I recently ran a question survey via SurveyMonkey and Goodreads to discover people’s ‘most romantics’. For the question ‘What is the most romantic gift?’, the results were as follows:

• Book: 38%
• Jewellery: 28%
• Flowers: 25%
• Lingerie: 9%

Given that I ran one part of the survey on Goodreads, I expect many participants are book lovers! If you are not a book lover, I am sure the jewellery and/or flowers will do nicely instead.

That a book can be the most romantic gift may be a surprise, because of course we associate romance with gifts like flowers and chocolates. But I think the whole point of a romantic gift is that you are saying to someone, ‘I love you, and I wanted to show that I love you by giving you something that, knowing you as I do, I think you will like.’

The romantic book gift may go either of two ways:

• Your partner gives you a book you’d really like to have. If you’re passionate about horror stories, for example, your partner could buy you the latest release from your favourite writer; or perhaps he sources a special edition of Frankenstein. Your partner may remember you talking about a book you’d like to read, or think that because you enjoyed the film, you’ll love the book. Even better is when the gift is unique in some way – a first edition or signed edition, for example. A perfect gift can be tracking down a book someone remembers from the past that is no longer in print; I recommend http://www.abebooks.com/ for hunting down vintage books.
• The book itself is romantic. It’s a collection of romantic poems (I’ve always loved Elizabeth Barrett Browning), or a classic romance novel like Pride and Prejudice, or perhaps even a children’s book that conveys the message ‘I love you’. Or, even better, it’s a handmade book or one created personally through a platform like Blurb.com. Or perhaps a piece of book art, or one that is special beyond the words – an intricate pop-up book, say. Or a book your partner has had written just for you.

The possibilities are endless, and so inspiring! Whatever the book, because of the spirit in which it is given, it is one you will treasure forever. And that, I think, is precious and much longer-lasting than a bunch of roses or a box of caramels. Or a diamond ring? The survey says yes, but I confess I do also adore jewellery…