Books make excellent gifts. Not only are they great for book lovers, but almost anyone will appreciate a nice, hardcover book that deals with a subject they enjoy. Here are some of the top books from 2008 to give as gifts, organized by what type of person would be happy to receive them.

For the fiction lover: When we were Romans, by Matthew Kneale

For the romantic lover: Beginner’s Greek is the debut novel from James Collins

For dry humor personality: Holidays on ice by David Sedaris

For nature lovers: Planet Earth, an Illustrated History, from Time Magazine

For the cooking lovers: Barefoot Contessa Back to Basic, by Ina Garten

For the overachiever: Outlier, the story of success by Malcolm Gladwell

For the mystery lover: When will be their good news?, by Kate Atkinson

I hope you will enjoy it.