A Few Friday Tidbits

Good golly, the Friday before Christmas. If you're celebrating I hope you're more ready than I. I always start early planning and prep, but still somehow manage to end up behind as the big day approaches.

To give you a sense of the content for the final weeks of the year, I'll be posting mostly reviews next week to catch up a little and then I'll wrap up with my traditional favorites lists. I'll let you know what my favorite audiobooks were, my favorite debuts, my favorite book covers, my favorite first lines and my overall favorite books for 2014.

But I'd like to add a new element to the year end lists and that's YOUR favorite books of 2014 so I have a quick (and hopefully painless) form for you to submit your favorite titles. Then I'll include the outcomes in my final posts of the year:



Since it's Friday, we should take a look at some contests you can enter, right?

Book Riot has a chance for you to win a Kobo Aura ereader.
Friday Reads has a musical array of books you should check out.
Criminal Element has the Yule Be Sorry sweepstakes.
You can peruse through Read it Forward's various giveaways here.

I wanted to throw a couple more last minute book gift recommendations out for you. You know, if you're like me, you're still finishing up...*sigh*

First is a book I just think is stunning and would be loved by ANY Neil Gaiman fan.  The Art of Neil Gaiman by Haley Campbell is a book to soak in bit by beautiful bit. It's a full color collection of art, previously unseen materials, and an exploration of the creative genius. This is a book you keep for the ages, it really is. If you have a Gaiman fan on your gift list and he/she does not have this book, they will treasure it. But hey, if YOU'RE a Gaiman fan and you don't have this book, get yourself a copy.

The Art of Neil Gaiman (ISBN: 9780062248565) is available from Harper Design.

And let me just extend my Gaiman love a little further because I owe my discovery of his work to my good friend Rhonda who introduced me to The Graveyard Book. And when I saw the publication of graphic novel version earlier this year, I drooled. It's target audience is the young...but I think the young at heart qualify as well. There is also a full cast recording of the audiobook that came out this year. I listened to the audiobook narrated entirely by Gaiman and gosh was it beautiful. I still have to try the full cast version, though.

The Graveyard Book graphic novel (Vol I) (ISBN:  9780062194817) is available from HarperCollins. And the full cast audiobook (ISBN: 9780062364463) is also available from HarperCollins.

And finally, a little bookish fun I saw the other day and liked--plus is handy this time of year when all the colds and flus are raging--a book tissue box cover.