Christmas books!

When my family, bless them, asked what I wanted for Christmas this year, instead of giving them an eclectic list with all kinds of bits on it, I just said, 'Books'. I had a huge clear out of books last year, sent loads to the charity shop, (they wrote and said they'd made nearly £200 from our donations!) plus brought a huge bookcase, that was holding needlework supplies, back into use as an actual holder of books. Thus I was feeling pretty chuffed with myself and decided that it would not actually be a sin to have an all books kind of a Christmas this year. So I handed over book lists for them to choose from, or said which I wanted, and lo and behold my bookish Christmas became a reality. It was glorious! So here're the books I was lucky enough to get this year.

I'm a huge Nigel Slater fan. I like many TV cooks and various shows like The Great British Bake Off and all the Masterchef shows, but Nigel Slater is definitely my favourite of all of them. I've been glued to his latest series which aired in the late autumn, right up to Christmas, and have been covetting his new book, Kitchen Diaries II... on the left of this pic. But I don't own the first book, and so my lovely eldest daughter also bought that for me. Was I delighted? Oh, yes.

I've been hearing a lot about the fantasy book, Tigana, by Guy Gavriel Kay recently and thought it sounded like my kind of thing so my youngest daughter got that for me. My husband bought me the top two books in this pic, The Letters of Nancy Mitford and Evelyn Waugh, edited by Charlotte Mosley (she did the Deborah Devonshire, Patrick Leigh Fermor book of letters I read in February), and Jack: A Life Like No Other by Geoffrey Perret. I seem to have developed a taste for these kinds of books recently, no idea why.

Two beautiful hardbacks. Terry Pratchett's new book, an anthology of short stories, A Blink of the Screen, from my youngest daughter, and Meander: East to West Along a Turkish River by Jeremy Seal... a travel book of course, again from my husband.

Two books from lovely friends. American Grown by Michele Obama, had no idea this existed and was thrilled to get it from a friend in America. And a totally gorgeous book about Scotland from a lovely friend who lives there, as she knows we're planning a holiday in Scotland later in the year. The other book is a book I won in a draw held by Elaine at Random Jottings, Once Upon a Christmas by Sarah Morgan.

Lastly, I thought I'd also include several books I bought during the month of December. In the top lefthand corner, High Rising by Angela Thirkell, a series recommended by Geranium Cat and Elaine at Random Jottings again, who both pimped it to me on Facebook if I recall. They are so naughty... but nice. I love the cover of this book and it'll be my next read. Also pictured, Jane and the Unpleasantness at Scargrave Manor by Stephanie Barron which I nabbed from AM after reading about it somewhere and because I love Jane Austen, and A Fire Upon the Deep by Vernor Vinge a sci fi yarn which I gather is quite good.

So, that's my Christmas haul of books. I can hardly believe my luck to be honest... thrilled to bits at the beauty of these books. I don't think I've ever had a bookish Christmas quite like it. I probably don't need to buy any more books for the entire year. *coughcough* Like that's gonna happen...
~~~oOo~~~