“20 Creative Gifts for Book Lovers”

by Jaylynn Korrell

Buying gifts for book lovers ain’t easy.

All they ever do is read. For the first few years of your relationship, you probably tried to buy the books they like, but it’s difficult to keep up with their interests or pinpoint their specific reading tastes. Then maybe you moved past buying books, and you got them coffee mugs. And then you did it again and again and…

Now, here you are, ready to go beyond your usual choices and find a unique & awesome bookish gift to buy for them.

I have been dating a book lover for almost a decade now and can tell you firsthand how difficult it has been to keep coming up with ideas over the years. But last year, I came up with some absolute winners and have seen firsthand how often they went to use.

So, I’m sharing them with you.

Here are 20 creative gifts for book lovers that the reader in your life will actually love.

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#1. A reading journal

Whether they know it or not, the reader in your life could love an opportunity to track the books they read. This specific journal from Book Riot takes the joy of chronicling your reads even further by adding “fill-in prompts, charts, lists, and dot-grid pages to customize.” In addition to that, it even offers reading recommendations so you know that the reader in your life will get some informed ideas that they wouldn’t have gotten without your help.

#2. A literary poster

Decorating can be a challenge for book lovers. They usually choose to decorate their walls with the books themselves, but it can be cool to mix it up with different forms of literary art. If the book lover in your life has a favorite author or quote, finding a poster of it can be a fantastic gift idea.

Here’s one of our favorite artists:

#3. Creative bookends

This is a great gift for book lovers who enjoy adding to their bookshelves. (As if that even needs to be said—who doesn’t?) If the reader in your life feels this way, giving them a cool bookend can give their shelf a more polished look. It even helps the books avoid damage due to excessive leaning.

Bookends come in all shapes and sizes, and they can serve a good purpose. I’ve seen bookends in the shape of animals, people, cool objects, and even abstract art. Oh, and be sure to grab two so that they add one of both sides of their shelf.

#4. Book Stand

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Though I’m sure that they’ll claim that they love all their books the same, it’s normal for readers to have favorites. It can also be sad to have your favorite book squished in with all the others. For this reason, a book stand can be a great gift for book lovers. This will allow them to put their favorite or most interesting book on display. Bookstores often do this for best sellers, and it will feel like a rite of passage to own one for their book collection. Almost as if they are curating their own special bookshop, they’ll love the opportunity to make their shelves look awesome.

#5. Literary Magazines

If you want to buy the book lover in your life something new to read, bypass the usual gift of a popular book and venture into the world of literary magazines! While you’re opening up the reader in your life to brand-new voices, you’ll also be supporting the small passionate community of literary magazine publishers and inspiring them to bring more art into the world.

Here are a few of our favorites:

#6. Kindle Paperwhite

For me, nothing can match the feeling of holding a physical book in your hands, but that doesn’t mean I don’t love eBooks too. Once they figure out how it works, the reader in your life might just feel the same.

They can gain immediate access to thousands of books on one device, and if they’re a writer, they may enjoy the function that Kindle has where you can send attachments (like Microsoft Word or .PDF) to the device so that they can not only read their book like a reader would, but they also don’t have to deal with that pesky blue light that emits from their laptops. And you can read them at night no problem!

(Already have a Kindle? Check out how you can get a TON of new books through Kindle Unlimited).

#7. Indie Books

If you’re not already aware, most of the books that get shelved in the major bookstores across the country are published by just five big companies. But there are SO MANY amazing books put out every year by small press and self-published authors. Honestly, some of the best books I’ve ever read are by cool indie presses like Two Dollar Radio, Feminist Press, and Tin House.

To give the book lover in your life something they might not expect, check out some of the reviews on this very website—IndependentBookReview.com! Chances are that you’ll find something that you know your reader will love, and you’ll be supporting lesser-known and often brilliant authors that your reader might not have found otherwise.

So go ahead and take a look around! This list isn’t going anywhere. And if you want to support IBR while you’re at it, make sure to buy your book through the IBR Bookshop!

#8. Personal Library Embosser

I told you I was digging deep! Check out this awesome find I discovered while scrolling around on Etsy. With this embosser, you can stamp each one of the books in your collection so that you can bring a library feel to them. But it’s also great for those who lend their books out often—like teachers!—so that the recipient of the book loan doesn’t try keeping your book to themselves.

#9. A Book Light

When you’re a reader, there is no time of day that reading is off limits. The reader in my life always feels the urge to read at night-time, but I’m sleeping over here, so he can’t just leave the light on.

That’s when he breaks out his new book light. He can attach the light to the last pages of the book, curve it to face the pages, and illuminate every word he needs to see—all while I’m sleeping soundly. And this way, he has no reason to bring his phone to bed like he did with the flashlight.

#10. Literary movie

A movie about books might just be the next best thing to reading them. Luckily there are a ton of literary movies to choose from. You can send them something that’s based off of a book or you can pick a movie that’s about a famous or fictional author. There’s a wide range of movies to pick from, so you kind of can’t go wrong here.

Here are a few of my favorite movie gifts for book lovers:

• Paterson – A quiet life in Paterson, New Jersey featuring Adam Driver as a bus-driving poet.
• The Pieces I Am – Toni Morrison documentary
• The End of the Tour – Journalist (Jesse Eisenberg) interviews David Foster Wallace (Jason Segal) while on tour for Wallace’s Infinite Jest.

#11. Floating Bookshelves

There are all sorts of different ways you can display your books. From book stands to traditional shelves to the IBR style of wooden crates, I thought I understood it all. But then I remembered floating bookshelves! And, voila, this gifts for book lovers blog post was born.

I mean, just take a look at that picture. The reader in your life could use these floating bookshelves all throughout their house. But it’s not only about decoration. They’re also great for storing your books when you’re done reading them in bed.

#12. Blue Light Blocking Glasses

If the book lover in your life likes to read on their iPad or LED-light tablet, they may be doing unknown damage to their eyes. That’s where blue light blocking glasses can be beneficial.  They could help readers turn pages for a far longer time than they currently can because they’re no longer looking away from the screen with a headache.

#13. Literary t-shirt

The clothes people wear reflect how they wish to be seen, and book lovers like people to know that they love books—whether subtly or loudly. That’s why literary t-shirts are such a great gift.

And they don’t have to just be t-shirts with famous authors on them or corny “I LIKE TO READ” designs. You can snag a t-shirt from your reader’s favorite indie press, a cool literary quote, or even their favorite book. They can be as loud or as subtle as you’d like.

Here are some fun options:

#14. Literary Postcards

Most readers can appreciate the art of writing, and what better way to put that to use than by writing to friends! Postcards are a nostalgic way to check in on people, letting them know what you’re up to, so why not make them a little more literary while you’re at it?

#15. Bookmarks

Everyone who reads needs bookmarks. This is about as close to a fact as I can get. I can’t tell you the amount of times that I’ve started a new book only to realize I’ve lost my old bookmark AGAIN.

Whether it’s an old piece of string or a delicately created work of art, so long as there are books, there will be bookmarks. So why not buy a bookmark with their favorite author on it? Or a cool quote? These can be perfect, inexpensive little gifts for book lovers.

Here’s one of my favorite Etsy artists who does bookmarks:

#16. Literary Tote Bag

No matter if you’re a teacher or a coffee shop reader, getting a literary tote bag can be a great way to carry your books, notebooks, pens, and other necessities along with you. And luckily, there’s a design for almost every style, so book lovers who prefer subtle, funny, or eye-catching looks will all have something unique for them.

#17. Buy the book they want from the shop they want

Some people just know what they want, and if that describes your book lover, then I’ve got advice for you. Just buy the book they want! When they ask for a book specifically, guess what? They probably want that book.

So don’t worry about the surprise. That’s what’ll be waiting inside the covers. You win brownie points for buying the book from us or one of our favorites, Uncle Bobbie’s Coffee & Books (Philadelphia, PA).

#18. Library Candle

Having a candle burning while you’re reading creates the ultimate ambiance, and it’s so much better when the scent is book related. It used to be impossible to recreate the amazing book smell that book lovers can’t get enough of. But now, with this awesome Etsy candle-maker, you can have that scent wafting in your room whenever you want.

#19. Tea

If you’re like most people and have been buying book lovers mugs for all these years, it’d be nice of you to switch it up and buy them something to put in the mug. The perfect drink to read with is tea, and there’s a lot of delicious and creative tea out there. Snag them a bag of loose leaf with a cute little strainer and they’ll finally be able to put those mugs to work.

#20. Blind date with two books

Surprise the literary fiction & nonfiction reader in your life with a blind date with two different books! Two Dollar Radio is an awesome indie press based out of Ohio, and every book I’ve read from them (like The Book of X & The Deeper the Water the Uglier the Fish!) has been a five-star reading experience.

With this offer, the editors over at 2DR choose two books from their backlist and send them over to you. Not only will you be supporting a small press and its authors, but your book lover will be reading something without the loud buzz of new release fever.

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About the Author

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Thank you for reading “20 Creative Gifts for Book Lovers” by Jaylynn Korrell! If you liked what you read, please spend some more time with us at the links below.