I loved The Professor and the Madman. Do you know that Simon Winchester has written another book about the creation of the Oxford Dictionary? It is titled The Meaning of Everything: The Story of the Oxford English Dictionary. I personally haven’t read it yet, but your giftee might enjoy it.
For light “travel” you might want to consider Peter Mayle. He wrote A Year in Provence (made into a t.v. miniseries starring John Thaw of Inspector Morse fame), *Toujours Provence * and now has a new book out, A Good Year.