Holiday Gift Guide for Book Lovers

Bookish Gift Recommendations

The holiday shopping season is officially upon us! With Black Friday and Cyber Monday right around the corner, it's time to cue up your online shopping carts!

As someone who always tries to buy the majority of my gifts from small businesses, I've put together a short list of some of my favorite items from female-owned small businesses. All of which would make perfect gifts for the book lover / reader in your life! Or if you're someone that likes to buy Christmas / Hanukkah / Kwanzaa for themselves (I'm all about that self-love!), perhaps you'll find something to buy for yourself here as well. 

1. The Bookmarkparty Shop 

Ok so obviously I have to plug my own shop... The Bookmarkparty Shop features my hand-drawn literary-themed art (on mugs, notebooks, phone cases, ornaments and more) as well as other merchandise designed specifically with book lovers in mind. My best sellers include the Literary Mugs collection, which feature illustrated book spines of popular books by genre, as well as the Hot Girls Read Hat and the Reader Baseball Cap. My personal favorites include the So Many Books, So Little Time Mug as well as the super cozy and lightweight Reader Cropped Hoodie. You can't go wrong with a gift from The Bookmarkparty Shop. ;)

2. Read Receipts 

Read Receipts is one of my favorite accounts to follow on Instagram, as the wildly talented creator, my friend Chantal Strasburger, times her beautiful hand-embroidered product releases to correspond to current events and/or pop culture happenings. While I own many of the t-shirts and sweatshirts available on her site, my favorites include the I Should Infinitely Prefer a Book Sweatshirt (from her Pride & Prejudice collection) as well as the Baby Yoda Sweatshirt (because who doesn't adore sweet little Baby Yoda??) and the Abortion is Healthcare Hat. She also has an incredible Ted Lasso line, for fans of the show (I bought my dad the Believe sweatshirt for Father's Day and it was a big hit!).

3. The Steam Box

This one is for my romance lovers! Not only is The Steam Box and Steamy Lit a female-owned business, but it's also Latinx and Veteran-owned. The founder Melissa Gil is such an inspiration in the book community and is truly a force for good in uplifting BIPOC romance authors and encouraging self-love. Steamy Lit's official mission is to "provide women romance authors of color and non-binary/genderqueer authors a platform to amplify their voices through their work while also empowering discourse around sexuality. Our ultimate goal is for you to embrace your sexuality and celebrate self-love."

While you'll find a variety of products available for sale on the Steamy Lit website, I highly recommend gifting The Steam Box, which pairs a collection of romance books with a vibe of your choice (along with some other goodies that vary by season). I also recommend checking out her sassy merch, which includes many different products (like hats, t-shirts, mugs, etc.) and designs specifically tailored to romance / smut readers.

4. Coffee and Good Reads

For those who prefer to drink their favorite beverages out of glassware, I highly recommend checking out Coffee & Good Reads! This female-owned small business sells a variety of different glass cups with bookish slogans on them. In addition to the signature Coffee & Good Reads Cup pictured above, some of my favorites include Matcha & Good Reads and Chai & Good Reads (perfect for non-coffee drinkers!). You also have the option to include a top and a straw with each item... making these ideal for those who are always on the go! While the glassware products are my personal favorite, Coffee & Good Reads also offers bookish stickers and sweatshirts / hoodies.

5. Literati Book Box Subscription

Ok so this one is certainly a much larger business than the other shops mentioned above, but Literati is my favorite monthly book subscription service and it's based out of my hometown of Austin, Texas. Furthermore, they offer book boxes for both children and adults... making this a great gift for anyone on your list! 

When you join Literati, you have the option to read with a variety of high-profile "Luminaries," like Malala, Richard Branson, Steph Curry, Roxane Gay and many more. Once you select which book club you want to join, you can discuss the monthly book selection in the Literati app and join live events, which often feature the Luminary discussing the monthly selection with the book's author. You can also change clubs from month-to-month depending on what book you want to read. 

I also highly recommend checking out the various gift box options for kids! They offer a variety of gift options for children of all ages.

***2023 Update: As of January 2023, Literati has discontinued their adult book clubs. However, they’re still a great gift option for children.

While there are tons of other incredible female-owned small businesses to shop this holiday season, these are just a few of my favorites.

There are also tons of amazing bookish products on Etsy. If you simply do a search for "bookish gifts" or perhaps something more specific if you have a particular type of item in mind, you'll find a huge selection of options from independently owned businesses. From beautiful bookmarks and creative slogan tees to stickers and book sleeves, you can find pretty much anything you're looking for on Etsy. Just be sure to place your orders sooner rather than later, as many small retailers have relatively early holiday shipping deadlines (for example, The Bookmarkparty Shop's order deadline is December 10th for guaranteed arrival before Christmas).

I also always recommend buying a gift card to your (or your gift recipient's) favorite local independent bookstore. My favorite brick and mortar bookstore in Austin is Book People (from which you can also order gift cards and the majority of books online). If you're unsure of which bookstore to choose, you can also purchase a gift card from Bookshop.org, an online retailer that benefits independently owned bookstores (a great alternative to Amazon).

If you have other recommendations of small businesses / shops with great gift items for book lovers, drop a comment below!