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Hello, Grass Roots Readers!
This special newsletter features some of our favorite books to give and receive for the holiday season. They cover a broad range of interests -- top picks for book lovers, fantastic facts and humor, and home and garden, to name a few -- so there's gifting inspiration for everyone on your list.
Keep reading for more!
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Star Trek is one of the most enduring franchises in Hollywood entertainment history. Part of the public consciousness since 1966, it spans the worlds of television and the movies and counts millions of fans worldwide. Now Star Trek Pop-Ups delivers seven iconic Star Trek moments in a new way, popping off the page in three dimensions. From the original USS Enterprise in flight to the dreaded Borg cube from The Next Generation and beyond, here is an unforgettable series of alien encounters and thrilling action scenes, featuring memorable moments from Deep Space Nine, Voyager and Enterprise.
Price: $29.95
Publisher: Thames & Hudson; ISBN: 9780500517499
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For the first time, J.K. Rowling's beloved Harry Potter books will be presented in lavishly illustrated full-color editions. Kate Greenaway-award-winning artist Jim Kay has created over 100 stunning illustrations, making this deluxe format a perfect gift as much for a child being introduced to the series, as for the dedicated fan. Harry Potter knows no spells, has never helped to hatch a dragon, and has never worn a cloak of invisibility. But all that is about to change when a mysterious letter arrives with an invitation to an incredible place that Harry -- and anyone who reads about him -- will find unforgettable.
Price: $39.99 Publisher: Arthur A. Levine Books; ISBN: 9780545790352
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Unleash your creativity and escape to one of the most beloved series of all time. From the heraldry of the four Hogwarts houses to the extravagant wares of Weasleys' Wizard Wheezes, the world of Harry Potter overflows with radiant color. Filled with intricate illustrations and elaborate designs used in the making of the Harry Potter films, this book invites you to imbue the wizarding world with color in your own explorations of Hogwarts Castle, the Forbidden Forest, and much more. Also includes 16 pages of full-color art from the movies to inspire you as you draw.
Price: $15.99 Publisher: Scholastic Inc.; ISBN: 9781338029994
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The perfect gift for fans of George R. R. Martin's A Song of Ice and Fire and HBO's Game of Thrones, this one-of-a-kind coloring book features 45 exclusive illustrations! In a world where weddings are red, fire is green, and debts are paid in gold, countless images leap off the page thanks to the eye-popping intricacy of the vivid settings and details. Now, for the first time, fans of this blockbuster saga can fill in the blanks and marvel as this meticulously imagined universe comes to life, one sword, sigil, and castle at a time.
Price: $16.95 Publisher: Bantam; ISBN: 9781101965764
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"Illustrator DeGraff describes himself as the son of a teacher and a pretty big reader who wanted to do something mappy and bookish. So he teamed up with essayist and editor Harmon and created a book of exuberantly inventive, spectacularly executed, and dazzlingly engrossing feats of literary cartography. Each of the 19 astutely selected classics is summarized in a peppery introductory essay, followed by DeGraff's visual tracking of characters, places, and events. . .Standouts are his renderings of Robinson Crusoe, Adventures of Huckleberry Finn, and Jorge Luis Borges' The Library of Babel. . .A unique, display-ready volume of great allure and pleasure." - Booklist, Starred Review
Price: $24.99
Publisher: Pulp/Zest Books; ISBN: 9781936976867
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Few novelists have conveyed the subtleties and nuances of their own social milieu with the wit and insight of Jane Austen. The seven books in this box set -- Sense and Sensibility, Pride and Prejudice, Mansfield Park, Emma, Northanger Abbey, Persuasion, and Love and Freindship (early writings and juvenilia) -- contain some of the most brilliant, dazzling prose in the English language. Part of Penguin's beautiful Hardcover Classics series, designed by the award-winning Coralie Bickford-Smith, these delectable and collectible editions are bound in high-quality, tactile cloth with foil stamped into the design.
Price: $159.00
Publisher: Penguin Books; ISBN: 9780141395203
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A bibliophile's dream come true -- every day brings a spot-on recommendation. Readers who love Dan Brown are instructed to check out The English Girl by Daniel Silva. Cormac McCarthy devotees are nudged toward William Gay's debut novel, The Long Home. And sci-fi lovers learn they must pick up Rick Yancey's The 5th Wave. Plus famous last lines, literary quizzes, and surprising facts about our favorite authors.
Price: $13.99
Publisher: Workman Publishing; ISBN: 9780761183693
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The latest addition to the celebrated Best American series, featuring the most creative and effective visualizations of data from the past year, introduced by Brain Pickings creator Maria Popova.
"The Best American Infographics 2015 showcases visualizations from the worlds of politics, social issues, health, sports, arts and culture, and more. From an elegant graphic comparison of first sentences in classic novels to a startling illustration of the world's deadliest animals, you'll come away with more than your share of. . .mind-bending moments and a wide-ranging view of what infographics can do." - Harvard Business Review
Price: $20.00 Publisher: Mariner Books; ISBN: 9780544542709
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"From facts about historic murders to 'eww'-inducing information about toilet bowl germs, this handy and browsable guide offers hours of tidbits and trivia sure to surprise readers and impress their friends. The authors. . .have penned several previous trivia compendia in this series, and their ability to find truly offbeat oddities is impressive. What's even more remarkable is their skill in organizing the book in a 'degrees of Kevin Bacon' way -- with each page moving seamlessly and cleverly into the next one's 'theme'. . .for example, how music trivia can lead into wine, then into Greek philosophy, and then into illnesses. . ." - Library Journal
Price: $15.95 Publisher: W. W. Norton & Company; ISBN: 9780393249873
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The new cartography is about much more than just land! In 150 infographic maps of Portland, Oregon, two leading geographers explore unexpected topics like city chickens, wild coyote encounters, food-truck trends, and coffee culture. Other nontraditional topics include patterns of graffiti, locations of strip clubs, or even which neighborhoods favor which house colors, so finding your way around the city takes on a whole new meaning. Each map starts with the gathering of at least one data set about a given topic, then translating that to a visual format that blends traditional cartographic skills with modern graphic design.
Price: $24.95 Publisher: Sasquatch Books; ISBN: 9781632170002
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From Warby Parker, the eyewear company that has become "shorthand for simple and stylish" (Fast Company), an eye-catching illustrated gift book that shares the many witty, harrowing and absurd ways to lose a pair of glasses. Finding a pair of glasses you love is the easy part. Holding onto them -- well, that's another story. The evocative, whimsical illustrations in 50 Ways to Lose Your Glasses showcase a blinding variety of eyewear failures, ranging from foolish (yoga, karaoke, mosh pit) to knee-trembling (drone collision, cat burglar, sneezing fit) to surreal (alien encounter, swamp monster, elves). The perfect gift for your bespectacled, humor-loving friend or family member.
Price: $15.00 Publisher: Hachette Books; ISBN: 9780316344845
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Our feline friends have spent eons observing, napping, pondering, napping, and taking notes about the human condition. In this book they've condescended to share their invaluable wisdom in short advice columns such as "Always Stay at Least 30 Feet from a Loved One" and "Never Let Anyone Dress You." Whether it's coping with romance, surviving a social gathering, or clawing your way to the top of the corporate ladder only to realize you can't get down, the cats in this book will have you relaxed and ready to take on the world! Just after one more nap.
Price: $12.95 Publisher: Chronicle Books; ISBN: 9781452138916
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"The Petersiks (Young House Love) continue their family-friendly, do-it-yourself home decorating with this ambitious sourcebook of ideas, advice, and inspiration for 'getting more organized; adding beauty; staying within your budget; and squeezing more function, meaning and personality out of your home.' Organized by activity spaces (e.g., eating, sleeping), the book provides suggestions for adding color, texture, pattern, and character into each room of the house. Being creative is made accessible with step-by-step instructions. . .[and] suggestions for getting the kids involved in decorating their rooms. . .The authors hit the mark on relaxed living in theory and execution. . ." - Publishers Weekly
Price: $27.50 Publisher: Artisan Publishers; ISBN: 9781579656225
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A centuries-old saying goes, Great oaks from little acorns grow. But as Seeing Seeds reveals, there is much more to a seed than the plant it will someday become: seeds, seedheads, pods, and fruits have their own astounding beauty that rivals, and sometimes even surpasses, the beauty of flowers. In these stunning pages you'll gain an understanding of how seeds are formed and dispersed, why they look the way they do, and how they fit into the environment. It's safe to say that you'll never look at a seed the same way again.
Price: $29.95 Publisher: Timber Press (OR); ISBN: 9781604694925
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From the best-selling author of Wild, a collection of quotes that capture her wisdom, courage, and outspoken humor, presented in a gift-sized package that's as irresistible to give as it is to receive. Around the world, thousands of people have found inspiration in the words of Cheryl Strayed, who in her three prior books and in her Dear Sugar columns has shared the twists and trials of her remarkable life. Her honesty, spirit, and ample supply of tough love have enabled many of us, even in the darkest hours, to somehow put one foot in front of the other -- and be brave enough.
Price: $16.95 Publisher: Knopf Publishing Group; ISBN: 9781101946909
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"Gay makes his debut with a hilarious, heartwarming set of essays covering such mundane topics as parenthood, exercise, office life, travel, and the holidays. He presents the book as a riff on his popular Wall Street Journal sports column, organizing the entries around his rules for life. . .Along the way, readers will alternately feel the urge to laugh and cry at Gay's irreverent, witty writing. His insights on each topic are spot-on yet gentle. Any readers who pick up this book will finish it convinced that following Gay's rules will make their lives more enjoyable, and perhaps even make them better people." - Publishers Weekly
Price: $24.95 Publisher: Doubleday Books; ISBN: 9780385539463
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World famous Zen master Thich Nhat Hanh has inspired millions of readers in the practice of mindful living. Never before, however, have his calligraphy artworks, equally renowned, been available in book form. This Moment Is Full of Wonders collects more than 60 full-color artworks by the beloved figure in a richly textured hardcover package. As beautiful as they are inspirational, the ink-rendered phrases offer eloquent distillations of Buddhist wisdom. Interspersed throughout the book are iconic passages from his best-known teachings, printed on semi-transparent overlays that faintly obscure, then illuminate, the artworks beneath.
Price: $16.95 Publisher: Chronicle Books; ISBN: 9781452151557
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From Lonely Planet, the world's leading travel guide publisher, Wild World, the follow-up to the super-sized bestseller Beautiful World, is a vivid and compelling portrait of the world in which we live. Featuring breathtaking images of the natural world, this gorgeous collection of full-page photographs, carefully curated by Lonely Planet's photography experts, brings the world's wildest corners into your home. Incredible and majestic wildlife spectacles and natural phenomena are spellbindingly on display in this beautiful, no-expense-spared hardback.
Price: $39.99 Publisher: Lonely Planet; ISBN: 9781743607480
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In 2015 the Cornell Lab of Ornithology will celebrate its 100th anniversary as one of the world's most prestigious and oldest bird organizations. An intimate yet stunning exploration of North American bird species, The Living Bird also celebrates our joyful and complex relationship with birds, through images by an award-winning photographer and essays by some of the world's leading naturalists and bird enthusiasts. From enjoying song sparrows rimming a birdbath at home to spotting a pileated woodpecker in deep forest, the appeal of watching and listening to birds leads people into a greater understanding of their environment.
Price: $29.95 Publisher: Mountaineers Books; ISBN: 9781594859656
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An inspired tribute to the astonishing beauty and priceless cultural treasures of America's National Parks, this volume is a lavish celebration of the 100th anniversary of the National Park Service. The very best of National Geographic's photographs are combined with an expertly told history: from the multi-hued layers of the Grand Canyon to the verdigris flame of the Statue of Liberty. With the stories behind the first female park ranger, a decidedly amateur scuba expedition that unearthed a submerged Civil War treasure trove, and so much more, Heacox takes readers on a VIP tour of America's rich natural and cultural heritage.
Price: $50.00
Publisher: National Geographic Society; ISBN: 9781426215599
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A graphic novel in the form of Ricardo Cavolo's personal diary, which follows the story of music through 101 essential artists; from Bach to Radiohead, to Amy Winehouse, Nirvana, and Daft Punk. With over 100 uniquely colorful illustrations and handwritten text, lists, notes, and personal anecdotes, this is a book to delight in.
Price: $22.99
Publisher: Nobrow Press; ISBN: 9781910620007
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This is the most comprehensive account of Bob Dylan's work yet published with the full story of every recording session, every album, and every single released during his remarkable and illustrious 53-year career. Bob Dylan: All the Songs focuses on Dylan's creative process and his organic, unencumbered style of recording. It is the only book to tell the stories, many unfamiliar even to his most fervent fans, behind all the 525 songs he released. Organized chronologically by album, Margotin and Guesdon recount the details that led to the composition of Dylan's recorded songs, what instruments he used, and the great artists that Dylan worked with.
Price: $50.00
Publisher: Black Dog & Leventhal; ISBN: 9781579129859
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