What book published this year would you want to give multiple copies of --- and why?

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It's plain and simple, and she was featured on your website --- author of The Frog Prince, Jane Porter. No matter what age you are, this is a book that will touch your heart and soul! It's about finding yourself, discovering who you are, stepping out of the box, moving on, and just about every relationship you can imagine. I have given this book to so many people. Well let's just say, I loveThe Frog Prince and everything that Jane Porter pens.

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Sky Burial by Xinran

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I'd like to give the new Jerry Lewis book about Dean Martin. It's just a wonderful book.

Anonymous
The Painted Drum by Louise Erdrich might be a book that some would enjoy receiving from me. Nothing new here, but as our lives continue, this author managed to keep me interested in her writings. Since Love Medicine captured the story of my ancestors and times in Dakota, this latest captures my searching for truth. I have not found it and neither has Faye, who is so knowledgeable about material objects but still needs a relationship with the elusive artist, Kurt. Theft of the drum is the key. This is complicated reading and I never will understand the meaning the author wants us to take from experiences that we all have had in our own versions of apple orchard. Maybe, everyone does not want to think such complicated thoughts of a book; but for those who do, I would give this as a present.

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The Year of Magical Thinking by Joan Didion wins for me, hands down, as the most powerful book I've read all year (and I read a lot!).

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I would have to say The Historian by Elizabeth Kostova. It was both richly descriptive and highly charged with drama. The energy literally crackled off the pages. I felt as though I were traipsing through Europe with our intrepid heroine as she followed in her father's footsteps, as he followed in his mentor's before him. This was a very well-written and well-researched history of Vlad Dracula and the type of person he really was.

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I won the book Izzy's Fire: Finding Humanity in the Holocaustby Nancy Wright Beasley. "Izzy's Fire is filled with the passion of one woman determined to do justice to the story of another woman who lived in hiding throughout the war years." I intend to give this book to our high school history teacher for his classroom and to recommmend it to our high school library.

Izzy's Fire will grab your attention, touch your soul, and leave you wondering how anyone survived the Holocaust.

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I would choose Sixty Lights by Gail Jones. This is the story of a young girl who aspires to be a photographer, growing up in Victorian times and spanning three continents. The language is old-fashioned, while at the same time, it is light and evocative --- almost dreamlike. I read a lot and am happy to have found inSixty Lights a refreshingly new style. Every sentence begs you to stop and contemplate; not in a deep and meaningful way, but in a way that invites you to see life through new eyes. Not a time-worn cliché here. Happy Reading.

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The Idiot Girl's Christmas by Laurie Notaro. Notaro is so funny that she always cheers me up --- and I am 42. My daughter and niece also love her, so she really crosses generations with her humor.

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I have read several books this year, but the only one I would choose to get multiple copies of would definitely be A Million Little Pieces by James Frey. I feel this book should be a must-read for all students, along with discussion for points in the classroom. I have been loaning this book out and people of all ages find it real and to the heart. It really opens one's eyes to the way people on drugs really feel, what they go through, why it's so hard to quit, as well as why everyone doesn't make it; these are facts we all have to realize. Drugs are everywhere and are given to anyone. It's a book I could not put down and one I will always recommend to high school students.

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I gave a copy of Loud and Clear by Anna Quindlen to a friend for her birthday and she loved it, so I listened to it on CD. Read by the author, I found each essay more moving and thought-provoking than the last. I could easily give multiple copies of this book.

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Slow Burn by Julie Garwood. She was a new author to me and her two books I'd read this year were absolute page-turners. The characters stayed with me even after I finished reading the book.

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Maybe a Miracle by Brian Strause.This is a very interesting coming-of-age story that grapples with what a miracle really is. Strause doesn't do all the thinking for you (although you are informed of the characters' opinions) --- you have to decide.

The Kite Runner by Khaled Hosseini. This is just a fabulous book, one of the best I've read in ten years.

Little Earthquakes by Jennifer Weiner. What a fun, insightful book about being a mom. I'm not even a mom but I truly enjoyed it!

Pride and Prejudice by Jane Austen. Our book club just finished it and are heading to the film tonight. It's a great classic that has been bedrock for many of today's best love stories.

Snow Flower and the Secret Fan by Lisa See. This is just a great story and a great cultural timepiece. But it also reveals insights to the way women in friendships dwell in a struggle of love/judgment with one another.

The Women's Murder Club books by James Patterson (1st to Die, 2nd Chance, 3rd Degree, 4th of July). These are fast, fun fantasy reads with strong, tough women.

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I have already purchased A Light From Heaven by Jan Karon for several people. It is the last in a wonderful series that I know these recipients have been reading and will enjoy!

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Just a few weeks ago, I found what was to be the best book I've read in years and years, and now I'm giving it to every adult on my Christmas List --- unless they know each other or live next door to each other. It's The Truth of the Matter by Robb Forman Dew, and I hadn't heard of the writer until this book. It was a present to me from a friend, and I hope the people I give it to will enjoy it as much as I did.

It's hard to say why I liked it so much, except that reading it was something I looked forward to all day at work. When the book ended, I still felt that I was a part of the story. One night, I even dreamed of one of the main characters. It is a wonderful book about women's lives in the same way you might say that John Updike's books are about men's lives. I hadn't realized how few books really take women seriously. (Robb Forman Dew is a woman, by the way, although I wouldn't call this women's fiction exactly.) The book takes place during World War II, and it seemed amazing to me that she covered the period from so many points of view, and with a real understanding of how people live day to day, no matter what's going on.

For my own Christmas present I'm giving myself the book that comes before this book, which I hadn't heard anything about. I'll be reading them backwards, but Robb Forman Dew creates a whole world in The Truth of the Matter that I didn't want to leave. I hated it when I didn't have it to look forward to anymore, so I'm hoping that The Evidence Against Her, the first of these books, will be just as absorbing.

Happy holidays to all!

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If I gave books, which I tend not to do, I'd give copies of Drive byJames Sallis because it's an amazing show of talent. It's a beautifully written novella, and I'd give it in the hope that I would be introducing folks to Sallis' work. It's dark, though, and that's a tough call, especially as a holiday gift. But if we're just talking a book to give, I'd go with that one, or A Thread of Grace by Mary Doria Russell, which tells a fascinating story and would appeal to lots of people I know.

Frannie in Florida
In fiction, Distorted Virtue by Ruth Strickling, a very timely political thriller I couldn't put down. And in nonfiction, Coast of Dreams by Kevin Starr.

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I would recommend Shantaram. This is a book so beautifully written, so intricately composed and so closely knit together that I recommend it to everyone I can. Lin, how he gets his name, Prabaker, Karla, the people in the cafe, and the disappearance and reappearance of some of the characters are crafted extremely well. Only Charles Dickens is comparable.

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I would absolutely give copies of Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince! It is readable by all ages and temperaments. There's the pleasure of seeing the trio --- Harry, Ron and Hermione --- getting through another year at Hogwart's, the mystery of Snapes (evil or not), and which character will be gone from the roster! I can't think of a better gift for everyone on my list, regardless of that person's particular genre. Harry Potter is total entertainment for all!

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The Historian by Elizabeth Kostova. This book has something for fans of nearly every genre: horror, thriller, gothic romance, suspense, intrigue, and even espionage. The historic tale of Vlad "The Impaler" Dracula throughout the ages and the possibility that he still exists today is enough to keep the pages turning for all readers.

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The Kite Runnertook us to a world unknown to most of us --- but it isn't fantasy. It is all too real for those who live in Afghanistan.

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I would give Cross Bones by Kathy Reichs.

Shirley from Missouri
The book I'm giving multiples of this year is Character Is Destinyby Sen. John McCain. I heard him speak about it on Book TV and was very impressed with the subject matter. He spoke of some of the people he had written about, and I was enchanted. All my adult children will receive a copy for Christmas.

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The book I would give multiple times is Gilead by Marilynne Robinson. I have never read a more spiritually moving book and would like others to experience that as well. 

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The book that I most want to give this year is A Million Little Pieces by James Frey. It is emotional, moving, and very honest. He stayed in my thoughts even when I wasn't reading. I can't wait to read his sequel, My Friend Leonard.

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I would like to give people Zorro by Isabel Allende. It is a great adventure story, featuring a figure everyone loves --- the Robin Hood-esque hero Zorro. Written in a storytelling style, it makes for a great read, with action around every corner.

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I read and loved On Beauty by Zadie Smith and have purchased 4 additional copies for gifts. It is beautifully written, well-plotted, and the characters are rich and interesting. Although White Teethwas an amazing read, I think this book will be of interest to anyone who loves a more literary and meaningful book.