Gift Focus - Nov/Dec 2017 (Issue 104)

58 giftfocus CHRISTMAS CRACKERS TEN POEMS TO SURPRISE AND DELIGHT RRP: £4.95 Format: Pamphlet supplied with envelope and bookmark ISBN: 9781907598548 Poems to add a dash of zing to the festive season. This latest mini- anthology from Candlestick belongs to the new Christmas Collection series and contains brand new poems by 10 leading contemporary poets. The poems range from the surreal to the tenderly nostalgic, taking in the perils of an over- crowded shopping mall, the bah… humbug of Christmas enjoyed in glorious solitude and a jaded Mary who has spent far too long on the back of a donkey. If Christmas lapses all too easily into traditional familiarity, these poems will provide a bracing antidote – a little something to indulge in while the plum pudding is taking its toll. Other new Christmas anthologies from Candlestick this year are Christmas Garland , Christmas Stocking and Fourteen Festive Sonnets . Publisher Di Slaney explains, “Our previous forays into prose – poet Gillian Clarke’s The Christmas Wren and last year’s essay The Wood in Winter by John Lewis-Stempel – were brilliantly received. It now seems a natural market extension for our ‘instead of a card’ gift packs to bring short stories, essays and other interesting prose pieces to life.” For further information, visit candlestickpress.co.uk SPECIAL GIFT EDITIONS OF MOOMIN BOOKS RRP: £10.99 Format: Paperback ISBN: 9781908745644 These four gorgeous collectors’ edition Moomin titles, lovingly restored to their original artwork and design by Sort of Books make the ideal Christmas gift for ages 7 to 10. Special features include wraparound ’50s and ’60s cover artworks, fold out maps and lovely endpapers. The Moomins’ love of nature, their kindness, inclusiveness and respect for the freedom and creativity of others, will resonate across the generations. For further information, visit sortof.co.uk MONKEY BINGO ILLUSTRATED BY MARCEL GEORGE RRP: £19.99 Format: Game Monkey Bingo is a family-friendly bingo game that includes 64 monkeys and primates to learn about. This game is packed with cheeky monkeys and other mischievous primates from all around the world for hours of bingo fun. It features such firm favourites as the ring-tailed lemur and the chimpanzee, one of our closest living relatives, as well as more unusual creatures like the mustachioed emperor tamarin and the tiny, carnivorous western tarsier, whose eyes are as big as its brain and whose head can rotate 180 degrees in either direction. Boasting 64 weird, wonderful and beautiful species, Monkey Bingo is filled with fun facts and glorious illustrations that are guaranteed to delight monkey lovers and novices alike. Mark each species off on your card as it’s called and be the first to shout BINGO! Visit laurenceking.com for further information. TREES BY LEMNISCATES ILLUSTRATED BY LEMNISCATES RRP: £10.99 Format: Hardback ISBN: 9781406376746 A lyrical picture book with gorgeous graphic illustrations that pays tribute to the beauty and importance of the trees all around us. Trees change through the seasons – springing to life, bearing fruit and losing their leaves. They clean the air we breathe, provide seeds and homes for creatures and extend their shade to everyone equally. Trees is a poetic picture book that invites the reader to take a closer look at the magnificent trees that surround us. Trees was winner of the 2016 Serra d’Or Critics Award in the Children’s Literature category, a prestigious Catalan literary prize. The book also ties in to the Year One programme of study on the science National Curriculum. A lyrical celebration of nature. For further information visit walker.co.uk bookshelf We turn the page on some of the latest gift books to hit the shelves