Nigel Newton, Chief Executive of Bloomsbury Publishing PLC (LON:BMY) talks to Proactive London's Katie Pilbeam about his top picks for Christmas 2020.
He begins, 'It is going to be the most interesting Christmas in retail history because books are having a surge at the moment such as I've never witnessed in the career'.
As Newton notes, Bloomsbury Publishings' are the famous publishers of J. K. Rowling's Harry Potter and his first pick is 'Quidditch Through the Ages', written by J. K. Rowling and illustrated by Emily Gravett. Priced at £25.00, described by Newton as 'an extraordinary gift for all the family'.
His picks for Katie's mum are 'Leave the World Behind' by Rumaan Alam, Newton says this is 'the book of the moment' and 'seriously scary'. And 'one of the most successful thrillers of our year' is 'The Devil and the Dark Water' by Stuart Turton' which just won a Costa book award.
As well as 'the perfect novel for lockdown' Susanna Clarke's 'Piranesi', set in a house, 'like a giant labyrinth of halls, with thousands upon thousands of statues and the sea rides in, thundering up staircases'. As Newton points out, a book 'picked by many critics as the novel of the whole year'.
For politics lovers like Katie, there's the new biography of President-elect Joe Biden by National Book Award winner and New Yorker staff writer Evan Osnos. For the typical 'Dad, Grandad, Uncle book' Newton picks out 'Behind the Enigma, The Authorised History of GCHQ, Britain’s Secret Cyber-Intelligence Agency' by John Ferris.
Newton then chooses a portrait book that summarises much of 2020, 'Portraits for NHS Heroes', by Tom Croft, as he says 'the heroes that have been battling this virus to save us all'.
Newton talks through 'The Glamour Boys: The Secret Story of the Rebels who Fought for Britain to Defeat Hitler' by Chris Bryant.
Moving onto another lockdown hobby, cooking, Newton selects 'the most brilliant cookbook ever' 'Dishoom', subtitled 'From Bombay with Love' as well as Tom Kerridges' 'The Hand and Flowers Cookbook'.
And finally - 'A Table for Friends: The Art of Cooking for Two Or Twenty by Skye McAlpine'. Described by Newton as 'the most cookable cookbook'.
