Ellen's Christmas Gift Guide - Day Seven: Great Gifts for Readers

I keep seeing these posts about how the perfect Icelandic Christmas Eve tradition – exchanging chocolates and books and staying up all night to read. YES! I have found my people!If you’ve got someone on your list who would love that, this is your gift guide post! (And there may just be a special giveaway later on in this post...so keep reading!)My Top Book Picks for Gifts:

1. For Girls: Called & Courageous Girls Series by Rachel Spier Weaver, Anna Haggard ,Eric Elwell

First 3 Books: A Brave Big Sister (1), An Extraordinary Teacher (2), & A Fearless Leader (3)I LOVE THESE BOOKS! These have inspired me, as well as teaching our wee girl about other girls – who were called by God to do courageous things – just as she is. We’ve read about Priscilla (An Extraordinary Teacher), Deborah (A Fearless Leader) & Miriam (A Brave Big Sister.)

2. For 20-somethings: Ted Dekker Series –

His Newest Series: The 49th Mystic (1) & Rise of the Mystics (2)Got anyone who’s okay with thinking outside the box? These are your books. Well-written, mind-bending, fiction that really makes you think about truth! Guys will love these too.

3. For history-buffs: Jane Kirkpatrick books

Top Picks: All She Left Behind (3) & Everything She Didn't Say (4)I LOVE THESE BOOKS! History, well-written fiction, and thoughtful topics – so good. Venturing on the Oregon Trail, and around the Wild West through the eyes of real figures in history, I didn’t want these books to end.

4. Mystery / Contemporary Romance: Irene Hannon

Top Picks: Hidden Peril (5) & Pelican Point (6)Know anyone who loves a good, suspenseful murder-mystery TV show? Or a great Hallmark movie? Hannon somehow seamlessly moves between genres. I’ve never been disappointed with any of her books – they’re all on my must-read lists.Bonus for the suspense lover: The Cost of Betrayal (7) - Three of my favourite suspense authors in one book!And, if you actually want to give some of that chocolate with the book, and live out that Icelandic Christmas dream? (Hopefully I’m on your gift list if you choose this option.) My very enthusiastic, tested (over and over again) recommendation is DIVINE chocolate. Delicious, rich, fair-trade, grown by family farmers in Ghana. My absolute favourite is the Raspberry Dark Chocolate, but the Orange & Ginger is a close second (don’t make me pick).

Other chocolates from Divine Chocolate to try: Hazelnut Truffle, 85% Dark Chocolate, Dark Chocolate with Mint Crisp, Toffee & Sea Salt, Dark Chocolate with Whole Almonds, and Dark Chocolate with Pink Himalayan Salt!

How to buy:

Visit your local Christian retailer to pick up any of the books above! You can find a retailer near you, here. There are also various online sources (especially where you don’t have a Christian retailer available in your area).And that delicious and decadent chocolate? We buy it at Ten Thousand Villages every Christmas. You can get those chocolate bars at your local TTV store, or online here.Psst…This week’s TWO giveaways will include some of these amazing books! Two lucky winners will be drawn on Friday afternoon to receive a surprise Gift Guide prize. To enter to win, be sure to comment below with your top book recommendations for this Christmas!

~ Ellen

P.S. Did you get the first gift? It's a quick recipe guide to my personal, super-easy, sweet & salty Christmas Recipe Favourites! All of these are on heavy rotation at our house over the holidays, and they’re super easy. Download it for FREE now by subscribing here:

Already a subscriber? Check your inbox for details on how you can get your 6, tried and true, easy-peasy Christmas recipes.

I was provided by Baker Publishing Group, Harvest House Publishers, & Divine Chocolate with free product samples in exchange for my honest review. I receive no compensation for sales of these products - just want to let my friends know about great Christmas gift options! All thoughts & opinions expressed are my own & not influenced by the companies or distributors.

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About Harvest House Publishers:

More than 100 million Harvest House books have been sold worldwide in bookstores, gift stores, grocery stores, airports, mass market outlets, catalogs, on Internet sites, and in digital format online. Millions more have been sold in 75 languages around the world.The Harvest Kids™ line includes Bibles, picture books, devotionals, and other inspiring products, with a special focus on resources for tweens ages 8 to 12. To learn more about Harvest House Publishers, click here.

About Baker Publishing Group:

Baker Publishing Group publishes high-quality writings that represent historic Christianity and serve the diverse interests and concerns of evangelical readers. To learn more about Baker Publishing Group, click here.

About Divine Chocolate:

Divine Chocolate is the only Fairtrade chocolate company in the world that is co-owned by cocoa farmers. Members of Kuapa Kokoo Farmers' Co-operative in Ghana own 44% of our company and, as producers of the highest quality cocoa, have a voice in the global marketplace. To learn more about Divine Chocolate, click here.