Almost a year ago my husband and I began to work on another brand.  It’s called “The Amygdalab” and it was conceived out of our love for science, history, and literature.  When we started working on the idea our hope was to create a series of fun conversation pieces that were clever nods to the joy of learning.  Another frustration we were trying to address was finding gifts for book lovers in our families as well as friends who are avid readers. Buying them gift cards for book stores every year for Christmas became boring and we wanted to make something we could surprise them with. Our first attempt at realizing this vision is a fun set of literary-themed coasters.

Anyone who has spent some time in British pubs will know that it’s not uncommon for each establishment to have its own unique coasters.  My husband loves things like this and set out to envision what kinds of pubs and bars might be found in some of our favorite works of classic literature.  After some time we came up with a long list of ideas and decided on four of them to have made first. 

So is there a perfect literary gift for English majors, or a gift for geeks and nerds they will truly appreciate?

It was a tough decision but we felt that our first set of literary themed coasters should show some range in both genre and design.  After all, this was to be our first attempt at a product for the brand and we couldn’t be sure if there would be a second.  We ultimately settled on the designs for Moby Dick, The Jungle Book, The Odyssey, and Alice in Wonderland and came up with a signature cocktail for each.

Moby Dick

For Moby Dick we imagined that after the incident on the Pequod, Ishmael returned to Nantucket to set up his own tavern on the docks.  There he could stay safely on land while he recounted his tragic tale to any whaler that would listen, all while serving up the tavern’s signature cocktail “The White Whale”.  At Ishmael’s Seaside Tavern anyone can down a White Whale, so long as their happy with it being a modified take on a Gimlet.

The Jungle Book

While most people associate Rudyard Kipling’s The Jungle Book with the story of Mowgli, the boy raised by wolves, it actually contains a number of other short stories filled with other interesting characters.  Our favourite was always Rikki-Tikki-Tavi, the story of a pet mongoose that saves his adoptive family from cobras.  As a nod to this lovable hero and tropical region he hails from, we figured nothing would be more suitable than Rikki “Tiki” Tavi’s, a Tiki bar that serves up fruity India inspired spiced cocktails like the Mango Mongoose. 

The Odyssey

Perhaps no story in Western Literature is more iconic than The Odyssey.  With all the places that Odysseus was made to visit, our choices for inspiration were numerous.  However, only one location stood out to us as the perfect place for a cleverly named pub.  Famous for their pork dishes, Circe’s Bar and Grill is place where you could literally “Come in, and pig out.”  We call their signature drink, the Holy Moly after the plant that supposedly saved Odysseus from Circe’s enchantment.  It is a creamy desert cocktail with hints of honey, orange, and cinnamon that pulls inspiration from rozoli, a similarly flavoured liqueur from Odysseus home in Ionia.

Alice In Wonderland

Finally, there’s The Rabbit Hole; a place we always like to make our first stop when we find ourselves heading in to Wonderland.  Their bright red signature drink The Queen of Hearts is a raspberry lover’s dream.  Just be careful, too many and you’ll lose your head.

We went through a lot of effort coordinating with a factory in China to produce this set of bookish coasters for drinks, but it paid off and we’re happy with the results.  Our manufacturer was able to create a set of colorful, cork-backed, ceramic that has clear, vibrant printing without sacrificing absorbency. 

Measuring 3.9” (10cm) in diameter, the coasters are large enough to be used as beverage coasters, cup coasters, beer mats, glass coasters, coffee table placemats or to keep wine glasses. Easy to clean with just a rinse or a detergent wash. The coaster designs are vibrant and the stone top and cork bottom lining make them ideal for all places. 

They’ve gotten a lot of comments from our guests when we leave them out, and been the impetus for many fun and stimulating conversations. Featuring the great literature classics, these are the best gifts for book lovers. Also they are a great conversation piece put out when you have your friends & family over. Since they are super absorbent, there’s the added benefit of no stains on our table while the conversations carry on.

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For the moment we’ve made our literary themed coasters for drinks available on Amazon.com to see what reception they get.  If things go well, we hope to release other sets of coasters as well as other intellectually stimulating oddities.  We like to think they’re gifts for book lovers.  Should you decide to get a set for a friend or yourself, we’d love to get your feedback!

What is your favorite gift for book lovers?