2025 Festive Gift Guide

Posted on 2025/11/24 , tagged as

Reconnect with Nature

Breaking Waves: Discovery, Healing and Inspiration in the Open Water by Emma Simpson

Lost in grief and untethered from the world, Emma Simpson found a glorious sisterhood of women who also felt the pull of the water. Read of their remarkable stories in this celebration of going with the flow.

The Elephant in the Room: How to Stop Making Ourselves and Other Animals Sick by Liz Kalaugher

*A GUARDIAN BOOK OF THE DAY*

Taking the reader on a globe-trotting journey through time, Kalaugher presents a series of fascinating case histories of human-related wildlife diseases. Drawing on first-hand accounts from experts around the world, The Elephant in the Room is both a tragic history and an inspirational call to arms. By learning from the past, it’s possible to create a better, healthier environment for ourselves, our wildlife and our planet.

The Restless Coast: A Journey Around the Edge of Britain by Roger Morgan-Grenville

Addressing the modern challenges that the coastline faces, Roger Morgan-Grenville explores its extraordinary natural history and the people trying to protect our island edge.

Page-Turning History

The Next One is For You: A True Story of Guns, Country and the IRA’s Secret American Army by Ali Watkins

To unite Ireland through any means necessary, a group of Philadelphia gunrunners armed the IRA at the height of the Troubles. A gripping tale of crime and rebellion, of which the tension is still felt on both sides of the Atlantic today.

Remembering Women: Lessons from the Ancient World by Christine Lehnen

There is a historical precedent for a fairer society. Through bioarcheological methods, evidence is accumulating of places in the past where women thrived. Interweaving new findings with the stories of Christine Lehnen’s foremothers, take a fresh look at life in the present.

The African Emperor: The Life of Septimius Severus by Simon Elliott

Septimius Severus was Rome’s first black emperor, whose career can be counted in superlatives. Remembered as one of the greatest warrior emperors, historian Simon Elliott takes us on a journey as we discover how Severus monumentalised his rule cross the empire.

The Man Who Sold Honours: The First Modern Cash for Honours Scandal by Stephen Bates

Meet Maundy Gregory, actor, journalist, publishing proprietor, conman, embezzler, MI5 spy – and the man you went to see if you had the money to pay for a peerage in the post-First World War years. Stephen Bates lifts the lid on the truth about this long-forgotten character who remains the only person ever to be successfully prosecuted under the sale of honours act of 1925.

Spectacular Science

Against the Odds: Women Pioneers of Science by Mary and John Gribbin

Against the Odds highlights the achievements of women who overcame hurdles and achieved scientific success in spite of male prejudice, as society changed over about 150 years, from the middle of the nineteenth century to the end of the twentieth century. An inspiring read for the next generation.

Doctored: Fraud, Arrogance, and Tragedy in the Quest to Cure Alzheimer’s by Charles Piller

An arresting deep dive into how Alzheimer’s disease treatment has been set back by corrupt researchers, negligent regulators, and the profit motives of Big Pharma. It is a shocking tale with huge ramifications not only for Alzheimer’s disease, but for scientific research, funding, and oversight at large.

Extraction: The Frontiers of Green Capitalism by Thea Riofrancos

In the fight against climate change, lithium’s role in reducing emissions by powering green economies is a mixed blessing. Thea Riofrancos explores the environmental and social costs of the global race to expand lithium mining amid supply chain concerns, while offering compelling ideas about how to harmonize climate action with social justice.

Powerful Stories

Face to Face: Finding Justice for my Murdered Twin Brother by Nick Dawson

When his identical twin brother Simon was kicked to death, all Nick Dawson felt for the killers was hatred. Travelling to the absolute limits of personal darkness, Nick came face to face with one of his brother’s killers. Now a champion of restorative justice, Nick heads behind bars, asking hardened criminals to change, to think of their victims, to make amends.

There Will Be Headwinds: Kayaking the Northwest Passage by Mark Agnew

*SHORTLISTED FOR THE BOARDMAN TASKER AWARD FOR MOUNTAIN LITERATURE*

The infamous route between the Atlantic and Pacific oceans had defeated countless explorers for centuries, and Mark himself had failed on two previous expeditions to row across the Atlantic. Charting an inspirational journey from failure to world record breaker, Mark reflects on his struggles and reveals the lessons from sports psychology that allowed him to conquer his demons and achieve something truly remarkable.

From Ibiza to the Norfolk Broads: A Bowie Odyssey by James Briggs

With a career stealing his soul, a relationship in stasis and a hairline in furious retreat, life on earth had James cornered. He leaves everything behind to cycle the lyric, ‘From Ibiza to the Norfolk Broads’ to discover what life, love and Life on Mars? really mean. James discovered what happens when, instead of following the crowd, you follow the lyrics and music of the greatest artist of the 20th century – David Bowie.

Must-Read Paperbacks

The Beacon Bike: Around England and Wales in 327 Lighthouses by Ed Peppitt

The incredible story of a 3,500-mile cycle ride to explore the onshore and offshore lighthouses around the coastline of England and Wales, proving that a diagnosis of Multiple Sclerosis doesn’t mean giving up on a lifelong dream. Celebrate the generosity of spirit found in people around the country, as well as the history of the iconic lights that brighten their world.

The History Lessons by Shalina Patel

The History Lessons invites readers to reclaim our history education, and is a treat for curious minds keen to look beyond the usual narratives. This is a book that celebrates stories and people that may be less familiar – but no less remarkable or fascinating.

The Vagina Business: The Innovative Breakthroughs that Could Change Everything in Women’s Health by Marina Gerner

With interviews from 100 entrepreneurs, researchers and investors across 15 countries, The Vagina Business explores the future of women’s health, where female-focused companies are developing products to help women at every stage of life. From a life-saving bra to non-hormonal contraception and new takes on fertility and menopause, it shines a light on innovation that matters.

Ten Men: A Year of Casual Sex by Kitty Ruskin

As heard on BBC Radio 4’s Woman’s Hour

A Stylist pick of the best non-fiction for 2024
A Cosmopolitan and Glamour best new book for April 2024

At the beginning of the year, Kitty Ruskin decided it was time to embrace her sexuality, taking advantage of all the joys that being young, free and single bring and having fun, easy, no-strings sex with whomsoever she desired. It was not the carefree adventure she had envisaged; it was something altogether darker. Ten Men is a meditation on the lack of clarity around consent and a call to arms to combat a culture that seems to thrive on women’s vulnerability.

The Baton and the Cross: Russia’s Church from Pagans to Putin by Lucy Ash

*SHORTLISTED FOR THE ORWELL PRIZE 2025*
*SHORTLISTED FOR THE BRITISH ACADEMY BOOK PRIZE 2025*
*SHORTLISTED FOR THE PUSHKIN HOUSE BOOK PRIZE 2025*
*ONE OF HISTORY TODAY’S BEST BOOKS OF 2024*

Lucy Ash reveals how, under Putin, religion is being stripped of its spiritual content and used as a weapon to control the population. Combining historical research with vivid present-day reportage, The Baton and the Cross explores the impact the Church is having on millions of lives. Learn how these forces have formed an unholy alliance with Orthodoxy in the dystopia of twenty-first century Russia.