2012 Overlook Holiday Gift Guide

Welcome back, book lovers. It's that time of year again. No, we're not talking about "Alfred Nobel Day" (which is a real thing that we didn't make up. According to Wikipedia, it's observed every year on December 10th). Today brings us the first installment of the annual Overlook holiday book giveaway. If you missed out on last year's opportunity to win copies of some of our favorite 2011 Overlook titles, you're in luck! We're back this month with a whole new slew of signed books, limited edition volumes, and genre themed collections, curated by the Overlook staff for all the loved ones on your 2012 holiday shopping lists.

Still searching for that perfect gift for grandma? Need some suggestions for smart-sounding books to impress your friends and co-workers? You've come to the right place. This year we'll be tailoring our suggestions to books for  all those hard-to-please readers in your life, so be sure to check back in the coming days and weeks for novel gift ideas hand picked by the Overlook team. And if you're looking for any recommendations not covered here, be sure to comment on the blog or give us a shout out on Twitter or Facebook for more suggestions. Happy hunting!

Today, publicist Michael Goldsmith shares his selection of recommended Overlook titles for that MTV-watching, Twitter-updating, book-loving teen sitting at your holiday dinner table.

If you haven't already started attending the onslaught of holiday parties that December always promises, now would be a good time to prepare yourself for the impending marathon of cocktail parties and family dinners that awaits you in the days and weeks ahead. If party-hopping's in your plans, you'll want to be ready for that inevitable moment when you have to improvise a gift for someone below the age of twenty. Between nieces and nephews, children of friends and co-workers, and perhaps even your own offspring, you're bound to encounter at least one post-adolescent this season in need of a quality gift. Can't afford that Kindle? Try a book. It's basically the same thing, and nine out of ten kids can't tell the difference. If you've passed your teenage prime and the thought of shopping for a millennial fills you with dread, don't sweat it. That's where we step in. Today's gift guide features three books that are sure to appeal to today's trendy literate teen.

If we know teenagers as well as we think we do (YOLO's still a thing, right?) then we're sure they'll love Cole Stryker's Hacking the Future. Today's teens grew up on the internet, and as such, may feel immune to some of its more sinister underpinnings. Stryker's follow up to last year's Epic Win for Anonymous is "one of the most well-informed examinations of the Internet available today" (Kirkus) and offers a primer on web anonymity, explaining why the online identity issue may be the most important decision individuals face in the coming decade. A must read for any tech-savvy teen who want to stay one step ahead of big brother in 2013.

We love Adele. Teens love Adele. It's as simple as that. Buy your teen a copy of Chas Newkey-Burden's Adele: The Biography. Inside, they'll discover fun facts including tidbits and anecdotes from the queen of pop's life, ranging in subjects from smoking and stage fright to celebrity crushes and online dating.

Everyone knows that kid's say the darnedest things. That's why they'll be sure to enjoy Jen Campbell's Weird Things Customer's Say in Bookstores, an illustrated compendium showcasing the most unusual and uproarious comments observed and overheard by booksellers around the world. Teens with an appreciation for the absurd are sure to enjoy such entries as "Did Charles Dickens ever write anything fun?" and "Do you sell screwdrivers?"

To help spread the holiday cheer, we're giving away one complete set of all three recommended books for that special teen in your life. You can enter to win the whole shebang in three different ways:

1. Comment on this post

2. Tweet at us using the hashtag #OverlookGiftGuide

3. Leave a comment on our Facebook page

You can enter once in each area until 8am tomorrow morning, and we will be announcing a winner in the next gift guide post later this week. Happy holidays to everyone from the Overlook Press!

Adele Really IS Someone Like You

ADELE: The Biography, a new book documenting the incredible story behind the Grammy-winning soul singer's meteoric rise to fame hit shelves last week. In the book, celebrity biographer Chas Newkey-Burden traces her story from her childhood in London, where she began singing at the age of four, through the breathtaking success of her first two albums, to the next stage of her life as a mother.

Named the 2011 artist of the year by Billboard and identified by Time as one of the most influential people in the world, Adele has sold millions of albums worldwide, won numerous awards, and deservedly been crowned the queen of the music industry. Her candor is legendary and her reputation unmatched—both confident and forthright, she is at the same time humble and grounded. She is the first living artist in nearly fifty years to have two top five singles and albums in the charts at the same time and "the girl from London" is huge in America, where she has performed on leading television shows including Saturday Night Live , The Today Show, and The Late Show with David Letterman, winning multiple Grammy Awards along the way.

Throughout Adele, readers are taken behind the scenes of her career and life to discover the real woman behind the music. Naturally, given her humorous way with words, the book is also packed with hilarious quotes from the lady herself. Last week, USA Today gathered some of the best material from the book, highlighting some of the ways that Adele really is someone like us.


On her grandfather as a big influence: "I painted him as this Jesus figure in my life."

On the sacrifices her mother has made: "She fell pregnant with me when she would have been applying for uni(versity), but chose to have me instead."

On her penchant for love songs: "When I was a girl, I loved love songs. And I always loved the ones about horrible relationships. Ones that you could really relate to and made you cry."

On her vocal influences: "I taught myself how to sing by listening to Ella Fitzgerald for acrobatics and scales, Etta James for passion and Roberta Flack for control."

On smoking: "I used to smoke rollies but then I got a record deal and switched to Marlboro Lights."

On her weight: "I read a comment on YouTube that I thought would upset me 'Test pilot for pies' — but I've always been a size 14-16 and been fine with it. I would only lose weight if it affected my health or sex life, which it doesn't."

On canceling U.S. shows in 2008: "I was drinking far too much and that was kind of the basis of my relationship with this boy. I couldn't bear to be without him, so I was like, 'Well OK, I'll just cancel my stuff then.' "

On getting her own place: "After my first record (19) I moved to Notting Hill (in London) on my own. My life fell apart. My phone got cut off, my credit card got cut off, the home was a mess. It was awful. I couldn't function without my mum so I moved back in with her."

On the muse for 21 (she won't name him): "It was the biggest deal in my entire life to date. … He made me totally hungry. … He was older, he was successful in his own right, whereas my boyfriends before were my age and not really doing much. He got me interested in film and literature and food and wine and traveling and politics and history and those were things I was never, ever interested in. I was interested in going clubbing and getting drunk."

On the aftermath: "I just signed up for eHarmony. I can't put a photo of myself, so I don't get any e-mails! I must have written him about five or six letters at different stages and everything, but never sent. I've got a little box of stuff that reminds me of us and they're still in there."

On getting nervous before a show: "I'm scared of audiences. One show in Amsterdam, I was so nervous I escaped out of the fire exit. I've thrown up a couple of times. Once in Brussels, I projectile vomited on someone."

On her royal crush: "I'm after Prince Harry. I know I said I wouldn't go out with a ginger, but it's Prince Harry! I'd be a real duchess then. I'd love a night out with him, he seems like he'd be a right laugh."