Who owns the phrase: “the book is the best gift.” And how literally does it sound? Reasons why a book is the best gift

A book is a bad gift. Let's make sure of this

We constantly hear that a book is the best gift. In fact, it is easy to make a mistake: at best, a person will simply put the book on the shelf to gather dust and never open it, at worst, you risk hurting his feelings. You should be careful with the choice of such a gift.

You give a book to someone you don't know at all

Many of us, choosing a book as a gift, often pick something to our liking. Are you sure that your interests coincide with the hobbies of the donee? Of course, the new glossy volume about the history of fashion cannot but rejoice, but will the person whom you decided to surprise open it at least once? A book gift requires special responsibility and awareness of the interests of the other.

You give a book to someone who reads little

Reading, of course, is always fashionable. Even if you hit the mark by choosing the right book for a friend or relative, think about whether he will find time for it? It's one thing when a person, in principle, does not have the habit of reading – everything is clear here: the book will be covered with dust. Another thing is that we are all busy people in one way or another, and even for a favorite volume there is not always a minute. Will a busy student or career friend find her? Is it really so useful to give a thing that will rather serve as a decoration?

You are giving a book to a person who reads a lot (a lot)

Bookworms are sometimes even more difficult. Their interests are easy to guess, but the problem lies in the fact that they seem to have read everything in the world. The book novelty from Donna Tartt will only be appropriate if you purchased and donated the book on the first day of publication. A small hitch a day or two – and you risk that your friend has already read everything.

4 Unlucky Connoisseur Surprise

It is worth remembering that the likelihood of a hobbyist “not getting” with a book gift “on the topic” greatly increases, even if you are properly consulted in a bookstore.

If we are talking about a literary connoisseur, then all the more it is better to abandon the idea to please him with your surprise.

By the way, if we turn to the results of the survey about gifts, it turns out that among the gifts that we plan to give, the book shares an honorable third place with money. At the same time, the book is not included in the top 10 gifts that people would like to receive themselves. Alas, we love giving books more than receiving them as a gift. This is also worth considering when deciding whether a book is the best gift in this particular case.

So, the book as a gift carries both a lot of excellent opportunities and a lot of serious threats. Soberly assessing both, you can certainly make the right choice. How will you please yourself and the one you congratulate.

I can recommend the following articles to you on Burido:

• how to choose a gift
• selection of key digital libraries
• about books that changed our lives
• about the mistakes of poets

3 You give a work you like as a present to someone for whom it does not suit

Typical collisions: a young man gives his girlfriend a fantasy packed with technological know-how, and a girl gives her boyfriend a thrilling love story. Again, with the best of intentions – share a good find and broaden your horizons.

Occasionally there are missionaries who give everyone their favorite book. And this already resembles a variation on the theme of forcibly making humanity happy.

You are giving a book on self-development

Self-made books are very popular. Every year there are hundreds of new “ten steps to become happy”, “how to become successful and rich”, “how to find friends and always be in the spotlight” and others in the same spirit. People read such books – and love. The problem is that if you give your friend such a copy, you thereby hint that he is not happy enough, rich, successful – he simply lacks something. You are at great risk of offending such a person, although you were guided by the best intentions.

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A book is really the best gift if you choose it responsibly. Unfortunately, it is very easy to disappoint – just choose the wrong volume for the wrong addressee. Think, weigh the pros and cons – and give something else if you are not one hundred percent sure.

What book to donate?

Choosing the best publications for family, friends and colleagues

We all remember that a book is the best gift. But how to choose the right one if there are so many new products and time is running out? To save you from unnecessary worries, we have compiled an instruction-guide to New Year's gifts and novelties of the publishing house.

Step one. Whom do we give?

Let's define the recipients. Friends, relatives and colleagues, acquaintances from the gym or like-minded hobbies: for each of the people close to you, you can find something universal and, at the same time, original. Try, for example, to take our test. It will help to keep the number of books to a minimum.

Step two. Find out about preferences

Do you want to make a unique gift? You can, of course, directly ask a person about his preferences and wishes, but, you must admit, this is not interesting. After all, New Year is a time of magic and surprises. Invite the future recipient to write a letter to Santa Claus. Why not? On the eve of the holiday, we all become a little bit children. At the same time, you yourself will write a message to the wizard – suddenly someone also wants to read it!

A great alternative to writing is a website with wishlists. You can also send the recipient of the gift a link to the literary test and accurately find out about the results. Perhaps they are the answer to your question.

Step three. Choosing!

So, you have found out what genres and literary trends your friends and family like, the only thing left is to choose a book.

Forget about dividing books into “for boys and girls”

It's almost 2020 in the yard: giving a thing based on gender, not interests, is already bad manners. Don't get us wrong – there is nothing wrong with presenting a girl with a typically “female” book. If your friend loves to cook, present a recipe book; if she's crazy about makeup, she will be delighted with the desktop edition about make-up. Everything is logical here.

But if your friend loves mineralogy, and you give her the conventional “100 ways to tie a bow,” the gift will be a mistake. Giving dad “Fishing Tips” if he has never held a spinning rod in his life is also pretty stupid.

Choose a book based on interests, not what gender the person is.

Make a list of “interests / events / benefits”

To determine the perfect present, draw three columns on a piece of paper.

• In the first, write down all sorts of interests of the person to whom you are giving. Even loving weird parrot memes can come in handy.

• In the second, write down all the important and not so important events that have occurred or are occurring in the life of a friend. Maybe he is preparing to enter the theater or is carried away by an unpopular fandom;

• The last column lists the skills that the friend will acquire after reading the gift. This is the hardest part, so try to remember – maybe he was complaining about how dear it costs him daily coffee in cups? In this case, a book on how to make a drink at home will save him money and give him a new skill. If nothing like that happened, look at column number 2 and think about what skills will be required from the events taking place in life.

Well, now – go ahead to connect! The combinations can turn out to be the most unexpected.

Look at the dimensions

Not the most obvious criterion, which in fact turns out to be the most important. Remember what bag or backpack your friend usually goes with. If she takes a clutch with her as much as possible, there is no point in loading her with a three-volume leather-bound book.

In general, it is not customary to give a heavy book, which is not intended for design or simply lying beautifully on the table. For example, a two-kilogram volume about the best photographs of the 20th century with high-quality prints is quite a good gift, because it will be looked at and considered as an object of art. But giving Fathers and Sons in a huge edition, you must admit, is unprofitable. A person usually reads in queues, transport or lying in a crib at home. In no case is it convenient to have a heavy edition on your lap.

What “easy” alternatives can you think of?

• E-book / audiobook. Now in online stores you can order almost any work as a document or audiobook. Such formats are more often and more expensive, and save space in a friend's bag, and more environmentally friendly – not a single tree will suffer.

• Flipbook. A format where pages are turned not from right to left, but from bottom to top. For some dark magic in such editions, even “War and Peace” is placed in a rectangle the size of a large telephone. Such a book is easy to take with you, even if there is only free space in your pockets.

• Certificates. Angry, businesslike, but you will never go wrong

Turn on your sense of humor

Making fun of your friends is a sacred thing, especially if they understand. If there are absolutely no options for a gift, remember your common jokes and look for references to them in the titles of books. In addition, now there are many “life” comics, which will also appeal to those who can laugh at themselves.

Just a book is not enough

Thought you could “buy off” a hastily purchased book? Alas, this is not enough for the title of the most attentive friend in the world. For true gifting professionals, there is an option to buy complementary items. For example, it is a good idea to buy delicious cheese and olives for the book of recipes for Italian cuisine. Cocoa and marshmallows are suitable for atmospheric fantasy so that a friend can comfortably read a gift while sipping a hot drink.

Finally, make a simple postcard and explain why you are giving this particular book.

Along the way, congratulate you on the occasion and wish you all the best. It is trite, but on holidays, the feeling of unity with loved ones is more important to us, and not material things.

Reasons why a book is the best gift

1 Today, the store has books of all formats and dimensions, you can choose the best option. So, you can hit the birthday boy with a giant or miniature book.

2 Gift paper is very convenient for wrapping rectangular objects, such as a book. The gift will be in perfect shape.

3 A modern person will surely be surprised when a book is presented to him. A wide assortment allows you to find a unique specimen.

4 A gift such as a book can be used by several people at the same time.

5 The book can be re-read several times and saved for future generations.

6 Books are cheap, which makes them affordable for most people.

7 There is a unique book for every person.

8 Technology will break, flowers will wither, and a book is eternal if handled with care.

9 Books never lose their popularity and relevance, which is why they are considered the best gift of all time.

10 The book saves you from boredom on the road.

11 The book is the best gift. This is a great way to demonstrate your attitude towards a person.

12 The book does not take up much space. It can be placed on a shelf or in a drawer.

13 The book does not require investment. It does not need to be fed or watered.

14 The book is able to give unforgettable emotions.

15 The book allows you to gain invaluable knowledge.

16 A unique copy of a book can be a valuable gift.

17 A book presented as a child, even at an older age, will cause great delight.

See: 6 Causes of Tsunami

18 Books do not age or lose their taste over time.

19 The book can cheer you up and distract yourself from problems.

20 The book opens up new possibilities.

21 An economical gift is a book.

22 If you don't know what to give, then you can always go to the bookstore. An exclusive gift can be found there.

23 The book allows you to bring people together. Present a romantic book to your loved one to get closer to her.

24 The book will always be more valuable than money, because it is priceless.

25 Give a book on a date to be unique and creative.

26 A book is a great opportunity to meet an interesting person.

27 A gift like a book can be easily matched to a person's style or character.

28 You can leave your wishes on the book by signing it with beautiful words.

29 The book can be a highlight in interior design.

30 The book is a great option for a last-minute gift.

A book is the best gift

If you do not get carried away with general eulogies of the book, then you can limit yourself to two arguments that this is exactly the case.

1 There is a great book for everyone

Potentially, you can find an excellent book for any needs, tastes, age, personality traits and the level of intelligence of the person being congratulated.

This is the main advantage of the book as a gift. However, it is not always easy to put it into practice. Usually the problem appears from two sides:

1. We cannot clearly determine which book the person congratulated needs, since we are not sufficiently aware of his tastes and characteristics. If we even know well what this person is fond of, then another problem arises – it is easy to give him something that is not quite that or a book that he already has.
2. We ourselves are not well-versed in the world of books, so we risk not finding a book that is successful for this person and giving him something mediocre or inappropriate.

As for the first difficulty, it seems that you can simply ask directly which book he would like to receive as a gift. This is true, but the element of surprise is lost, a little bit of joy from which we have preserved since childhood.

Recently, such an option as a gift certificate from a bookstore has become widespread. This thing perfectly solves our difficulty, because the person being congratulated will choose the book himself. And this is convenient for you (no need to puzzle over the choice, wandering around the bookstore) and for him (he will choose what he wants).

I see only two small flaws in a gift certificate: the same lack of a surprise effect (it is postponed somewhere for later) and the presence of a certain probability that the certificate will never be “stocked” in the hustle and bustle of everyday life (bookstore statistics confirm this). Especially if the person being congratulated is not a big fan of books and does not enter the bookstore himself.

As for the second difficulty, in addition to such a traditional way of consulting with a person well versed in books from your circle of friends, in our time, other ways have appeared.

You can use specialized recommendation services on the Internet, reader forums and reviews, bestseller lists. You can read more about these methods and specific resources on the web in the article on choosing a book.

There are many options, but if you yourself do not like reading books, then it may be better to limit yourself to looking for a book gift only in cases where this is obviously the best option. Also, how best, if possible, not to pick up perfumery as a gift if you are indifferent to it, and so on.

2 Attractive cost / value ratio

I will note two points here:

1 You give a person the whole world for a reasonable price

If he is able to perceive and love the world of your book, then all this really becomes like a miracle. It turns out that it is beneficial for both you and him.

2 The price of the same book differs significantly

Developing an analogy, we can say that one and the same book world can also have completely different prices. This is very helpful. After all, someone is delighted with expensive gift editions, while someone needs a book that is convenient to read on the road. Just as in some cases (for example, a relative's anniversary) it is more logical for us to buy a beautifully designed expensive book as a gift, and in others (for example, an ordinary friend's birthday) – a budget version of the same book.

Sources used and useful links on the topic: https://zen.yandex.com/media/id/5d7614300ce57b00afde3e8a/kniga–plohoi-podarok-davaite-ubedimsia-v-etom-5d823bba43863f00aea91054 https://burido.ru/sredi-lyudej / 261-kniga-kak-podarok https://eksmo.ru/selections/kakuyu-knigu-podarit-ID4167286/ https://www.ellegirl.ru/articles/kak-vybrat-knigu-v-podarok-5- poleznykh-sovetov / https://10prichin.ru/okruzhayushhij-mir/30-prichin-pochemu-kniga-luchshij-podarok