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Thanks to McSweeney’s, we now have a chart on how to pronounce those pesky author names. We recommend a selection of beautiful books fit for any coffee table. Two books we’re gifting this holiday season.

It’s Lee-thum, not Leth-um

The fine folks at McSweeney’s put together a recent issue of their magazine and made it look like a newspaper facsimile. The book review section included this handy chart on how to pronounce some of the more difficult author names. There’s one on here that Ann and I have been mis-pronouncing all along. How have you been doing with these names?

Why We Still Have Coffee Tables (4:37)

Kristen called our voice mail line asking for recommendations of good coffee table books. Kristen had just purchased Where to Go When: Great Britain and Ireland, loved it, and wondered what else was out there. After a quick detour to Wikipedia for a little insight into the term “coffee table book,” Ann had the following books to recommend:

• Great Migrations by K. M. Kostyal (a book Ann has already blogged about – she included spreads to virtually flip through in that post)
• 40: A Doonesbury Retrospective by G. B.  Trudeau
• What I Eat: Around the World in 80 Diets by Peter Menzel and Faith D’ Aluisio

Of course, being the geek that I am, I chose to recommend some “nerdier” coffee table books:

• 75 Years of DC Comics:  The Art of Modern Mythmaking by Paul Levitz (check out this photo to see just how big this book is!)
• DC Comics Year by Year: A Visual Chronicle by Daniel Wallace, et al.
• Doctor Who: The Visual Dictionary by DK Publishing

Two Books We’re Gifting This Year (19:23)

My wife is a knitter, so when I heard about the children’s book Annie Hoot and the Knitting Extravaganza, I knew I had to get it. And, since it’s a picture book about a knitting owl who goes in search of animals who will appreciate her knitted creations, it’s also a gift for my kids! Ann found the perfect present for her daughter’s sixth-grade English teacher: The Book of “Unnecessary” Quotation Marks by Bethany Keely. We’ve all seen the signs: “Fresh” Milk or “Thanks” for Shopping Here. This small hardcover is a hilarious photo collection of misused quotation marks. It’s a “perfect” gift!

For a huge selection of kid’s book gift recommendations, be sure to check out our friends at Random Acts of Reading, who have compiled a Holiday Gift Guide along with a wonderful list of Christmas Books to Read With Your Family.