How many shopping days till Christmas?

(image pinched from Channel 4's website)

I am starting to think about Christmas (I know I know) and as always I will be buying some people books. I love books and think we should give them at every possible opportunity, the only problem is it's very hard to buy books for people at either extreme. Indulge me while I illustrate:

I read three or four books a week on a good week, one or two on a bad week. I buy a lot of books, I get some sent by publishers and I have varied but deeply mood related reading habits. It is very hard to find a book that I will definitely read and don't already have (you can check library thing if you are thinking back catalogue but the newest won't always be on my list). Anyway for me then the answer is as follows. Buy me something beautiful. I already have a copy of the Just so Stories but there is a beautiful, lush illustrated version in the children's section at the moment that I could never justify buying myself but would dearly love. Something like that, then who cares if I read it, I will caress it regularly and read the old paperback.

My Dad is the other extreme. He reads one book a year, the one I buy him for Christmas. This year I cheated and got him Stirling Moss' birthday book, All my Races, signed and gave it to him straight away. He won't read two books (excluding Building Regs) and still has last years book to read. I want to get him a book in keeping with tradition. The answer? An audiobook. The most successful choices int he past have been Jeremy Clarksons World of Cars, the Jackie Stewart autobiography, things like that, so now I am searching for the audio equivalent that he can enjoy in the car.

Finding the right book for people is hard and really I want to buy them something they will actually read. I have started early, to give me time to consider and get it right.

In the shops the pushing has started. Christmas stock is riddled with pointless biographies and comedy releases, cookery books and general rubbish. Several authors have already had a pop at publishers for the trend of publishing novels by celebrities who paid someone to actually do the writing (allegedly). Every book group book over the last year is now stacked on the 3 for 2 (or buy one get one) tables and everyone wants your money.

So, will you be buying books for gifts this Christmas? Do you find it as tricky as I do? Do you have recommendations for sure fire chrimbo winners and are you hoping for any yourself this year?
The floor is yours.