All I want for Christmas

[pbray]

Last week jpsorrow put together a suggested shopping list featuring recently released books from his friendslist, including handy shopping links.

I'm not nearly that ambitious, so instead I'll offer my annual suggestion. Books make great gifts (yes, this is a hint). Gift certificates to bookstores make even better gifts--I'll often give someone book one of a series along with a gift certificate so they can buy the rest of the series if they're hooked, or something entirely different if it's not to their liking.

So in honor of CyberMonday, here are links to SF&F friendly stores where you can do your holiday shopping.

Bakka Phoenix Books, Toronto, Ontario
Borderlands, San Francisco, California
Dreamhaven Books, Minneapolis, Minnesota
Flights of Fantasy, Albany area, New York
Mysterious Galaxy, San Diego, California
Pages For All Ages, Champaign-Urbana, Illinois
Pandemonium Books & Games, Cambridge, Massachusetts
Toadstool, Keene, Milford and Peterborough, New Hampshire
Uncle Hugo's, Minneapolis, Minnesota
University Book Store, Seattle, WA
White Dwarf, Vancouver, British Columbia

Want to send a gift certificate to a local bookstore in another city? You can go to Booksense to find the nearest independent bookstore. Earlier this year I used this feature to find the Tattered Cover in Denver, so I could send my sister one of their gift certificates, thus neatly solving her complaint of having nothing to read :-)

And if all else fails, there are the usual suspects: Amazon.com, Barnes & Noble and Borders.

Comments

[sylvia-rachel.livejournal.com]

You remind me that I have not been to Bakka in ages. Mostly because it and I now live far away from each other, but also because, well, I have a credit card and they have a lot of SFF books and bad things could happen ...

I should go again :)

[pbray.livejournal.com]

More books is always a good idea.

[sylvia-rachel.livejournal.com]

Well, in theory, of course it is.

At our house, however, we are currently reaching the point (again) where more bookshelves is starting to be a good idea, and I am rapidly losing all moral authority in re: my husband's massive comic-book collection.

And yet (zombie voice), BOOKS! BOOOOOOOOKS!!

[pbray.livejournal.com]

The ratio of books I buy to books I actually find time to read is now over 5 to 1 for this year... and climbing.

And let's not get started on the lack of bookcases. At this point I'm considering jacking up the beds on stilts so I can stuff two layers of underbed storage boxes under each of them.

[sylvia-rachel.livejournal.com]

At this point I'm considering jacking up the beds on stilts so I can stuff two layers of underbed storage boxes under each of them.

That seems a perfectly sensible course of action to me. We have a futon, and the only thing wrong with this is that you can't store anything underneath. We are out of space for more bookcases, unless some of those boxes of comics go and live someplace else, so for the moment I'm double-shelving the paperbacks in the living-room...

What you need to do is start commuting by public transit. Almost the only reading time I get is while riding buses and waiting for buses. Oh, and also the sacred hour on Sunday mornings -- between dropping SP off at Hebrew school, shopping for groceries, and going back to pick her up again -- when I sit in a comfy chair at Second Cup with a decaf latte* and the book of the moment.

* I need lattes, to boost my calcium intake. Really.

[kelly-swails.livejournal.com]

Thanks for giving Pages for all Ages a shout-out! It's the best independant bookstore in the area. It's sort of out of the way for krswails and I, but sometimes we make it a point to go. Gotta give the independents business, right? Nice people there, too. And they have awesome non-book gifts.

[jjschwabach.livejournal.com]

boooooksssss..... booooooookksssss

[melissajm.livejournal.com]

Yay, Flights of Fantasy!

[pbray.livejournal.com]

Cool! I've heard good things about them, but haven't managed to make it there myself yet. One of these days I'm going to plan an all bookstore vacation where I just drive from one state to another....

Thanks for the mention!

[allaboutm-e.livejournal.com]

I'll often give someone book one of a series along with a gift certificate so they can buy the rest of the series if they're hooked, or something entirely different if it's not to their liking.

And this is a splendid suggestion!

Re: Thanks for the mention!

[pbray.livejournal.com]

You're welcome!