It’s the middle of holiday gift giving, and we’ve got some ideas for you. Al Gini, the self-proclaimed arbiter of good gift giving, is with us to share some tips on the gifts that keep on giving—books!

Al Gini’s Book Bag:

1. The Piano Teacher
Janice Y.K. Lee
Viking, 2009

2. Strangers
Anita Brookner
Random House, 2009

3. The Practice of Deceit
Elizabeth Benedict
Houghton Mifflin, 2005

4. Perforated Heart
Eric Bogosian
Simon & Schuster, 2009

5. Fear The Worst
Linwood Barclay
Bantam, 2009

6. The Amateurs
Marcus Sakey
Dutton, 2009

7. Nobody Move
Denis Johnson
Farrar, Straus, and Giroux, 2009

8. Three Cups of Tea
Greg Mortenson and David Oliver Relin
Penguin Books, 2006

9. The Denial of Work
Alain de Botton
Pantheon Books, 2009

10. If Ignorance is Bliss, Why Aren’t There More Happy People?
(Smart Quotes for Dumb Times)
John Lloyd and John Mitchinson
Harmony, 2009

Music Button: Aliya, “Read Between The Lines” from the CD Aliya, (Virgin records)