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Give Me Book Suggestions
Because I'm not all that creative, I'm getting books for my brother and parents this year.
I've decided on FDR's Folly for my dad, but I need help for my mom and brother and figured you'd be good people to consult for my nerdy family.
Mom - 60 y/o librarian with moderate politics. Christian (PCUSA). Singer. Enjoys theatre and opera. Belongs to a Curves gym (her 'old fat lady gym' as she calls it) but mostly gets her exercise walking her 3 year-old boxer mix. I think she'd enjoy a light novel or memoir, but the writing has to be good. Marly & Me would be cute, but I was thinking we might see the movie together so it might be a bit much to get the book, too.
Brother (here's where I really need your help!) - 26 y/o law firm file temp (is he still a temp if he's been there almost 2 years?). Very Liberal (voted Nader in '04). B.A. in English. Likes and writes bizarre poetry. I can't tell you poets he likes, but the books he's thrown my way include Kavalier & Clay, Little Children, HWOSG, and a few others I can't remember right now. Those are probably more on the mainstream side of what he likes. So, anything new and reeking of intellectual superiority come out lately? If it's been out a while, he's probably already read it. I would get him something else, but all he pretty much does is read.
Thanks for any suggestions! 
Re: Give Me Book Suggestions
I'll keep thinking on the others, but Curtis Sittenfeld's American Wife immediately sprung to mind, assuming she hasn't read it yet.
ETA: I think buying books for people is actually a pretty creative gift. I've done it several years. It's fun and challenging to find books suited to each person's interest. It does require a decent amount of thought, and I think the recipients realize that.
Does your mom have an mp3 player or something of that sort? She might enjoy an audio book for her gym/walks.
Suggestions not really a clue except maybe books by David McCullough seem to be well liked such as John Adams, 1776, etc.
my read shelf:
Oo, good suggestions, thanks!
My mom does have an ipod (we're a big Apple family), but she doesn't walk that much.
...and she thinks the earbuds are uncomfortable.
What about the book Dewey? It's about a kitten who is dumped into a book slot at a library! That might be cute for your mom since she's a librarian!
Does your brother like funny things? Does he like David Sedaris, or has he read all of him?
Hmm... I'm not going to be much help for your mom. However, for your brother, how about Trumpet by Jackie Kay? It's a lyric novel and sort of bizzare, but it's one of my favorite books. Otherwise, how does he feel about Michael Cunningham? I'm not sure if he has any new books out, though.
I think Jose Saramago has a new book out - that might be a good pick for your brother.
Here's a list of NY Times Notable books of 2008.
http://www.nytimes.com/2008/12/07/books/review/100Notable-t.html
I just skimmed through it. I haven't read any of them, but your brother might like the JM Coetzee book. I've read one of his books before (Disgrace), which was incredibly dark and heavy, but excellent. There's a few poetry books on the list too.
I bet your brother would love Chris Abani. He's a Nigerian-American author who writes rather avant-garde plays, poetry, short stories and novels. He releases new stuff all the time. Becoming Abigail is one of my favorite of his novels.
Then again, one of his novels (Graceland) was somewhat bizarrely chosen for the Today Show book club a while back...so maybe not so much.
Tatamkhulu Afrika's "The Innocents" isn't particularly new (2006), but it is rather obscure, and I'm sure your brother would have an appreciation for a book authored by a gay, Muslim South African.
Ama ata Aidoo's "Our Sister Killjoy" is old, but definitely out there--it's a novel, but kind of a prose-poem at the same time.
I'll try to think of more. I'm more a of a post-colonial lit girl myself, so I don't have a lot of good suggestions of American authors.
Your brother might enjoy a subscription to McSweeney's or the Believer. THey are off-the-wall, but sound right up his alley. Dylanite is a big fan.
http://store.mcsweeneys.net/index.cfm/fuseaction/catalog.detail/object_id/B98CC3A0-53FA-4ED6-A771-E788DC9D9396/McSweeneysSubscriptionbrBeginningwithIssue19.cfm
It sounds like your mom has similar tastes to my mom, and they're the same age!
I got her Julie Andrews' autobiography, Home: A Memoir of My Early Years for her birthday and she loved it. For Xmas, I'll be getting her Christopher Plummer's autobiography, In Spite of Myself.
HTH!
does your brother like nonfiction? malcolm gladwell's new book Outliers sounds fascinating. i heard him talk about it on NPR a couple weeks ago:
http://www.amazon.com/Outliers-Story-Success-Malcolm-Gladwell/dp/0316017922