Give the gift of a Book Marks Rave from W. W. Norton

W. W. Norton & Company
4 min readDec 1, 2020

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From novels to nonfiction, these critical favorites make for perfect gifts for the readers in your life.

Fiction

Ruthie Fear (Maxim Loskutoff)

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In this haunting parable of the American West, a young woman faces the violent past of her remote Montana valley.

The Shadow King (Maaza Mengiste)

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Shortlisted for the 2020 Booker Prize, and named a best book of the year by the New York Times, NPR, Elle, Time, and more, The Shadow King is an “unforgettable epic from an immensely talented author who’s unafraid to take risks” (Michael Schaub, NPR).

A Children’s Bible (Lydia Millet)

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Finalist for the 2020 National Book Award for Fiction
One of the New York Times’ Ten Best Books of the Year
One of Time’s Ten Best Novels of 2020
A New York Times and Washington Post Notable Book of 2020

An indelible novel of teenage alienation and adult complacency in an unraveling world.

If I Had Two Wings (Randall Kenan)

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Longlisted for the 2020 National Book Award for Fiction

Mingling the earthy with the otherworldly, these ten stories chronicle ineffable events in ordinary lives.

The Voyage of the Morning Light (Marina Endicott)

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From a critically acclaimed and beloved storyteller comes a sweeping novel set aboard the Morning Light, a Nova Scotian merchant ship sailing through the South Pacific in 1912.

Nonfiction

A World Beneath the Sands (Toby Wilkinson)

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A thrilling history of the West’s scramble for the riches of ancient Egypt by the foremost Egyptologist of our time.

Kant’s Little Prussian Head and Other Reasons Why I Write (Claire Messud)

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In twenty-six intimate, brilliant, and funny essays, a glimpse into a beloved novelist’s inner world, shaped by family, art, and literature.

The Blessing and the Curse (Adam Kirsch)

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An erudite and accessible survey of Jewish life and culture in the twentieth century, as reflected in seminal texts.

The Man Who Ate Too Much (John Birdsall)

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The definitive biography of America’s best-known and least-understood food personality, and the modern culinary landscape he shaped.

Twilight of the Gods (Ian W. Toll)

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New York Times Bestseller

The final volume of the magisterial Pacific War Trilogy from acclaimed historian Ian W. Toll, “one of the great storytellers of War” (Evan Thomas).

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