{"id":1805575,"date":"2021-12-07T11:19:15","date_gmt":"2021-12-07T16:19:15","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.maproomblog.com\/?p=1805575"},"modified":"2022-12-06T19:30:40","modified_gmt":"2022-12-07T00:30:40","slug":"2021-holiday-gift-guide","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.maproomblog.com\/2021\/12\/2021-holiday-gift-guide\/","title":{"rendered":"2021 Holiday Gift Guide"},"content":{"rendered":"

Every year at about this time\u2014<\/p>\n

(Actually no, check that, this year I\u2019m late; and last year I didn\u2019t post one at all except for this stationery guide<\/a>.)<\/em><\/p>\n

\u2014I post a gift guide that lists some of the noteworthy books about maps that have been published this year.<\/p>\n

(Actually . . . this year not very many books were published. Thanks, pandemic. I\u2019ve had to expand my scope a bit this year.)<\/em><\/p>\n

If you have a map-obsessed person in your life and would like to give them something map-related\u2014or you are<\/em> a map-obsessed person and would like your broad hints to have something to link to\u2014this guide may give you some ideas.<\/p>\n

Please keep in mind that this is not<\/em> a list of recommendations: what\u2019s here is mainly what I\u2019ve spotted online, and there\u2019s probably a lot more out there. Also, I haven\u2019t so much as seen most of what\u2019s here, much less reviewed it: these are simply things that, based on what information I have available, seem fit for giving as gifts. (Anyone who tries to parlay this into \u201crecommended by The Map Room\u201d is going to get a very<\/em> sad look from me.)<\/p>\n

This post contains affiliate links; I receive a cut of the purchase price if you make a purchase via these links.<\/p>\n

<\/p>\n

Books<\/h3>\n

The pandemic has wreaked havoc on the publishing industry, and the effects of paper shortages are clear to see on both the publishing schedule and the availability of already published books. The fall publishing season is the<\/em> season for general-interest map books, and in particular coffee-table map books, which tend to make rather good gifts for the map obsessed. But as far as I can see, books of that sort that have been published in 2021 are few to none\u2014and I can\u2019t say I\u2019m surprised.<\/p>\n

\"\"That said, the most interesting-looking book to come out this year that would<\/em> be fit for these purposes is James Cheshire and Oliver Uberti\u2019s Atlas of the Invisible<\/strong><\/em> (Particular<\/a>, \u00a325; W. W. Norton<\/a>, $40); see my earlier post about the book<\/a> for more information and links.
\nAmazon<\/a> (Canada<\/a>, UK<\/a>) | Bookshop<\/a><\/p>\n

Though I haven\u2019t seen it, or much about it, another book that looks to have some potential is Matt Brown and Rhys B. Davies\u2019s Atlas of Imagined Places<\/strong><\/em> (Batsford<\/a>, \u00a325); trouble is, it appears to be out of stock in most places at the moment.
\nAmazon<\/a> (Canada<\/a>, UK<\/a>) | Bookshop<\/a><\/p>\n

For a list of map books published in 2021 that is as complete as I can make it, see the Map Books of 2021<\/a> page. Or see the page for 2020\u2019s books<\/a>, since for various reasons I wasn\u2019t able to manage a gift guide last year.<\/p>\n

World Atlases<\/h3>\n

World atlases make fine if large gifts, and there are atlases for every price point. The main atlas lines are the National Geographic, the Oxford, and the Times.<\/p>\n

\"\"The Times Comprehensive Atlas of the World<\/strong><\/em> (Collins<\/a>, \u00a3150) is the more or less undisputed king of atlases, but the Times Atlas line comes in smaller and more affordable editions: from largest to smallest, they are the Comprehensive<\/em>, the Concise<\/em>, the Universal<\/em>, the Reference<\/em>, the Desktop<\/em> and the (diminutive!) Mini<\/em>. Each of these is updated every four years or so: in 2021 it was the turn of the Reference<\/em> and the Mini<\/em>; in 2020 it was the Concise<\/em>; in 2019 it was the Desktop and the Universal; in 2018 it was the Comprehensive<\/em>. I would have expected to see a new Comprehensive<\/em> next year, but this year the publisher put out an updated reprint of the 15th edition (changes are outlined here<\/a>), so who knows. I reviewed the 15th edition three years ago<\/a>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n
Times Atlas<\/th>\nEdition<\/th>\nYear<\/th>\nList Price<\/th>\nBuy<\/th>\n<\/tr>\n<\/thead>\n
Comprehensive<\/em><\/td>\n15th<\/td>\n2018<\/td>\n\u00a3150\/$200<\/td>\nAmazon<\/a> (Canada<\/a>, UK<\/a>) | Bookshop<\/a><\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
Concise<\/em><\/td>\n14th<\/td>\n2020<\/td>\n\u00a380\/$125<\/td>\nAmazon<\/a> (Canada<\/a>, UK<\/a>) | Bookshop<\/a><\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
Universal<\/em><\/td>\n4th<\/td>\n2019<\/td>\n\u00a350\/$80<\/td>\nAmazon<\/a> (Canada<\/a>, UK<\/a>) | Bookshop<\/a><\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
Reference<\/em><\/td>\n9th<\/td>\n2021<\/td>\n\u00a330\/$48<\/td>\nAmazon<\/a> (Canada<\/a>, UK<\/a>) | Bookshop<\/a><\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
Desktop<\/em><\/td>\n5th<\/td>\n2019<\/td>\n\u00a320\/$35<\/td>\nAmazon<\/a> (Canada<\/a>, UK<\/a>) | Bookshop<\/a><\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
Mini<\/em><\/td>\n8th<\/td>\n2021<\/td>\n\u00a310\/$17<\/td>\nAmazon<\/a> (Canada<\/a>, UK<\/a>) | Bookshop<\/a><\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<\/tbody>\n<\/table>\n

\"\"The Oxford Atlas of the World<\/strong><\/em><\/a> (Oxford University Press<\/a>, $90) which is roughly equivalent in size and price to the Times Concise<\/em>, is updated every single year\u2014that\u2019s its unique selling proposition. I note too that Oxford University Press also has smaller atlases in its line: the New Concise<\/em> and Essential<\/em> atlases were updated in 2021.<\/p>\n