Give the Gift of Rushkoff

…and a gift to the Rushkoffs at the same time, by considering a book that might wake up your loved ones instead of lulling them to sleep.

For a gentler prod into reality than Dawkins’ brilliant bestseller, The God Delusion, try my Nothing Sacred – which makes the argument that Judaism was intended as a method for releasing people from the bonds of religion, even if more recent incarnations of this tradition look more like a faith than an anti-faith.

For the graphic novel fan (or could-be fan) in your brood, check out Testament – the first graphic novel collection my comic book series. It was the sole comic on Rolling Stone’s prestigious “Hot List” this year, and is suitable for any “mature” reader.

For the entrepreneur in your family – or anyone looking to understand why business in America got so screwed up and what to do about – pick up Get Back in the Box, which makes the controversial assertion that competency is key to success. (Something our current administration could stand to learn, as well.)

Finally, for the parent or student considering the challenges of growing up in an interactive mediaspace, consider the new updated version of ‘Playing the Future,’ now called ScreenAgers.

And if you really want to give a fun gift, check out my wife’s Jewish Holiday Fun…For You! – a set of arch and artfully construed deconstructions of Jewish holidays, all in the apparently innocuous form of a kids’ holiday book. It’s a great stealth counterculture gift for a kid, that from the cover will look to clueless parents like it’s a “good thing.”

So that’s my official holiday self-plug. I don’t encourage holiday buying. And I don’t buy gifts for people on the holidays – except for the people in our lives who do relatively thankless tasks. We buy cookies for the people who work in the park where our daughter plays, and for the workers at Barnes and Noble, where she plays when it’s too cold or wet outside. And we gave money to our doormen (back in the days when we lived in a doorman building).

Still, if I were the holiday giving type, I’d want to give people stuff that opened their eyes a bit rather than just filled space or got re-gifted later. At least they’ll have something to do while waiting in the airport for their flight home.

More soon from me. It’s going to be an exciting year – much to announce, but I’ll do that in good time. Talks, a new book, a new comic, a new non-NYU course, and maybe even a documentary. The baby is two this month, so it’s time to get back to work.

See you soon, and eat plenty of greasy foods.

Oh – almost forgot. I’m on CNN all week – some kind of spot about about the future, aired intermittently. Check it out.