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John's 2022 Gift Guide

2022-11-22 · review / recommendation · John · 3:50 · watch on YouTube

Topic: Everyday life (also: Books & writing) · mode: Advice & reviews · tags: calendar ritual, self promotion

John's 2022 gift guide recommends Bananagrams, books (The Song of the Cell, Tomorrow and Tomorrow and Tomorrow, All My Rage, essay collections), Patreon memberships, online courses, walking tours, Kurzgesagt calendars, donations in someone's honor and Awesome Coffee Club memberships, and says the best gifts are often made rather than bought.

What is said

The parts of the video and what is said in each (★ — how much it matters to the video).

00:00:00 — Bananagrams' celebrity mailing list and the start of the gift guide

  • ★★ John says that somehow, since 2008, he has been on Bananagrams' celebrity mailing list; this is his 11th edition of the game. (playful) — 00:00:00

00:00:29 — Books as gifts: nonfiction, a novel, a romance, YA and essay collections

  • ★★ John genuinely recommends Bananagrams as a fun word game (one copy will do), joking that it took Bananagrams 14 years to get him to give it free promo. — 00:00:29
  • ★★ John admits bias but thinks books are the best gift every year, especially his own but also books by other people. — 00:00:29
  • ★★★ For nonfiction lovers John recommends Siddhartha Mukherjee's new The Song of the Cell: he didn't think he liked biology, but it turns out he loves it, and is biology. — 00:00:29
  • ★★★ For lovers of video games or great novels John recommends Gabrielle Zevin's Tomorrow and Tomorrow and Tomorrow; he has given it to a dozen people and all fell in love with it. — 00:00:57
  • ★★ For a friend who might enjoy a super steamy exvangelical romance, John recommends Corinne by Rebecca Morrow. — 00:00:57
  • ★★★ John's favorite young adult novel of the year is probably All My Rage by Sabaa Tahir, her first standalone and first contemporary novel, which he calls beautiful. (hedged) — 00:00:57
  • ★★ Having just written one, John thinks essay collections make great gifts, recommending Toni Morrison's The Source of Self-Regard and Hilary Mantel's Mantel Pieces. — 00:01:27 · The Anthropocene Reviewed (book)
  • ★ John says the title of Mantel Pieces is by far the worst thing about it; the book is incredible, especially for lovers of history or culture. (playful) — 00:01:27

00:01:56 — Non-physical and double-good gifts: Patreon, online courses, walking tours, Kurzgesagt calendars

  • ★★ Maybe the vibe this year (2022) isn't physical goods, John says: give a one-year Patreon membership to someone's favorite podcast or YouTube channel. — 00:01:56
  • ★★ John suggests online courses, like Sarah's new Bright Trip course on art appreciation, which he enjoyed so much he bought other Bright Trips. — 00:01:56 · Sarah Urist Green
  • ★★ John suggests a walking tour, like those Indianapolis public historian Sampson Levingston gives of neighborhoods, especially historically Black ones; John loves learning from him. — 00:01:56 · Indianapolis
  • ★★ John thinks walking tours, offered in many towns and cities, are a great way to deepen understanding and appreciation of the place where you live. — 00:02:25
  • ★★ Liking gifts that do double good, John is buying Kurzgesagt calendars for Kurzgesagt fans: they are impossibly beautiful and help Kurzgesagt's mission to reach more people with educational videos. — 00:02:25

00:02:54 — Donations in someone's honor and Awesome Coffee Club memberships or single bags

  • ★★ John suggests donating directly, in their honor, to causes friends and family are passionate about, as long as they don't conflict with your values. — 00:02:54
  • ★★ For coffee lovers John suggests an Awesome Coffee Club membership: carefully sourced, perfectly roasted beans, with 100% of profits supporting better maternal health in Sierra Leone. — 00:02:54 · Awesome Coffee Club, maternal death, Sierra Leone
  • ★★ John says the Awesome Coffee Club now sells single bags for those who don't want a subscription yet. — 00:02:54 · Awesome Coffee Club

00:03:24 — Made gifts: Sarah's color-palette portrait; Hank's Christmas donation; sign-off

  • ★★★ John says the best gifts are often not bought but made, such as a crossword puzzle for someone you care about, or art. — 00:03:24
  • ★★ Sarah made John a portrait of himself in the form of a color palette of his favorite things, which he loves. — 00:03:24 · Sarah Urist Green
  • ★★ John tells Hank, spoiler alert, that he is getting a donation to Partners In Health for Christmas. (playful) — 00:03:24 · Hank Green, Partners In Health, Christmas

In the description and comments

  • ★ The description says John likes to shop for books online at Bookshop.org because it supports local independent stores, and lists the recommended books there. — video description

Threads in this video

Where the stories that moved here went next

Mentioned

Central: gift

Also: People: Sampson Levingston · Sarah Urist Green

Projects: Awesome Coffee Club

Works: All My Rage · Bananagrams · Corinne · Mantel Pieces · The Anthropocene Reviewed (book) · The Song of the Cell · The Source of Self-Regard · Tomorrow, and Tomorrow, and Tomorrow

Organizations: Bright Trip · Kurzgesagt · Partners In Health · Patreon

Concepts: maternal death · video game · young adult literature

Places: Indianapolis · Sierra Leone

Events: Christmas

Only in the description or credits: Bookshop.org · Gabrielle Zevin · Hilary Mantel · Rebecca Morrow · Sabaa Tahir · Siddhartha Mukherjee · Toni Morrison

Also centred on gift: Gifts That Changed My Life

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