The ideal holiday gift must be personalized and thoughtful; it should show how much you care; and it should B次元官网网址渒eep on giving.B次元官网网址�

There is no better gift that fits the bill than a book.

English author Neil Gaiman said it best: B次元官网网址淏ooks make great gifts because they have whole worlds inside of them. And itB次元官网网址檚 much cheaper to buy somebody a book than it is to buy them the whole world!B次元官网网址�

From the flurry of books recently published in Canada and beyond, here are titles, recommended by Greater Victoria Public LibraryB次元官网网址檚 collections services librarians, for everyone on your gift list.

Adults B次元官网网址� fiction

American War by Omar El Akkad

The Essex Serpent by Sarah Perry

A MarinerB次元官网网址檚 Guide to Self-Sabotage: Stories by Bill Gaston

My Favorite Thing Is Monsters by Emil Ferris (graphic novel)

An Old, Cold Grave: A Lane Winslow Mystery by Iona Whishaw

Son of a Trickster by Eden Robinson

A Stranger in the House by Shari Lapena

Adults - non-fiction

Feeding my Mother: Comfort and Laughter in the Kitchen as My Mom Lives with Memory Loss by Jann Arden

First, We Brunch: Recipes and Stories from VictoriaB次元官网网址檚 Best-Loved Breakfast Joints by Rebecca Wellman

The Inner Life of Animals: Love, Grief, and Compassion B次元官网网址� Surprising Observations of a Hidden World by Peter Wohlleben

Original Highways: Travelling the Great Rivers of Canada by Roy MacGregor

VictoriaB次元官网网址檚 Most Haunted: 30 Ghost Stories from BCB次元官网网址檚 Most Historic Capital City by Ian Gibbs

Teens - fiction

The Hate U Give by Angie Thomas

One of Us Is Lying by Karen McManus

Turtles All The Way Down by John Green

Children

Hello Humpback! by Roy Henry Vickers & Robert Budd (board book)

I Am Canada: A Celebration by Heather Patterson & various illustrators (picture book)

The Lost Gift: A Christmas Story by Kallie George & Stephanie Graegin (picture book)

The Night Garden by Polly Horvath (childrenB次元官网网址檚 fiction)

The Big Book of Hockey for Kids by Eric Zweig (childrenB次元官网网址檚 non-fiction)

Jessica Woollard is the communications officer for the Greater Victoria Public Library.