THERE were some real stand out books this year, albeit none of them seemed to make a dent on the usual literary prizes. I especially recommend for Christmas stockings and for getting the new year off to a fine start:

Sapiens, a brief history of mankind by Yuval Noah Harari – will make you think again

The burning room by Michael Connelly – masterful cop plot

The buried giant by Kazuo Ishiguro – inexplicably not listed for any of the big fiction prizes, a towering work