Last minute shopping idea: Buy a book

If there is one word that would best describe me, it would have to be “procrastinator.” I think I would make the best Santa Claus strictly for the fact that Santa waits until the very last minute to deliver his presents. Also factor in that he’s old, he has a stomach that shakes like bowl full of jelly, he’s got an obsession for cookies and Coca-cola, and he likes giving coal to people… I’m a dead ringer for the job.

All jokes aside, I haven’t finished my Christmas shopping. At the time I’m writing this, there are twenty-four days till Christmas. There are technically twenty-four shopping days though which means my days are numbered…literally.

Fortunately, I made a personal policy a few years back. It’s a policy that includes only buying books for people for gifts. I’ve also tried to include in that policy that the books I buy are ones that I’ve read during this last year. There are several reasons why I’ve decided upon this policy.

1. I’m cheap. While I don’t think I need to explain this reasoning any further, let’s do just a cost comparison here. Let’s say I go down to the local Walmart and buy a video game for one of my nephews. He likes to play the Nintendo Switch so I decide to get him the hot new Pokemon game. There’s always some new Pokemon game, is $59.88 at Walmart. Now, let’s say I go down to the local Barnes & Noble to buy him a book. I choose Barnes and Noble because they are the literary equivalent to Walmart. Let’s say I pick out Brandon Sanderson’s The Way of Kings. Let’s say I spring for the hardcover edition. That book costs $33.99. I could almost buy two Brandon Sanderson books for the price of one video game.

2. There’s always something there. Have you ever walked into a bookstore and there was nothing on the shelves? Ya, me neither. However, I have walked into a Gamestop and there was only Madden or FIFA games there. There was this one year that my wife (now my ex-wife) wanted this scarf over at Jcpenney for Christmas. I thought to myself, “they’ll have it in stock when I get there next week.” As you might have already guessed, they in fact did not have the scarf in stock. There I was on Christmas Eve wandering around aimlessly in the mall with all the other procrastinating husbands. You know, now that I’m thinking back on it there’s probably a reason why she’s my “ex-wife.”

Anyway, if you go into a bookstore with a particular book in mind and they don’t have that book, don’t worry! Chances are there are hundreds of other books with a similar plot. Trust me, if the person you’re buying for loves Romantic-comedies, then there are thousands of choices.

3. It’s personal without being too personal. I suck at arts and crafts so don’t ever think I’ll handcraft something for you as a gift. What I like to do instead is pick out a book from the books I’ve read and write a note to the person about why I chose that book specifically for them. Hopefully, they’ll have read it by the next Christmas gathering and we can discuss what they thought of it.

4. Books are easy to wrap. I’m the worst when it comes to wrapping gifts. Over the years, I’ve tried to become better at it. However, I’ve just come to accept my inadequate wrapping skills and have embraced it. Books are easy though. There’s no weird angles or bits that jut out that could tear the wrapping paper.

5. There’s no stickers that need to be placed on it. There’s no batteries that you’ll need to purchase ahead of time. And the best part… there’s no assembly required! Enough said.

Those are five reasons why I chose to purchase books as gifts for Christmas gifts. There’s probably some greater reasoning behind it, but those are the ones that come to mind. Ultimately, if you’re in a time crunch and need a late Christmas gift, then you can’t go wrong with a book.