G is for Gift. Or Give. Or, maybe, if you are really lucky, Get. Of the hundreds of thousands of books published this year, we have narrowed down our holiday recommendations to a lovely few: A dozen novels (and story collections). A dozen books of nonfiction. A dozen gorgeous, fabulous art books. Throw in some biography, some regional books, some young adult (and middle-grade) fiction, and our annual top 10 list from our critics, and your shopping list is just about done. Readers have done their part, offering another 50 titles — from classics such as "Canoeing With the Cree" by Eric Sevareid to James McBride's "The Good Lord Bird" to a picture book with the wonderful title "Betty Bunny Loves Chocolate Cake." (Because, that reader wrote, "This book makes me happier than any other book, and what can be better than the gift of joy for the holidays?") Well said.

Enjoy our annual holiday books section.