Category Archives: Gifts

Books make great gifts! Here we list some of the best to give

Last Minute Christmas Ideas

2021, Christmas, Download of the Day, eBooks, Gifts, Top Tips, , , , , , , , , , ,

Need to organise a last minute gift?  Perhaps you have missed the postal deadline, or your original gift is delayed in the post; or maybe you have an unexpected guest, or are out of ideas for someone hard-to-buy-for.  Luckily, the internet has given us more options to make like we’ve had it planned all along.  You can send specific eBooks, eAudiobooks, safely and almost instantaneously, with just a few clicks; to find the availability and best prices of eBooks and eAudiobooks, simply click on the “Audiobook” or “eBook” edition buttons below the book title when you are searching on Booko.  (See the screenshot below)

If you have found the perfect book, but know that it won’t get to your recipient in time, you can try the eGIFT option at Boomerang Books .  Their eGIFT certificate is a PDF which includes the details of the book(s) you have bought, plus you can add a personalised message. The eGift PDF will be emailed to you with your order confirmation – you can then print or forward this PDF to your recipient.  This is also a great way to give a pre-order book – your loved one will become one of the first to receive it when it is released!  To use this eGIFT service, search Booko as usual, click through to the Boomerang Books listing (taking note of Booko’s voucher code!):

add to cart at the Boomerang website, then select eGift during checkout:

Booko’s Guide to Gift Certificates
Booko has compiled a list of gift certificates offered by book retailers from around the world.  These are a great way to buy for someone overseas, or someone who is hard to buy for.  (And also great for young children, who might love the idea of choosing a book by themselves!)  If you are interested in supporting local / small businesses this Christmas, many of your favourite local / indie bookstores also offer electronic gift certificates – contact them for details.   Besides physical books / eBooks and eAudio, many bookstores will allow you to redeem other stock using their gift certificates.  To give you some inspiration (and to shout-out to some of Team Booko’s favourite local and independent bookstores), here are some unusual and lovely gift ideas that can be redeemed using gift vouchers:

Book Bundle subscriptions
The Little Bookroom is a Melbourne icon and probably one of the best specialist children’s bookstores in Australia.  They have a huge range catering to ages and stages from babies to YA; and they have super-knowledgeable staff who can offer suggestions, or even track down particular books or editions.  Besides a classic gift voucher, you can also purchase subscriptions to Book Bundles, which will send your recipient three hand-picked books every three months.  Six different age categories, from toddlers to teens, are available.

Limited Edition Art Prints
Alison Lester offers limited edition prints of her picture book art through her online store.  The prints come from a range of her popular books, including Magic Beach and Kissed by the Moon, and depicts childhood with great humour and insight.  Her store also offers signed copies of her books, t-shirts, and mugs as well children’s crockery sets.  All items from Alison’s store can be redeemed using her email gift card.

eBook Readers
eReaders offer us Booklovers new and convenient ways to read – even if we still love the feel of a physical book in our hands. They are compact and lightweight, have a huge amount of storage (most models can store thousands of titles), and can offer customisation including large font, dark mode and even Read Aloud, to help improve your reading experience.  And you can get download books instantly upon purchase. The Kobo family of eReaders are particularly popular amongst those who buy eReaders for young readers – the e-Ink screen is comfortable to read; they can display eBooks from a range of stores including Google, Booktopia, and Dymocks as well as Kobo’s own store; and you can also use Kobos to access free eBooks from participating public libraries. 

Inspiration for Festive Food with Booko

Christmas, Dinner Inspo, Food, Gifts, Lifestyle, Recipe Books, Recommended, Summer reading, Top Books, ,

It’s been a while since we have been able to celebrate with extended family and friends around our festive table. So this year why not take the opportunity to go all out and dazzle your guests with something a little special. It doesn’t have to be expensive at all, some of our favourite family recipes use the most humble ingredients, but when it’s made with love and ready to share, it is all the more delicious. 

Make yourself a cup of tea, grab a piece of festive gingerbread, sit back and get ready to be inspired. 

Christmas Table: all the recipes you need for the festive season by The Australian Women’s Weekly

While this beautiful book contains all the recipes you’d expect for ham, turkey, sides, desserts and puddings, this year they have taken a modern approach to the season’s fare. Christmas is a special time of year for indulging in food and fun with your loved ones. Create your own traditions, have a seafood buffet instead of a formal sit down meal or celebrate with a barbecue on the beach. How ever you choose to celebrate, the ever-helpful Women’s Weekly will help you through the festive season in style.

Feast: 100 generous dishes to share by Miguel Maestre

In Feast, Miguel shares his absolute favourite recipes to enjoy with family and friends. There are big, satisfying dinners as well as lots of smaller dishes to mix and match in classic share-plate style. Miguel’s food is a loving nod to the dishes of his Spanish heritage, but is also very firmly based in the modern Australian kitchen. Whether you’re getting together for brunch, looking for something fast on a weeknight or to try some new dishes for a family celebration, there are so many bold and exciting flavours here to discover. These are generous meals from a big-hearted chef who knows that simple, good food makes everyone smile.

Everything I Love to Cook by Neil Perry

Sixteen years since the publication of Australian national treasure Neil Perry’s groundbreaking bible for home cooks, The Food I Love, comes a bookend to that masterwork: Everything I Love to Cook. Neil’s influence on the food culture of Australia and beyond has been profound: inspiring us to try new flavours, making simple food simply brilliant, and tirelessly supporting the producers who sustainably grow the food we love to eat.

Now he revisits legendary dishes from his flagship restaurants like Rockpool Bar & Grill and modern classics from his long-running ‘Good Weekend’ column, as well as new favourites he – and we – can’t get enough of. With tips and techniques to set you up for success every time, Neil is on a mission to boost your kitchen know-how and confidence, covering everything from basic knife skills to the art of barbecuing, dressing a salad and mastering a roast dinner.

Whether you want the perfect steak sandwich or a comforting bowl of pasta, a southern Thai-style chicken curry or classic tiramisu, here are more than 230 recipes you’ll love to cook.

Home by Stephanie Alexander

Home is a collection of more than 200 original recipes by Stephanie Alexander. Each recipe is a finely crafted tribute to her passions and preferences for produce and flavour, and each reflects her consummate skill in communicating the fundamentals of technique. There are detailed recipes for the more ambitious home cook, but also simple ways to combine beautiful ingredients to make dishes for everyday eating. Essays on people, places and experiences offer inspiration to readers looking to deepen their knowledge and appreciation of food. Beautifully designed and photographed, Home is a celebration of the sensual and social delights of food and an essential addition to any kitchen shelf. The recipes – classic, masterful and delicious – will be cooked, shared and enjoyed for years to come.

Gathering: Setting the Natural Table by Gemma Ingalls, Andrew Ingalls, Kristen Caissie

Gathering showcases creative tabletop ideas and styles for all seasons. These stylish interiors feature local, artisanal floral designs and handmade objects, capturing the current trend of living and decorating more mindfully and with one-of-a-kind objects.

Exploring every aspect of tabletop design, with setting ideas for different seasons and situations, this volume presents tabletops in situ in a range of stylish spaces designed by the creatives and artists who live there (and sometimes who are the makers themselves). From rustic country living to urban eco-chic, what these beautiful interiors have in common is a desire to bring nature indoors and an intentional and personal approach to design.

Gastro Obscura: A Food Adventurer’s Guide by Cecily Wong, Dylan Thuras

From those ever-curious, ever-quirky minds behind the #1 New York Times bestselling Atlas Obscura comes an unputdownable guide that marries our endless appetite for travel with our insatiable interest in food. Continent by continent, country by country, Gastro Obscura takes up the mantle of Atlas Obscura to radically expand our sense of wonder about the world – in this case, what humans eat and drink, which turns out to be far more marvellous than we could ever imagine. Discover English bog butter. ‘Threads of God’ pasta (only three women know how to make it). The best black bean fritter restaurant in Brazil. The world’s largest floating restaurant. A croissant museum in Poland. Focusing as much on food’s place in our lives as well as our bellies. 

Enjoy!

Have a Clever Christmas with Booko: Teacher Gift Guide

2021, Christmas, Gifts, Learning, School, Top Books, Top Tips

It is that time of the year when teachers all over the world are gifted scented candles, thoughtful handmade cards and lovingly baked cookies from the children they have been spending their days with. We love our teachers and firmly believe they do an amazing job. 

However, the past two years have been quite possibly the hardest of all. There have been many disruptions in the classroom with numerous lockdowns due to COVID which resulted in homeschooling, zoom sessions, virtual PE and music lessons, on top of online assemblies while wrestling with over-loaded wifi. 

We thought it may be nice to share something a little extra special with the teachers in your children’s lives this year and have rounded up a few books that aim to help them relax, and even learn a little something themselves, this Summer. 

House Planted: Choosing, Growing and Styling the Perfect Plants for Your Space by Lisa Muñoz

Green up your living space with this bright, fresh, stylish introduction to choosing, caring for, and designing with houseplants. Get ready to transform your humble abode! Whether you have a funky bohemian den, a chic minimalist loft, or a closet-sized rental, indoor plants will bring a whole new level of warmth, comfort, and style into your home. In House Planted, interior plant designer Lisa Munoz guides you step by step and room by room through picking the perfect plant for the perfect spot and incorporating plants into your indoor decor. You’ll find info on plants that are hard to kill, hanging plants, succulents, air plants, and more. There are creative ideas for displaying plants, tips on caring for your new leafy friends, and primers on potting and troubleshooting. Casual and easy-going, with attainable styles and simple instructions, this short and sweet book of inspiration has everything you need, and nothing you don’t, to start you off on an adventure in better, and greener, living.

For more beautiful coffee table books, take a look at our list here!

Natural Harry: Delicious Plant-Based Summer Recipes by Harriet Birrell

Natural Harry is a recipe book full of creative, simple and life-affirming plant-based recipes coupled with tips on shopping, planting and self-care. With a focus on nutrition and quality ingredients, Natural Harry offers up more than 70 organic recipes and a new way to think about food. What started as a beach-side van serving smoothies and raw desserts has grown into this book, which also includes breakfasts, mains, desserts and even recipes for the body and home – all free from meat, gluten, dairy and refined sugar.

If your teachers loves to cook, take a look at some of the latest cookbooks here.

Lazy Baking: Really Easy Sweet and Savoury Bakes by Jessica Elliott Dennison

From the bestselling author of Tin Can Magic, Lazy Baking is a fuss-free time-saving baking cookbook for any time of the day. Think 1-cup pancakes for breakfast, quick yoghurt flatbread with big-hit toppings for lunch (throw it all in the food processor), cookies to fix that afternoon craving, impressive 3-ingredient puddings and ice creams for weekend get-togethers. There are also plenty of ideas of what can be substituted so you can use up what might currently sit in your fridge or pantry, and what might be in season. This recipe book is perfect for anyone looking to whip up modern and fresh treats, which are both fool-proof and rewarding, and guaranteed to impress thanks to all the clever, useful hacks.

Gelupo Gelato: A delectable palette of ice cream recipes by Jacob Kenedy

Gelupo Gelato presents a rainbow spectrum of simple, sophisticated gelato recipes from tangy Lime Sherbet to fruity Peach Blood Orange, creamy Marron Glace, and decadent Chocolate Whisky. And that’s not all! There are definitive recipes for a classic granita (like grown-up slushie), barely-melting semifreddo, ice cream cake, profiteroles, ice cream cones and brioche buns as well as the only chocolate sauce you’ll ever need and a tip sheet for pairing flavours. This is the moment when gelato becomes your cold, sweet new Italian obsession.

Daily Mantras V.2 by Lisa Messenger

After the hugely successful Daily Mantras to Ignite Your Purpose release in October 2018, it is still consistently our best seller to date. Hence the decision to release a version 2. New quotes, new affirmations, new musings, new refreshed design. Same daily format and same easy to throw in your bag size. Thoughtfully curated by entrepreneur, author and speaker Lisa Messenger, these artfully presented quotes can be used as meditations, as musings, or as your daily dose of inspiration; one for each day of the year. Every daily message includes a quote, followed by Lisa?s personal take, and an affirmation that will help you to step into and ground your courage, spirit, wisdom and wit that make every day count.

The Modern Larder: From Anchovies to Yuzu, a Guide to Artful and Attainable Home Cooking by Michelle McKenzie

One ingredient can change the nature of a dish, elevating it from flat to transcendent. Do you have a kitchen full of jars and pastes and flours you want to use more? From capers, creme frache, and fish sauce to date syrup, labneh, preserved lemon, and more, Michelle McKenzie offers a fresh perspective on magical pantry items that are often overlooked by home cooks. With 58 ingredient profiles and more than 260 recipes and variations featuring those ingredients, learn to harness the power of your pantry to make dishes extraordinary. Undeniably inspiring yet also happily pragmatic, The Modern Larder will change your approach to cooking and elevate your everyday meals.

Enjoy!