For everyone on your holiday shopping list books are THE answer. I can’t say that any clearer. You don’t need to know what size, they wrap easily and there is something for everyone and at a variety of price points. Now, can you say that about a sweater or a pair of slippers?

While at the bookstore you can also pick up some really neat bookmarks, bookends, pens, writing papers and even some seemingly unrelated book gift items like scented soaps or candles to add personalize your gift even more. I also like the idea of nice tea or flavored coffee.

LoHud booksellers are eager to help direct shoppers to some personal favorites and good sellers. Hot sellers everywhere are David Halberstam’s “The Coldest Winter� for history lovers and those who want to understand the Korean Conflict and for Anna Quindlen fans, her newest book “Good Dog, Stay� about life lessons the writer learned from her beloved pooch. For children, I am hearing “The Dangerous Book for Boys� and “The Daring Book for Girls� are clear favorites.

“The year there is no mega book that is driving people in,� said Gene Sgarlata, who has owned the 70-year-old Womrath Bookstore in Bronxville for 23 years.

He said this is a good thing. “People are buying stuff across the board and taking time to look around.�

Here is a compilation of some suggestions from Sgarlata and other professional, local bookophiles.

Anderson’s Book Shop, 96-98 Chatsworth Ave., Larchmont; phone 914-834-6900.

Manager Annabell Siegel says she is particularly fond of “The Latke Who Couldn’t Stop Screaming: A Christmas Story� by Lemony Snicket with illustrations by Lisa Brown. This story preaches tolerance with good humor about a potato pancake that escapes from a frying pan. Siegel recommends it for a wide range of ages and not just children.

Some fiction titles have been selling briskly:
•“One Thousand Splendid Suns� by Khaled Hosseini, the author of “The Kite Runner�
•“Water for Elephants� by Sara Gruen, a story about a young man and circus dreams.
•“Eat, Pray, Love� by Elizabeth Gilbert, a story about world traveling through divorce and depression
• “The Faith Club: A Muslim, a Christian and a Jews — Three Women Search for Understanding� byRanya Idliby, Suzanne Oliver and Priscilla Warne now in paperback.

Also, for those who like history, try picking up:
• “A Day of Battle: The War in Sicily and Italy, 1943� by Rick Atkinson.

Womrath Bookshop , 76 Pondfield Road, Bronxville; phone 914-337-0199.

Owner Sgarlata said he hopes the season continues with the brisk business that begun before Thanksgiving.

Some fiction favorites are:
• “Run� by Ann Patchett
• “Stone Cold� by David Baldacci
• “World Without End� by Ken Follett, a sequel to “The Pillars of Earth� which was touted by Oprah Winfrey as a wonderful thriller
• “Book of the Dead� by Patricia Cornwell
• “The Abstinence Teacher� by Tom Perotta, a novel about suburban life and raising children.

Some nonfiction titles are:
• “Complete Clapton� by Eric Clapton, an autobiography of the rock musician.
• “Musicophilia: Tales of Music and the Brain� by Oliver Sacks, a look at music and its effects on our brain.
• “Torrent Guidings to Glorious Nation Kazakhstan� by Borat.
• “Lone Survivor: The Eyewitness Account of Operation Redwing and the Lost Heroes of SEAL Team 10,� by Marcus Luttrell and Patrick Robinson, about Navy SEALS mission at the Afghanistan-Pakistan border in July 2005.
• “Born Standing Up: A Comic’s Live� by Steve Martin.

For children, he suggests:
•Two picture books: “Purplicious� by Victoria Kann and Elizabeth Kann and �Cherry and Olive� by Benjamin Lacombe.
•�SnakeHead� by Anthony Horowitz.
•Two pop-up books that he says are spectacular: “Star Wars� by Matthew Reinhart
and “The Narnia Pop-up Book�.
• “Gallop!� by Rufus Butler Seder, a scanimation picture book that makes it appear as if the images are moving when you flip the pages.

For those into cooking and entertaining, he offers,
• “Martha Stewart Living Cookbook: The New Classics�
• “The Art of Simple Food� by Alice Waters
• “Deceptively Delicious� by Jessica Seinfeld (yep that’s comedian Jerry Seinfeld’s wife)

Pickwick Book Store, 8 S. Broadway, Nyack; phone 845-358-9126.

Owner John Dunnigan says his store’s niche is local history, so anything about the Hudson Valley or by a local author is a real winner here.

He particularly likes the Hudson River Valley calendar by Ted Spiegel

Also:
• “Hudson Valley Voyage: Through the Seasons, Through the Years,� by Ted Spiegel and Reed Sparling, which Dunnigan says is a gorgeous book that provides photographs and history.
• “Hiking the Roads and Ruin , Hudson Valley Daytrips and Hikes� by David Steinberg.
• The Hudson: An Illustrated Guide to the Living River�
•And one that just came out in paperback, “Rockland County Century of History� edited by Linda Zimmermann and published by the Rockland County Historical Society.
•Also, a perennial favorite, “Nyack in the 20th Century� from the Historical Society of the Nyacks and “New York’s Palisades Interstate Park,� a history of the Palisades and Harriman state park.

Merritt Bookstore , 66 Main Street, Cold Spring, phone 845-265-9100; www.merrittbooks.com

Owner Scott Meyer, who also runs Merritt Bookstore in Millbrook and Red Hook, this is a great time of year to buy books.

For children and young adults, he suggests,
• “Dinotopia: Journey to Chandraâ€? by James Gurney, wonderful illustrator about relationship with dionosaurs and humans on a lost island for kids and adults., new
•�Lord of the Nutcracker Men� by Ian Lawrence about a 10-year-old boy whose father goes to war in 1914 and sends back carved wooden soldiers. It is a very amazing story.
• “The Nutcracker,� with wonderful illustrations by Westchester artist Susan Jeffers. It is not the full story but good for younger children.
• “Blue Moo� by Sandra Boynton. CD and book with lyrics of 17 jukebox hits from way back never by B.B. King, Brian Wilson, Davey Jones and Sha NaNa.
•�Sisters Grim� series by Michael Buckley about a town called Fairyport where all legends and myths are captured and put in a dome. To get them out the characters must escape to Bannerman Island in Cold Spring. The author’s wife grew up in Poughkeepsie so the local points of interest are many and genuine.

For adults, he suggests:
• “Classics for Pleasure� by Michael Dirda, which Meyer said are not the classics your mother and father knew, but rather ones by Willa Cather, Agatha Christie and Ezra Pound.
• “Secret Pulse of Time: Making Sense of Life’s Scarcest Commodity� by Klein Stefan
• “I To Myself: An Annotated Journal� from Henry David Thoreau.
• “Plato and a Platypus Walk into a Bar: Understanding Philosophy Through Jokes� by Thomas Cathcart and Daniel Klein.
• “Watch Man� by Ian Rankin which won the prized mystery award, the Edgar.
• “Historic Courthouses of the State of New York: A Study in Postcard� by Julia and Albert Rosenblatt for the Historical Society for the Courts of New York.

Happy book shopping!