Annie Lennox’s ethereal interpretations of seasonal classics on A Christmas Cornucopia are a cut above Jessica Simspon ripping off Mariah Carey. Amazon, $9.99.
A Christmas Cornucopia Photograph by Amazon
Serious hip-hop heads loved Cee-Lo Green’s solo and group work long before he was half of Gnarls Barkley. Make up for lost time with his terrific new album, The Lady Killer. Amazon, $11.88.
The Lady Killer Photograph by Amazon
Next year is the 150th anniversary of the start of the Civil War. Relive the history with Ken Burns’s classic PBS series. Amazon, $74.99.
The Civil War Photograph by Amazon
Critical darling Friday Night Lights is in its final season. Reward the sports fan in your life, or catch up with the urbane critic, by introducing him or her to life in Dillon, Texas. Amazon, $13.49.
Friday Night Lights: The First Season Photograph by Amazon
Susie J. Horgan’s gorgeous, intimate photos of her friends in DC’s emerging punk scene provide a great look at Washington’s spikiest indigenous music. Amazon, $19.
Punk Love Photograph by Amazon
If you need a really toxic Yankee Swap gift, may we suggest this wildly unrevealing Salahi tell-all? Amazon, $14.39.
Cirque du Salahi Photograph by Amazon
The recession has brought back workplace comedies and dramas, but none yet top one of the funniest—and craziest: 1991’s Soapdish, starring Sally Field, Kevin Klein, Robert Downey Jr., Whoopi Goldberg, Elisabeth Shue, and Terri Hatcher. Amazon, from $4.35.
Soapdish Photograph by Amazon
Talk to Me, a great biopic of the DC radio star Petey Greene, was unfairly overlooked on its release. Check it out and savor local scenery as well as Don Cheadle’s terrific performance. Amazon, $11.49.
Talk to Me Photograph by Amazon
The Walking Dead is the hottest—and goriest—thing on TV. Catch up on the backstory with the first volume of the Robert Kirkman comics that the show is based on. Amazon, $37.79.
The Walking Dead: Compendium One Photograph by Amazon
Prepare for a season of political intrigue (sans the executions) with Hilary Mantel’s look at life in Henry VIII’s court through Thomas Cromwell’s eyes with the novel Wolf Hall. Amazon, $10.29.
Wolf Hall Photograph by Amazon
