Hurdle – 16 December 2023

You probably have some inkling that one of my favourite things to do is talk about books. There may have been a hint of this over the fourteen months since the heron took flight. And some suggestion prior to that too.

At other times of the year, recommending books can be a leisurely activity. Yes, I do think your book group would get on well with Anne Enright. No, I don’t think your elderly father who only reads gardening books wants a copy of the latest Mariana Enriquez. But others will. Indeed, Kick the Latch is great but if it’s a gift we’ll need to discuss the nature of your relationship with the recipient…

Finding ourselves somehow in mid-December, the recommendations take on a new urgency.

Can you recommend something for my brother’s new girlfriend? I’ve got her in Secret Santa, we’ve never met and all I know is that she likes hedgehogs. And my brother, I guess. Yes, yes we can. For the smaller budget and the larger…
I’m due at a party in ten minutes and I need a present for someone hyper-intelligent who seems to have read everything. Not a problem.
I need a lovely book. That’s it? Yup, a lovely book. OK. Two things…
My sister found Saltburn a little too tame. Well, hold onto your tweed jacket.
I have a one-year-old niece who can read. We believe you and we support you and she’ll like this, as will you.
Last year you recommended The Secret Lives of Church Ladies and I gave it to all my friends. Say no more.
I’m looking for something to distract me from the season, the incessant cinnamon, the endless Christmas music… I quite understand. Also. And for dipping into.

And a personal favourite this week:

Do you know what my uncle likes? Do I know your uncle? I doubt it. Whether his passion is poker or pick-up sticks, there’s something here for him… Perfect!

While we may not stock every book ever published in the shop – including that one you read about in The New Yorker which isn’t sold in the UK; or that one you read thirty years ago which was yellow and featured a cat, or it may have been a rabbit (actually we might be able to dig that out…) – we are quietly confident that we can find you something excellent to meet your reading needs and those of your lesser-known relatives.

Meanwhile, should you have completed Murdle and more Murdle, we have you covered. It’s the anticipated return of the Heron Books cryptic crossword. And the wordsearch for those of us defeated by the former. Good luck.

Last orders: If you need to order books for home delivery, we strongly suggest doing so today. Monday morning, at the latest. If you need us to order a book to the shop, let us know by Tuesday lunchtime.

We are open as usual every day except Christmas Day, Boxing Day and New Year’s Day. So, when you find out that no one has bought the book you asked for you can come in and rectify the situation. (And spend your book tokens.)

Have a lovely weekend filled with puzzles from what to get for the dog who has everything, to solving a whodunnit, to crosswords cryptic or otherwise…