a family game of penny poker or blackjack.
    


20. I’ve used this before, but there is no 2008 book that more deserves post-reading discussion at Starbucks than The Adoration of Jenna Fox.
    


21. I left this picture book for the end, because I think it has many levels and can be enjoyed by all ages. Give How to Heal a Broken Wing in a quiet moment and have a heart-to-heart talk.
    

I’m still working on this year’s titles — I’m really hoping for some suggestions in the comments — and reposting my first three lists. Today’s list is from last December, focusing on 2007 titles. It should be noted that all the lists have some combinations that will work for other titles. Of course, you can always give your book blogger buddies BACA logo mugs, T-shirts, and bumper stickers — available for purchase at the MotherReader store — with any non-celebrity book. But we won’t count that suggestion.

1. Take a bedtime book like The Bunnies are Not in Their Beds or At Night and add a personalized pillow.
   


2. Give your favorite girly-girl Fancy Nancy and the Posh Puppy with dress-up jewelry and/or a fancy poodle.
   


3. Give your rough little boy Pirates Don’t Change Diapers along with genuine pirate gear.
   


4. Take sweet picture book Lissy’s Friends and pair it with an origami kit.
   


5. Picture book stunners The Zoo or Pssst! would be perfect with a zoo animal collection or game.
   


6. Taking a Bath with the Dog and Other Things That Make Me Happy is a book that deserves its own bathrobe and/or bubble bath.
   


7. Looking for something a little offbeat? Maybe Cowboy and Octopus with a cowboy hat or an octopus.
   


8. For business-minded kids, pair The Lemonade War with a coin counter bank.
   


9. All the elementary school kids will love The Invention of Hugo Cabret, but you can pair it with tin wind-up toys for extra flair.
   


10. Give Moxy Maxwell Does Not Love Stuart Little with um, Stuart Little.
    


11. Give Kimchi & Calamari with a promise for a dinner out Korean style, or Italian style, or both.
    


12. Perhaps Fabulous Hair with a hair accessory kit will make someone smile.
    


13. Wrap up A Crooked Kind of Perfect with excellent socks like the cover.
    


14. Treat a tween to Middle School is Worse Than Meatloaf along with pink nail polish, lipstick, post-it notes, and special bubble bath, as mentioned in the book.
    


15. How about Diary of a Wimpy Kid with a the Do It Yourself Journal?
    


16. Or maybe Here Be Monsters! with a Nightmare Snatcher Journal.
    


17. Or Faeries of Dreamdark: Blackbringer with a fairy diary.
    


18. Buy His Dark Materials Trilogy along with tickets to The Golden Compass.
    


19. Give Young Adult book Beige with a mix CD of the songs in the chapter titles (or an iTunes gift card).
    


20. Give Young Adult book The Astonishing Adventures of Fanboy and Goth Girl with How to Draw Comic Book Heroes and Villains (or an iTunes gift card).
    


21. Match poetry books with poetry beads or magnetic poetry. Some 2007 suggestions: Animal Poems, This is a Poem That Heals Fish, Tap Dancing on the Roof, This is Just to Say, or Blue Lipstick: Concrete Poems.

While I’m working on my goal to match 2008 books with a little something extra — and feel free to make suggestions in the comments — I’m reposting my first three lists. Like yesterday’s list, this one focuses on 2006 titles with some older books. It should be noted that all the lists have some combinations that will work for other titles.

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1. Pair Mo Willems’ book Don’t Let the Pigeon Drive the Bus with a toy bus and a cargo truck.
   


2. Pair The Moon with a flashlight and a promise for a nighttime walk or two.
   


3. Pair new-classic Duck and Goose with a bright spotted ball (fans will know why).
   


4. Pair MotherReader favorite The Day the Babies Crawled Away with a baby doll.
   


5. Pair the funny wordless book Once Upon a Banana and a stuffed monkey — but show your sense of humor by throwing a banana into the gift bag.
   


6. Pair silly beginning reader book The Monster in the Backpack with a cute backpack (monster additional).
   


7. Pair classic A Bargain For Frances with a tea set.
   


8. Pair the offbeat book Pecorino Plays Ball with a bat and ball. You can throw in a coupon book for practice sessions.
   


9. Pair Take Me Out of the Bathtub and Other Silly Dilly Songs with a kazoo.
   


10. Combine sweet Jenny and the Cat Club with a red scarf (don’t worry if it’s too long — so is Jenny’s) and a black cat.
    


11. Pair Clarice Bean Spells Trouble with a game of Scrabble, and some of your time to teach it.
    


12. Pair a drawing book like Draw 50 Airplanes, Aircrafts, and Spaceships or Draw 50 Cats with a couple of nice sketch pads.
    


13. Pair Phineas MacGuire... Erupts! with a science kit, or the next book in the series, Phineas MacGuire... Gets Slimed! with the slime science kit.
    


14. Pair a spy-themed book like Steal Back the Mona Lisa! (picture book), The Case of the Climbing Cat (beginning reader), Harriet the Spy (chapter book) or The Real Spy's Guide to Becoming a Spy (nonfiction) with rear-view sunglasses and/or a fingerprint kit.
    


15. Bigger girls like stuffed animals too. How about Hoot with an owl, The World According to Humphrey with a hamster, or Room With a Zoo with a puppy?
    


16. Pair a magic book of your choice with magic tricks.
    


17. Pair The Crafty Diva’s D. I. Y. Stylebook: A Grrrl’s Guide to Cool Creations You Can Make, Show Off, and Share with a gift card to a local craft store, and maybe some shopping and crafting time together.
    


18. Pair Knitgrrl: Learn to Knit With 15 Fun And Funky Projects and/or Chicks with Sticks: It’s a Purl Thing with yarn, knitting needles, and a promise for some lessons.
    


19. Pair Ductigami: The Art of Tape with... well, rolls of duct tape.
    


20. Pair King Dork with a CD of The Mr. T Experience.
    


21. It’s not really a toy or separate gift, but take a special book, like Wow! It Sure is Good to Be You (which is about an aunt loving her far-away niece) and make a CD recording of you reading it.
    

All over the kidlitosphere, I’ve been reading about giving books for the holidays. Chasing Ray is keeping track of bloggers’ book recommendations. There’s even a Buy Books for the Holidays website. As it so happens, over the past couple of years, I’ve made lists pairing books with something extra to give it that fun factor. Each day this week, I’ll be posting those lists with updated shopping links. I’ll also be creating one with the newest titles. Altogether, I hope these ideas make your holiday shopping more fun.

The links to products are to make it easier for devoted online shoppers. Many things could be found cheaper at discount and even dollar stores. Today’s re-posted list has some classic favorites and some often new-to-you 2006 highlighted titles along with a matching gift idea.

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1. Pair a classic Raggedy Ann or Winnie-the-Pooh book with its character stuffed animal.
   


2. Pair a book with a related stuffed animal, like Where’s My Teddy? with a teddy bear. Or Click, Clack, Moo: Cows That Type with a stuffed cow — or if you prefer, a slingshot cow.
   


3. Pair Bubble Bath Pirates or Beasty Bath with a cool rubber duck, even a huge rubber duck.
   


4. Pair The Snow Globe Family with a snow globe.
   


5. Pair Lilly’s Big Day or Fancy Nancy with dress-up clothes.
   


6. Pair Toys Go Out with a red bouncy ball, or a stuffed stingray or buffalo.
   


7. Pair a nonfiction book about dinosaurs, like Boy! Were We Wrong About Dinosaurs, with a bunch of plastic ones.
   


8. Pair Amazing Sharks! and Chomp! A Book About Sharks for beginning readers and throw in a shark on a stick.
   


9. Pair a book like The Spiderwick Chronicles with the DVD.
   


10. Pair a theme book like Katie and the Mustang with a horse charm and a satin cord from a craft store.
    


11. Pair a theme book like Fairy Realm with a charm bracelet.
    


12. Pair a detective book with a magnifying glass.
    


13. Pair Team Moon: How 400,000 People Landed Apollo 11 on the Moon with a homemade coupon for a visit to the Air and Space Museum (okay, this might only work around Washington, DC) or astronaut ice cream.
    


14. Pair any book with another book from the bargain section, maybe something silly or crafty or gimmicky.
    


15. Pair a diary-format book like Lucy Rose: Big on Plans (3rd/4th grade), Amelia’s Notebook (4th/5th grade), or The Princess Diaries (6th/7th grade) with a journal with fun pens.
    


16. Pair a book like Eragon or Charolotte’s Web with a gift card to rent the movie.
    


17. Pair The Art Book for Children with watercolor paints or an art set.
    


18. Pair Poetry Speaks to Children with hot chocolate, a mug, and a gift certificate for time to read it together.
    


19. Pair a teen or tween poetry book with a a poetry bead kit.
    


20. Pair a special teen favorite with a gift card to Starbucks and a promise to talk about the book over coffee.
    


21. Give a book all on its own, carefully picked and lovingly wrapped, with no excuses and no guilt.
    

Today’s re-posted list from last year again has some classic favorites and some often new-to-you 2006 highlighted titles along with a matching gift idea. If you’ve become inspired by the match-up game, throw out your titles and gifts in the comments. I’m very disappointed that I couldn’t think of a good gift match for some of my favorite books, including Clementine (other than a box of the fruit, which could be a huge disappointment to an eight-year-old), but it’s fun to try.

Speaking of book suggestions, before I turn you over to the list, let me point out that the new Edge of the Forest issue is up with a wonderful compilation of suggestions from the editorial board (me included). Check it out for more great ideas about books to give or just to read this holiday season. Among the other wonderful reviews, features and interviews, this issue includes my round-up review of four of the picture books nominated for the Cybil awards that also happen to be bedtime books. And I’ll be sure to read the interview with über-cool blogging writer Sara Lewis Holmes. She rocks.

Before I go, I must point out that right now, I have the best collection of posts ever on my front page. Three lists of books as gifts. A BACA rant, along with the announcement of BACA-brand material now available at the MotherReader store. A review of an incredible book by Grace Lin. The Carnival of Children’s Literature, with tips, tricks, and suggestions galore. And my tips on adding humor to your writing. Looking at this lovely line-up — if I do say so myself — I may never post again. Scroll and enjoy.

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When the going gets tough, the tough get going... making more obsessive lists of books ’n stuff. I went back to look at some of my favorite books of the year — and ever — to see if I could match ’em up. I’ve already covered many of the ideas with the first list, but here are some more.

1. Pair Mo Willems’ book Don’t Let the Pigeon Drive the Bus with a toy bus and a cargo truck.
   


2. Pair The Moon with a flashlight and a promise for a nighttime walk or two.
   


3. Pair new-classic Duck and Goose with a bright spotted ball (fans will know why).
   


4. Pair MotherReader favorite The Day the Babies Crawled Away with a baby doll.
   


5. Pair the funny wordless book Once Upon a Banana and a stuffed monkey — but show your sense of humor by throwing a banana into the gift bag.
   


6. Pair silly beginning reader book The Monster in the Backpack with a cute backpack (monster additional).
   


7. Pair classic A Bargain For Frances with a tea set.
   


8. Pair the offbeat book Pecorino Plays Ball with a bat and ball. You can throw in a coupon book for practice sessions.
   


9. Pair Take Me Out of the Bathtub and Other Silly Dilly Songs with a kazoo.
   


10. Combine sweet Jenny and the Cat Club with a red scarf (don’t worry if it’s too long — so is Jenny’s) and a black cat.
    


11. Pair Clarice Bean Spells Trouble with a game of Scrabble, and some of your time to teach it.
    


12. Pair a drawing book like Draw 50 Airplanes, Aircrafts, and Spaceships or Draw 50 Cats with a couple of nice sketch pads.
    


13. Pair Phineas MacGuire... Erupts! with a science kit, or the next book in the series, Phineas MacGuire... Gets Slimed! with the slime science kit.
    


14. Pair a spy-themed book like Steal Back the Mona Lisa! (picture book), The Case of the Climbing Cat (beginning reader), Harriet the Spy (chapter book) or Secrets, Lies, Gizmos, and Spies: a History of Espionage (nonfiction) with rear-view sunglasses and/or a fingerprint kit.
    


15. Bigger girls like stuffed animals too. How about Hoot with an owl, The World According to Humphrey with a hamster, or Room With a Zoo with a puppy?
    


16. Pair a magic book of your choice with magic tricks.
    


17. Pair The Crafty Diva’s D. I. Y. Stylebook: A Grrrl’s Guide to Cool Creations You Can Make, Show Off, and Share or The Girls’ World Book of Friendship Crafts: Cool Stuff to Make with Your Best Friends with a gift card to a local craft store, and maybe some shopping and crafting time together.
    


18. Pair Knitgrrl: Learn to Knit With 15 Fun And Funky Projects and/or Chicks with Sticks: It’s a Purl Thing with yarn, knitting needles, and a promise for some lessons.
    


19. Pair Ductigami: The Art of Tape with... well, rolls of duct tape.
    


20. Pair King Dork with a CD of The Mr. T Experience.
    


21. It’s not really a toy or separate gift, but take a special book, like Wow! It Sure is Good to Be You (which is about an aunt loving her far-away niece) and make a CD recording of you reading it.
    

Yesterday’s list focused on 2007 books. This re-posted list from last year has some classic favorites and some often new-to-you 2006 highlighted titles along with a matching gift idea. Tomorrow I’ll put up yet one more list, again with updated shopping links. Altogether, I hope these ideas make your holiday shopping more fun.

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I can be a little bit obsessive. When I get an idea in my head, I can’t let go. And lists... oh, am I obsessive about lists. So after thinking about the idea of books as gifts and talking it over with my ten-year-old daughter about how to make it more exciting, we came up with a few ideas. Then I thought of a few more. And then I thought how cool it would be if I found some of the places these items could be found. And then the list took on a life all its own, after successfully taking over my life for most of yesterday afternoon and a good part of this morning. Now, while I don’t approve of Scholastic packaging trinkets with books to make kids buy them, in terms of gifts, I come down solidly in favor of pairing a book with something extra to give it that fun factor. The links to products are to make it easier for devoted online shoppers. Many things could be found cheaper at discount and even dollar stores. Anyway, here are some suggestions.

1. Pair a classic Raggedy Ann or Winnie-the-Pooh book with its character stuffed animal.
   


2. Pair a book with a related stuffed animal, like Where’s My Teddy? with a teddy bear. Or Click, Clack, Moo: Cows That Type with a stuffed cow — or if you prefer, a slingshot cow.
   


3. Pair Bubble Bath Pirates or Beasty Bath with a cool rubber duck at Captain Quack... or hey, even a rubber duck version of the nativity.
   


4. Pair The Snow Globe Family with a snow globe.
   


5. Pair Lilly’s Big Day or Fancy Nancy with dress-up clothes.
   


6. Pair Toys Go Out with a red bouncy ball, or a stuffed stingray or buffalo.
   


7. Pair a nonfiction book about dinosaurs, like Boy! Were We Wrong About Dinosaurs, with a bunch of plastic ones.
   


8. Pair Amazing Sharks! and A Shark Pup Grows Up for beginning readers and throw in a shark on a stick.
   


9. Pair a book like The Spiderwick Chronicles with a gift card to a local movie theater to see the movie when it comes out.
   


10. Pair a theme book like Katie and the Mustang with a horse charm and a satin cord from a craft store.
    


11. Pair a theme book like Fairy Realm with a charm bracelet.
    


12. Pair a detective book with a magnifying glass.
    


13. Pair Team Moon: How 400,000 People Landed Apollo 11 on the Moon with a homemade coupon for a visit to the Air and Space Museum (okay, this might only work around Washington, DC) or astronaut ice cream.
    


14. Pair any book with another book from the bargain section, maybe something silly or crafty or gimmicky.
    


15. Pair a diary-format book like Lucy Rose: Big on Plans (3rd/4th grade), Amelia’s Notebook (4th/5th grade), or The Princess Diaries (6th/7th grade) with a journal and a cool pen or two.
    


16. Pair a book like Eragon or Charolotte’s Web with a gift card to rent the movie.
    


17. Pair The Art Book for Children with watercolor paints or an art set.
    


18. Pair Poetry Speaks to Children with hot chocolate, a mug, and a gift certificate for time to read it together.
    


19. Pair a teen or tween poetry book with poetry beads, alone (provide some stretchy cord) or in a kit.
    


20. Pair a special teen favorite with a gift card to Starbucks and a promise to talk about the book over coffee.
    


21. Give a book all on its own, carefully picked and lovingly wrapped, with no excuses and no guilt.
    

Update: The list continues with Twenty-One More Ways to Give a Book!

Last year, I came up with twenty-one different ways to give something extra — and yet related — with a book. And then I came up with twenty-one more ways. Now, it’s a new year with new books just brimming with gift-matching possibilities. So here are even twenty-one more ways to give a book this holiday season. I’ll be reposting the other two lists this week, with updated links. Of course, you can always give your book blogger buddies BACA logo mugs, T-shirts, and bumper stickers — now ready at the MotherReader store — with any non-celebrity book. But we won’t count that suggestion in the twenty-one.

1. Take a bedtime book like The Bunnies are Not in Their Beds or At Night and add a personalized pillow.
   


2. Give your favorite girly-girl Fancy Nancy and the Posh Puppy with dress-up jewelry and/or a fancy poodle and its own dress-up clothes.
   


3. Give your rough little boy Pirates Don’t Change Diapers along with genuine pirate gear.
   


4. Take sweet picture book Lissy’s Friends and pair it with an origami kit.
   


5. Picture book stunners The Zoo or Pssst! would be perfect with a zoo animal collection or game.
   


6. Taking a Bath with the Dog and Other Things That Make Me Happy is a book that deserves its own bathrobe and/or bubble bath.
   


7. Looking for something a little offbeat? Maybe Cowboy and Octopus with a cowboy hat or an octopus.
   


8. For business-minded kids, pair The Lemonade War with a coin counter bank.
   


9. All the elementary school kids will love The Invention of Hugo Cabret, but you can pair it with tin wind-up toys for extra flair.
   


10. Give Moxy Maxwell Does Not Love Stuart Little with um, Stuart Little.
    


11. Give Kimchi & Calamari with a promise for a dinner out Korean style, or Italian style, or both.
    


12. Perhaps Fabulous Hair with a hair accessory kit will make someone smile.
    


13. Wrap up A Crooked Kind of Perfect with those excellent socks from the cover. (Maybe these are closer?)
    


14. Treat a tween to Middle School is Worse Than Meatloaf along with pink nail polish, lipstick, post-it notes, and special bubble bath, as mentioned in the book.
    


15. How about Diary of a Wimpy Kid with a the Do It Yourself Journal?
    


16. Or maybe Here Be Monsters! with a Nightmare Snatcher Journal.
    


17. Or Faeries of Dreamdark: Blackbringer with a fairy diary.
    


18. Buy His Dark Materials Trilogy along with tickets to The Golden Compass.
    


19. Give Young Adult book Beige with a mix CD of the songs in the chapter titles (or an iTunes gift card).
    


20. Give Young Adult book The Astonishing Adventures of Fanboy and Goth Girl with How to Draw Comic Book Heroes and Villains (or an iTunes gift card).
    


21. Match poetry books with poetry beads or magnetic poetry. Some 2007 suggestions: Animal Poems, This is a Poem That Heals Fish, Tap Dancing on the Roof, This is Just to Say, or Blue Lipstick: Concrete Poems.