Festive Gift Inspiration from Virago Publisher, Sarah Savitt
Five Virago Books to Add to your Gift List this Festive Season
Buying and recommending books for other people is (obviously) so personal, so I’ve chosen five books from the Virago list that I think almost anyone would love and enjoy. If you give or receive any of them, we’d love to hear what you think.
Fingersmith by Sarah Waters
This book contains one of the best twists EVER. It’s a delicious, witty, sexy romp through the Victorian underworld of London, by one of our best, and most enjoyable, contemporary novelists. A book I recommend often as it’s a sure-fire hit.
The Dud Avocado by Elaine Dundy
Surely the title is enough to make you smile? Set in Paris in the 1950s, this is the story of a young woman trying to grow up fast. The setting, clothes and romance make it a dose of escapism – what we all need right now – but it’s also a clever dissection of power, love, lust and the simultaneous freedoms and restrictions for women at that time. The Observer described it as ‘A champagne cocktail . . . Rich, invigorating and deceptively simple to the taste’ – what could be more perfect for Christmas?
Sankofa by Chibundu Onuzo
The story of a woman going in search of the West African father she never knew, Sankofa was published in June and has been gathering steam on both sides of the Atlantic ever since. Reese Witherspoon chose it for her book club in October, and you’ll be able to watch a panel of celebrities discuss it on the BBC 2 Between the Covers Book Club show on 15 December, perhaps with a glass of mulled wine in hand.
Nobody Will Tell You This But Me by Bess Kalb
After the isolation of last Christmas, this year we will (fingers crossed) be able to see our families – and this memoir is a wonderful celebration of the love between grandparents and grandchildren. Bess Kalb imagines her beloved, glamorous and irreverent grandmother speaking to her from beyond the grave, telling her own life story and giving her granddaughter just the right kind of life advice. Beloved by Nigella Lawson, this is the perfect intergenerational gift.
Love Marriage by Monica Ali
This unforgettable novel about two cultures, two families and two people trying to understand one another isn’t out until February – but you can pre-order it now and anyone you give it to will agree it was worth the wait. Love Marriage is the new novel from the bestselling, Booker Prize-shortlisted author of Brick Lane, and it’s already receiving rave reviews from authors including Ruth Jones (‘Exquisitely written with big-heartedness, intelligence and passion’), Diana Evans (‘Funny, warm, powerful’) and Adam Kay (‘I defy you to put this book down’). It’s ‘a novel that cares about its characters so deeply that you will too’ (Hannah Beckerman) and the excruciating scenes of very different future in-laws meeting for the first time is the perfect read after the sometimes-intense family and social whirl of the holidays.
Festive traditions:
My family wasn’t particularly focused on holidays when I was growing up, partly because my parents are proud atheists and proud sceptics, so many holidays were dismissed as inventions – either by organised religion or the Hallmark card company! But special days – Sundays, birthdays, Christmas – were still recognised of course, and always began with our family tradition of buckwheat pancakes and maple syrup. It was always local syrup since I grew up in Vermont. I now make buckwheat pancakes for my two-year-old daughter and she loves them (and especially the syrup). I hope she’ll come to associate them with celebration and as the pre-cursor to opening presents together, hands still a bit sticky with maple.
