Argh. I asked my best friend what she wanted for her birthday and all she’ll say is, “Oh, a book. I haven’t read anything in ages. Something light, though, but nothing like The Nanny Diaries.” :smack:
I haven’t read anything new in forever, and the stuff I have read has been mostly fantasy, which she’s not into. Here’s a list of some stuff she likes, in no particular order:
The Reader
A Heartbreaking Work of Staggering Genius
Bridget Jones’s Diary
One Hundred Years of Solitude
A Girl’s Guide to Hunting and Fishing
The History of Love
The Secret History
Pride and Prejudice
In Praise of Idleness
Maybe those Janet Evanovich (sp?) books? I’m a 23 year old guy, and I read one at the library one day just to get an idea of why they’re so popular. I thought it was horrible, but that’s because it was a little too “light” for my tastes, and it was clearly aimed for women.
The lovely Time Traveler’s Wife by Audrey Niffenegger. Light in the sense that it’s sorta romantic and engaging, but also well-written, with some interesting things to say about the nature of love and relationships. I also love how the issues of temporal physics are glossed over
And the movie starring Eric Bana is coming out later this year!
yep, she just may like stephanie plum. start at “one for the money”. they are found in the mystery section.
the sweet potato queens are fun books. the first one is “the sweet potato queen’s book of love”. add in a tiara from an accessory store and you’ve got a super girly-girl gift. the humour/comic section is usually where the queens are found.
meg cabot writes books that read like bridget jones diary. go for the ones in the grown-up fiction section. she also writes teen fiction.
Brilliant, by Marne Davis Kellogg, is clever, mysterious, a bit sexy, and altogether delightful. A popcorn read: not much intellectual nourishment, but lots of flavor. There are sequels, and they are good, too. If your friend liked the Bridget Jones books, I bet she’ll like Brilliant.
I’ll second The Time Travler’s Wife. I’ve given that book as a gift to several non-readers and/or readers of drivel. Most often I’ve gotten at least positive responses.
Good Omens by Neil Gaiman and Terry Pratchett. It’s about an angel and a demon and their attempts to thwart the end of the world, because they like it so much. I’ve bought 7 copies of this book to give to people, and I’ll probably end up buying 7 more. It’s that funny, and that good.
