Book Gift Ideas for Clueless Uncles

[TromboneAl]

I'm looking for ideas for book presents for my 14 year old nephew and 17 year old niece. I always get them books, since they have way too much stuff.

I'm looking for great books that they probably haven't read yet.

Ideas?

Thanks.

 

[W2R]

Gift certificate from a bookstore, maybe? Or, how about Shakespearean sonnets for the girl and The Mysterious Island or other Jules Verne for the boy.

 

[ls99]

A journey to the center of the earth. Jules Verne -----from used bookstore?
Travels with Charlie, can't remember author, about traveling the USA in a trailer with dog named Charlie. Ditto on used book store.

 

[Khan]

A journey to the center of the earth. Jules Verne -----from used bookstore?
Travels with Charlie, can't remember author, about traveling the USA in a trailer with dog named Charlie. Ditto on used book store.

Travels with Charley: In Search of America is a travelogue by American author John Steinbeck.

An excellent book.

 

[rogersteciak]

How about giving the gift of financial literacy (so they can FIRE sooner rather than later someday). I don't have any specific titles in mind, but finance books written for teenagers and young adults would be what to get.

P.S., When I was 7 years old and visiting the bank with my parents, a bank person gave me such a book (with a title something like "Dick and Jane Open Savings Accounts"). It had a big impact on me because I just had to have a savings account after reading that book. I'm still a financial pack rat (i.e., LBYM and invest the rest) to this day several decades later.

 

[HFWR]

How about giving the gift of financial literacy (so they can FIRE sooner rather than later someday). I don't have any specific titles in mind, but finance books written for teenagers and young adults would be what to get.

P.S., When I was 7 years old and visiting the bank with my parents, a bank person gave me such a book (with a title something like "Dick and Jane Open Savings Accounts"). It had a big impact on me because I just had to have a savings account after reading that book. I'm still a financial pack rat (i.e., LBYM and invest the rest) to this day several decades later.

This is "Spot" on...

 

[TromboneAl]

Yes, that's an excellent idea, but I've already done too much of that with those kids (and my sister!), and I'd better back off. Last year was 7 Habits of Effective Teens for her and Wayward Sailor for him.

 

[lazygood4nothinbum]

14 & 17 huh? have you considered a few pages of your checkbook?

 

[Bestwifeever]

What a great idea for your lucky niece and nephew. We've done that for one nephew who loves to read and he says he likes the books we've given him. Last one was something by S. E. Hinton.

You could ask the young adult librarian for ideas--and I found this from the American Library Association's Booklist website, Best Books for Young Adults. It includes both fiction and nonfiction:

Booklist Online - Best Books for Young Adults: 2008 (FEATURE)

 

[Martha]

Another possibility is a magazine subscription, like Utne reader, Scientific American or whatever their interest or inclination.

 

[flipstress]

You could ask the young adult librarian for ideas--and I found this from the American Library Association's Booklist website, Best Books for Young Adults. It includes both fiction and nonfiction:

Booklist Online - Best Books for Young Adults: 2008 (FEATURE)

Looks like a good list--thanks. I give books to my nephews and nieces, too.

I usually look at the Newberry and
Caldecott award winners but the books in those lists might be for much younger readers than T-Al's niece and nephew.

 

[TromboneAl]

Thanks for the ideas. Great list. I think I'll spend some time in the library and pre-read a number of possibilities. After I gave my nephew The Wayward Sailor last year, I read it myself and decided he probably wouldn't have enjoyed it.

 

[Htown Harry]

[SIZE=-1]For the boy, some of the classics of young adult rebelliousness might be worth a look: “Catcher in the Rye” by J.D. Salinger, “The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn” by Mark Twain, etc.

At that age, though, I was more likely to get wrapped up in a modern non-fiction book with stories of action, bravery or adventure. A first-person account of a NYC firefighter, "Report from Engine Co. 82" by Dennis Smith, [/SIZE][SIZE=-1]was one. (More recently, Smith wrote "Report from Ground Zero" about the firefighters who responded to the 9/11 attack.) A good war story like "Blackhawk Down" might also fit the bill.

[/SIZE][SIZE=-1]Don't forget that a sprinkling of cussing and violence in a story are always helpful in keeping a 14-year-old boy's attention.

[/SIZE][SIZE=-1]I think the general idea is something to stimulate his imagination with stories of young men leading lives very different [/SIZE][SIZE=-1]from [/SIZE][SIZE=-1]a middle school student[/SIZE][SIZE=-1].[/SIZE]

 

[Nords]

These have been popular in our house:
Amazon.com: The Teenager's Guide to the Real World: Marshall Brain: Books

Amazon.com: The Motley Fool Investment Guide for Teens: 8 Steps to Having More Money Than Your Parents Ever Dreamed Of (Motley Fool): David Gardner, Tom Gardner: Books