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Powerful stories that make great gifts

Powerful stories that make great gifts

22 November 2022

min read

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We’re all made of stories, from anecdotes about our childhood and family lore to tales that bond friends, lovers or enemies together. Stories are filled with meaning, can evoke laughter or nostalgia, and have the power to make us laugh or change our minds. And so stories are among the most meaningful gifts you can give to a loved one this Christmas. From retellings of Greek myths to murder mysteries, each story on this list has the power to become part of the recipient’s future tale.

A German Christmas (2022)

The Germans have got Christmas down to an art, with fantastic markets, gorgeous scenery and tasty baked goods. Add to that this collection of German Christmas tales, which gives an insight into some of the most iconic festive traditions. A German Christmas includes classic stories by the Brothers Grimm and Thomas Mann as well as newer ones by Peter Stamm and Martin Suter, among others. The tales are from across Germany, Switzerland and Austria, and are full of magic and cheer.

With a Mind to Kill by Anthony Horowitz (2022)

Give someone a new perspective – and a new adventure – this festive season with Anthony Horowitz’s James Bond novel With a Mind to Kill. In this book – Horowitz’s third 007 story – Bond is smuggled behind the Iron Curtain to help a group of former SMERSH agents in an operation that will challenge the balance of world power. Full of danger and drama, this book is perfect Christmas reading and will provide a complement to watching the seasonal run of Bond films on television.

Glory by NoViolet Bulawayo (2022)

Shortlisted for the Booker Prize 2022, NoViolet Bulawayo’s novel is inspired by George Orwell’s classic book Animal Farm. Glory is set in the animal kingdom of Jidada, where animals are living quite happily until colonisers arrive and war breaks out. A charismatic horse comes to the rescue and begins his rule, only for the citizens to find out that he has no intention of stepping down. Kept in power by his elite band of Chosen Ones and brutal Defenders, the horse is eventually displaced by a new leader, who once again offers hope, soon to be dashed. A satire about power, tyranny and more, Bulawayo has said that Glory is her response to Zimbabwe’s 2017 coup and the fall of Robert Mugabe.

Greek Myths by Charlotte Higgins, illustrated by Chris Ofili (2021)

Love a Greek myth but tired of reading about the ‘heroes’ who cheated, lied and brutalised their way to glory? Then turn to Higgins’s Greek Myths, a new telling of some of the most famous women of Greek legend , from Penelope and Medea to Circe and Helen. The book centres around the act of weaving, with each story being told as though it has been woven onto a tapestry. Detailed and dazzling – and with stunning illustrations by Turner Prize-winner Chris Ofili – this is a book to dip in and out of or to consume in huge gulps, both of which make it a perfect present.

Murder at the Theatre Royale by Ada Moncrieff (2022)

Who doesn’t love a mystery at Christmas? But forget trying to figure out who nabbed the last leftover roast potato, and instead endeavour to solve this puzzle alongside journalist Daphne King. The (first) murder of Ada Moncrieff’s book is that of the actor who plays Scrooge, who dies on the opening night of A Christmas Carol at London’s Theatre Royale, seemingly of a heart attack. But when a rival of director Chester Harrison’s is murdered in a dressing room, it’s clear something more threatening is afoot, and Daphne is determined to reveal the truth. Murder at the Theatre Royale is the kind of cosy Christmas mystery made for reading while curled up on a sofa with a box of Quality Street to hand.

A Change of Circumstance by Susan Hill (2021)

The latest novel in Susan Hill’s Simon Serrailler series sees the detective trying to break a drug network. In mid-winter, a body is discovered in a flat just outside Lafferton. Although the victim has died of a drug overdose, there’s something suspicious about the situation: the flat is entirely empty, made up of nothing but damp walls and bare floorboards. Faced with this death, and a man named Fats, who preys on the young children who run errands for him, Serailler faces his biggest challenge yet. The idyllic fictional cathedral town of Lafferton and the very English Serailler might make readers think they’re in for something classic and cosy, but A Change of Circumstance – and the other novels in the series – are full of drama and modern problems.

Lily by Rose Tremain (2021)

The title character in master storyteller Rose Tremain’s latest novel was abandoned as a baby at the gates of a park on a freezing winter’s night in 1850. Saved by a young policeman, she was taken to the Foundling Hospital. Now grown up and released into the world of Victorian London, Lily reunites with the man who rescued her, and is convinced he’s the key to her happiness. But, after years of brutal hardship at the hospital, Lily is hiding a dreadful secret. And if he finds that secret out, he could condemn her to death. A tale of revenge, Lily is an absorbing read.

Player Piano by Kurt Vonnegut (1952)

Readers will know Vonnegut for his enduring novel Slaughterhouse-Five, so why not give someone his first, lesser-known but equally funny book? Player Piano, published in a new edition to celebrate Vonnegut’s centenary, is set ten years after robot labourers have been introduced and resulted in a massive decrease in America’s human workforce. The only people left working are the engineers and their managers, who live in Ilium, while nearby Homestead is an impoverished part of town. When Paul Proteus, the manager of Ilium Works, begins to feel uneasy about his position, it leads him to rebel against all he’s been given, with huge repercussions. Innovative (you’d expect no less from Vonnegut), Player Piano is also a highly relevant novel in our age of technology.

The Night Circus by Erin Morgenstern (2011)

Le Cirque des rêves opens at nightfall and closes at dawn, and arrives without warning, tents springing up where the day before there were none. Though it casts a spell over everyone, behind the dazzling acts there is a fierce competition underway. A modern classic, Morgenstern’s fantasy novel follows young magicians Celia and Marco, who have been trained since childhood for a deadly duel. With the lives of everyone at the circus at stake, the pair must test the limits of the imagination and their love. Now a TikTok hit, The Night Circus is an excellent gift to give someone who wants to escape into an immersive world of magic, mystery and a little mayhem.

The Dictionary of Lost Words by Pip Williams (2021)

For all the very many words we have, what about all the ones we’ve forgotten or that have fallen out of use? In The Dictionary of Lost Words, Pip Williams conjures up a world in which lost words have an impact on both the past and the future. The novel is about Esme, who accompanies her father as he and his team gather words for the very first Oxford English Dictionary. One day, she sees a slip of paper containing a forgotten word fall to the floor, and so begins Esme’s own mission: to create a secret dictionary of lost words. Set in a world on the cusp of change – a war is looming and women are fighting for the vote – Esme discovers that it might be the power of lost words that can help her make sense of her future.

The Promise by Damon Galgut (2021)

Damon Galgut’s Booker Prize-winning novel is a tale of family, told over the course of a series of funerals. Its title refers to a promise made by the Swart family – white landowners in South Africa – to their maid Salome, a Black woman. As the decades pass, there’s no sign that Salome will get the house and land promised to her, and the broken vow has a lingering effect on the members of the Swart family as they assemble time and time again to say goodbye. The Promise is an intimate novel about one family, and an expansive novel about South African history: it is, as the Booker judges said, a tour de force.

Diary of a Void by Emi Yagi, translated by Lucy North and David Boyd (2022)

Tired of doing all the menial tasks in her office – expected because she’s the only woman – Ms Shibata announces one day that she’s pregnant. She no longer has to serve coffee to anyone or work overtime, and can instead relax and rest. Only Ms Shibata isn’t actually pregnant: but as her ruse continues, the boundary between her lie and reality begins to dissolve. Diary of a Void, which is translated into English by Lucy North and David Boyd, won the Osamu Dazai Prize in Japan. Funny, feminist and subversive, Diary of a Void is a book for the reader who seems to have read everything on the bestseller lists and is on the hunt for something a little different.

Amy and Lan by Sadie Jones (2022)

Amy Connell and Lan Honey are growing up on a West Country farm, complete with goats, dogs and an orphaned calf called Gabriella Christmas. From climbing on the high barn roof to an incident with an axe, Amy and Lan have got a few secrets from their parents; and their parents, best friends originally from the city, have got a few secrets of their own, secrets that threaten the Amy and Lan’s fragile idyll. A funny and poignant story of childhood, Amy and Lan offers readers a retreat from the real world, much as the farm offers its eponymous characters.

The Mermaid of Black Conch by Monique Roffey (2020)

More Hans Christian Andersen than Disney, The Mermaid of Black Conch offers a dark and dangerous mermaid story. Inspired by ancient legends, the book is about Aycayia, a mermaid who has been living in the vast ocean around the Caribbean island of Black Conch for decades. When she is violently caught by American tourists, it is local fisherman David who rescues her with the intent of helping her get back to her ocean home. But it soon becomes clear that Aycayia is already transforming into a human woman, and her and David begin to fall in love. Winner of the Costa Book of the Year Award, The Mermaid of Black Conch is a love story like no other.

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