What Happened When We Called Penguin’s Book Hotline for Gift Help
Has presents panic set in yet? The crux of holiday season is almost here! Don’t fret: if you’ve got a bookish type on your list, there’s something out there that will certainly make your life easier. Introducing the Penguin Hotline, where you can get help finding something for even the pickiest reader.
It’s simple: you just go to the website, fill out a short survey about the recipient and wait for an email to come your way from a real, live person. Penguin’s extremely passionate editors, marketers, designers, salespeople and more are on call to help you find the perfect match for your favorite reader.
Questions are simple, like age, gender, hobbies and zip code. We put in some pretty specific parameters for a recipient — The Secret History as a favorite book, but loves reading Southern authors, humor writers like Sloane Crosley and books about NYC (yes, totally random list of requests!). Emily, an editorial team member, got back to us in less than a day with such awesome recommendations — so spot-on, in fact, that the recipient had read almost all of the suggestions!
Regardless, the time and effort Penguin put into their answers was really a nice touch — Emily recommended trying The Goldfinch, by the same author as The Secret History, and put a disclaimer that it’s a long read, but well worth it. She also recommended a book by an author this bibliophile hasn’t heard of — Allie Brosh — which immediately went on the personal wish list as well. In an age where so much is digitized, it’s really refreshing to see how much these book lovers really do love their work. Shout out to Emily at Penguin!
(Images via Penguin)
