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'Tis the season to buy gifts: asking for/giving ideas for pop culture Christmas presents
Thirith
Registered User regular
Registered User regular
And once again it's that time of year when I get to wrack my brains with respect to what to get my wife, sister, dad etc. for Christmas. I usually have lots of ideas, but this year I'm finding it decidedly more difficult, especially with my wife - not least because in the age of digital TV, Netflix and other streaming services I'm less likely to buy movies or series that, while good, we'd be unlikely to watch more than once.
Which is why I thought this pop culture-savvy community might be able to help with the kind of service that Amazon's algorithms provide... just better. You know, questions along the lines of "My boyfriend really liked X and Y; is there anything similar that I might not have heard of?" or "I've been thinking of getting my dad this series, but the reviews I've seen are all over the place. Is it worth it?" I could imagine that others are also in the same situation, which is why I'm posting this here rather than in H/A, with the idea that we can exchange suggestions. (If it fits better there, mods, please feel free to move the thread.)
Okay, some concrete questions to get it going:
- My wife really likes Toni Collette. She's not a huge fan of comedy, but she's okay with comedy-drama. Is United States of Tara worth getting? Unfortunately she's not seen anything by Diablo Cody, so we don't have that yardstick.
- A friend of mine likes fantasy in the vein of Neil Gaiman and Jonathan Carroll, and I'm sure she'd also be interested in sci-fi along those lines. Anything that's got fun worlds and engaging characters but doesn't get hung up on lore or rulebooks. Any up-and-coming author or books you could recommend? Is Jeff VanDerMeer's writing along those lines, for instance?
- My sister's done a degree in history and she's also a fan of historical fiction. She's especially interested in the time around WW1, though she's less into military history than societal questions. I usually want to get her stuff that's close to but not exactly in her area of specialisation. Any ideas? Are there any novels worth reading about the Boer War, for instance? I wouldn't want anything that's too Downton Abbey - i.e. no nostalgia porn in elaborate costumes.
Any suggestions would be much appreciated - and, in turn, I'm hoping that others also post their questions!
Which is why I thought this pop culture-savvy community might be able to help with the kind of service that Amazon's algorithms provide... just better. You know, questions along the lines of "My boyfriend really liked X and Y; is there anything similar that I might not have heard of?" or "I've been thinking of getting my dad this series, but the reviews I've seen are all over the place. Is it worth it?" I could imagine that others are also in the same situation, which is why I'm posting this here rather than in H/A, with the idea that we can exchange suggestions. (If it fits better there, mods, please feel free to move the thread.)
Okay, some concrete questions to get it going:
- My wife really likes Toni Collette. She's not a huge fan of comedy, but she's okay with comedy-drama. Is United States of Tara worth getting? Unfortunately she's not seen anything by Diablo Cody, so we don't have that yardstick.
- A friend of mine likes fantasy in the vein of Neil Gaiman and Jonathan Carroll, and I'm sure she'd also be interested in sci-fi along those lines. Anything that's got fun worlds and engaging characters but doesn't get hung up on lore or rulebooks. Any up-and-coming author or books you could recommend? Is Jeff VanDerMeer's writing along those lines, for instance?
- My sister's done a degree in history and she's also a fan of historical fiction. She's especially interested in the time around WW1, though she's less into military history than societal questions. I usually want to get her stuff that's close to but not exactly in her area of specialisation. Any ideas? Are there any novels worth reading about the Boer War, for instance? I wouldn't want anything that's too Downton Abbey - i.e. no nostalgia porn in elaborate costumes.
Any suggestions would be much appreciated - and, in turn, I'm hoping that others also post their questions!
"Nothing is gonna save us forever but a lot of things can save us today." - Night in the Woods
Thirith on
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"Readers who prefer tension and romance, Maledictions: The Offering, delivers... As serious YA fiction, I’ll give it five stars out of five. As a novel? Four and a half." - Liz Ellor
My new novel: Maledictions: The Offering. Now in Paperback!
"Nothing is gonna save us forever but a lot of things can save us today." - Night in the Woods
American Gods is starting up soon and if your friend doesn't have cable buy them the season on Amazon Prime so he/she can watch it.
"Nothing is gonna save us forever but a lot of things can save us today." - Night in the Woods