Our Favourite Books to Gift Men for the Holidays
Our Favourite Books to Gift Men for the Holidays
I always find shopping for the men in my life hard; they’re either extremely particular or have no idea what they want. The great thing about books is that there are a variety of genres! So, regardless of personality, interest, or passion, there’s a book out there that’ll make the perfect gift for the men in your life.
We’ve compiled our favourite books to gift men for the holidays that your special fellas won’t be able to put down:
1. For the History Buff: Sapiens: A Brief History of Humankind by Yuval Noah Harari (498 pages) (Published 2014)
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“We study history not to know the future but to widen our horizons, to understand that our present situation is neither natural nor inevitable and that we consequently have many more possibilities before us than we imagine.”
Why Gift This?
From the Big Bang to the present day and age of technology, Harari takes you on a journey of how our world today has come to exist. Sapiens covers the evolution of literally everything: matter and energy, our food consumption, animals, language, clothes and fashion, jobs and the economy, religion, slavery, racism, sexism, medicine, science and research, education etc.
With each chapter written in a digestible way, this book is exactly what it says — a brief history of humankind. Sure, it’s almost 500 pages long, and took me nearly three weeks to read but that’s as brief as 14 billion years of history is going to get.
2. For the Businessman: The Ride of a Lifetime: Lessons Learned from 15 Years as CEO of the Walt Disney Company by Robert Iger (272 Pages) (Published September 19, 2020)
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“That may be the hardest but also the most necessary lesson to keep in mind, that wherever you are along the path, you’re the same person you’ve always been.”
Why Gift This?
You don’t have to be a fan of Disney to enjoy and appreciate this book. In this business memoir, Iger talks about his early beginnings — starting out at a small ABC newsroom department making $150 per week to eventually becoming the CEO of the Walt Disney Company. You get to read interesting behind the scenes conversations that led to major decisions like Disney’s acquisition of Pixar, LucasFilms (StarWars franchise), Marvel and 21st Century Fox.
From start to finish The Ride of a Lifetime reads like genuine advice. It’s introspective, reflective, and honest. Plus, you get a true sense of Iger’s personality and values.
For the Sci-fi thriller lover;
3. All Our Wrong Todays by Elan Mastai (374 pages) (Published February 7th, 2017)
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“I remember, as a kid, when I first understood that only half of every tree is visible, that the roots in the soil are equal to the branches in the sky, that a whole other half is underground. It took me a lot longer, well into adulthood, to realize people are like that too.”
Why Gift This?
All Our Wrong Todays is an intriguing, mind-twisting story about time travel. The year is 2016 and Tom Barren lives in the world the rest of us thought we’d be living in by now; flying cars, machines that make you breakfast — basically the life of The Jetsons (if you ever watched that cartoon). After Tom gets his heartbroken, a stupid impulsive decision to use his dad’s time machine leaves him stranded in our own version of 2016 – iPhones, Facetime, Uber and, technological advancements that seem impressive to us but feel stone-age like to Tom.
As he frantically tries to fix his mistake and find a way back to his own reality, he comes to find he prefers the versions of his family, career and love life in this reality. Tom ultimately has to make a decision about whether to remain in this false reality or undo the damage he caused when he destroyed the lives of everyone else in his own reality.
This is perfect for anyone who loves books with multiple timelines and alternate realities.
4. For the Self-development addict: Atomic Habits: An Easy & Proven Way to Build Good Habits & Break Bad Ones (320 pages) (Published October 19th, 2018)
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“Habits do not restrict freedom. They create it. Building habits in the present allows you to do more of what you want in the future.”
Why Gift This?
With the end of the year approaching, new year’s resolutions will be on many people’s minds and I cannot think of a better book to help with this. Atomic Habits is all about understanding what it takes to make sure that habits stick. It provides helpful strategies for establishing good habits and unlearning bad ones. This book is filled with a lot of practical exercises and, if implemented, this could quite literally turn out to be a life-changing gift.
5. For those intrigued by other people’s lives: A Promised Land by Barack Obama (768 Pages) (Published November 17th, 2020)
Image via Goodreads
Why Gift This?
If there’s anything we learned from Michelle Obama’s book Becoming, it’s that there’s a lot more to the lives of the former President and First Lady than we were privy to. In this presidential memoir, Barack Obama tells the story of his journey to the White House — from his grassroots activism to the historic night on November 4, 2008, when he became the first African American President of the United States.
This is sure to be one of the most popular books of the season so you want to pick this one up ASAP.
Since it’s the season of giving, here a few more recommendations. These honourable mentions are similar to our top five picks above:
- Thinking, Fast and Slow by Daniel Kahneman
- Shoe Dog: A Memoir by the Creator of NIKE by Phil Knight
- Dark Matter by Blake Crouch
- The Power of Habit: Why We Do What We Do in Life and Business by Charles Duhigg
- Born a Crime by Trevor Noah
If you loved any of our picks for favourite books to gift men for the holidays, let us know here and if you’re looking for more great reads, check out our Brookstore!
Esosa Akpata is a 20-something-year-old avid reader, occasional writer, and constant dreamer who enjoys travelling, cheesy rom-coms, and brunch dates with friends. She is passionate about improving the lives of people and communities and has worked in the charitable sector for over five years with a focus on healthcare and education. Her love for reading started as a preteen with The Nancy Drew Mysteries and was reignited in her late teenage years thanks to tear-jerking young-adult novels like The Fault in Our Stars by John Green. Today, she enjoys a wide genre of books that include: contemporary fiction, short-essay collections, memoirs, and historical fiction.
Top Three Favourite Books are:
All the Light We Cannot See by Anthony Doerr
All the Bright Places by Jennifer Niven
When They Call You a Terrorist: A Black Lives Matter Memoir by Patrisse Khan-Cullors
Favourite Brunch Spot: Reyna on King
