BY Denise Albert
Do you have someone in your life who has been a guide, a support system or even just the person to run an idea off of? For me, it’s been Lisa Sharkey. Since my first job out of college, she’s been my go-to for everything ranging from job choices to a contractor for my new apartment.
Now, if I need a book, a topic to write about or even a babysitter (her kids!) — she’s still the one. I don’t know how many times I’ve told her to broaden her horizons and to look for additional publishing options, similar to Amazon publishing, so more people can make the most of her words of wisdom. But she just wants to focus on her writing for the time being. That’s fair enough, I guess. And lucky for all of us, as a Senior Vice President and Director of Creative Development at HarperCollin, she’s also the one to go to for any sort of expertise about your next good read.
If you’re in the spirit of giving and don’t know what to get for people in your life, she’s done your work for you.
What do you get your boss? Or your cousin? What should you get your boyfriend, would he be happy with something like these five senses gift for him or would a book be the perfect gift? Not sure about your mother-in-law, or uncle — well there’s something very specific for everyone below.
Holiday Gift suggestions from HarperCollins Publishers
Fiction and nonfiction for your…
Boss: Great By Choice, Jim Collins
Ten years after the worldwide bestseller Good to Great, Jim Collins returns with another groundbreaking work, this time to ask: why do some companies thrive in uncertainty, even chaos, and others do not? Collins and Morten Hansen enumerate the principles for building a truly great enterprise in unpredictable, tumultuous and fast-moving times.
Father: State of Wonder, Ann Patchett
From the NYT bestselling author of Bel Canto and Run, a major and explosively ambitious new novel, set in the Amazonian jungle, both a gripping adventure story and a profound investigation of difficult human choices
Mother: Dressmaker of Khair Khana, Gayle Tzemach Lemmon
The story of a fearless young entrepreneur who brought hope to the lives of dozens of women in war-torn Afghanistan, written by a former reporter for ABC News.
Son: Through My Eyes, Tim Tebow
Former University of Florida star quarterback, first round draft pick of the Denver Broncos, and devout Christian, Tim Tebow, tells the story of his faith, his life, football, and how he and his family keep up with the beautiful game, with the help of Sportsbooks from time to time.
Great book for the whole family. Parents will enjoy reading along with children and discussing Tim’s dual spiritual and athletic journey.
Daughter: Everygirl’s Guide to Life, Maria Menounos
Maria Menounos, host of Access Hollywood and a young star in both the entertainment world and news industry, shares her experiences and practical tips that every girl, famous or not famous, wealthy or not wealthy, can apply daily, toward achieving a more successful, prosperous and healthy appearance and life.
Girlfriend: anything by award-winning British author Simon van Booy. Try:
- Everything Beautiful Began After: Love story set among the ruins of Athens.
- Love Begins in Winter: A collection of stories from award-winning writer Simon Van Booy, that with tender empathy finds beauty in sadness, and pain in love.
Boyfriend: Lost in Shangri-La, Mitchell Zuckoff
One of the last untold stories of World War II, the extraordinary mission to rescue male and female survivors of a U.S. military plane crash in an isolated corner of the South Pacific, and the ancient indigenous tribe members that aided those stranded on the ground in this “Shangri-La.
Grandfather: How I Got This Way, Regis Philbin
In what is essentially a memoir and a primer for living the good life all rolled into one, this beloved TV icon shares the secrets to success and happiness as he has learned them from his innumerable celebrity encounters, friendships and of course, from his relationship with his loving wife and family.
Grandmother: How to Love an American Man, Kristine Gasbarre
When unlucky-in-love-Krissy moves back home to mourn her grandfather’s death and take care of her newly widowed grandmother, she learns her grandma’s valuable lessons on love and, when she applies them with a nudge from Grandma, she allows herself to fall for a man with an old-fashioned approach to romance.
Mother-in-Law: Dear Cary, Dyan Cannon
For the first time, with heartrending honesty and emotion, actress Dyan Cannon tells the story of her May-December relationship and marriage to Hollywood legend Cary Grant.
Father-in-Law: Red, Sammy Hagar
One of rock music’s most successful and notorious singers, tells the story of his life in music–from his raucous solo career to his to his decade-long journey as lead singer for Van Halen and everything in between.
Cousin: Out of Oz, Gregory Maguire
The world of Oz comes full circle in Gregory Maguire’s fourth and final novel in the New York Times bestselling series THE WICKED YEARS.
Uncle: The Sisters Brother, Patrick DeWitt
A darkly comic novel about the picaresque misadventures of two hired guns, the fabled Sisters brothers, set against the back-drop of the great California Gold Rush.
Aunt: Emily Post’s Etiquette, 18th Edition, Peggy Post
The most trusted name in etiquette returns to tackle the latest issues of the twenty-first century-from texting and tweeting to iPhones and Facebook-in this completely updated and gorgeously packaged new edition.