Book Smart: The Top 10 Books To Give At Christmas

Titled Dior / Lindbergh, this book is the last of the famed photographer's projects with the French house. The first volume sees 70 years of Dior history projected onto the urban jungle of Times Square, as Lindbergh beauties like Alek Wek, Karen Elson, and Freja Beha Erichsen show off traffic-stopping looks from the maison's archives. The second spans some of the photographer's greatest works for the French house, collated from his personal archive as well as various publications from all around the world. 

Dior / Lindbergh, by Peter Lindbergh. Two-volume box set, New York and Archives, Taschen editions. 

504 pages, 11 inserts, and 1000 photos make up this impressive 6.8kg tome, offering a filter-free, text-free dive into Rihanna's universe, from her childhood in Barbados to sell-out world tours, the intimate moments shared with her family, and behind the scenes of her creative work.

Rihanna (trade edition), by Rihanna, Phaidon editions.

Signed and numbered by the artist, whose works are among the most expensive in the world, this book is the meeting between the tangible and the intangible. Gathering 120 drawings by David Hockney, done on his iPad and iPhone, the project stands at the sometimes irreconcilable intersection between technology and art. The British artist was inspired by the his garden, observed season after season from the window of his house.

David Hockney: My Window, Taschen Editions.

Currently the subject of an exceptional exhibition at the Fashion & Lace Museum in Brussels on the occasion of her 30th birthday, Carine Gilson has unveiled her very first book, Garden of Lace. A true tribute to her expertise, the book traces the myriad sources of inspiration for the designer, from sumptuous pieces of lingerie to wedding dresses and the history of Chantilly silk and Lyon lace.

Garden of Lace, by Karen Van Godtsenhoven, Caroline Esgain and Carine Gilson, Marked By Lannoo editions. 

Images of archival sketches, celebrity advertisements, and the life of the celebrated couturier... Dior, Moments of Joy offers us these small moments in the daily life of a mega fashion house. Henri Cartier-Bresson, Ellen von Unwerth, and Guy Bourdin are all there in the pages, not to mention the late Peter Lindbergh. 

Dior, moments of joy, by Muriel Teodori, Flammarion editions.

Photographed by Walter Chandoha, the images grouped in this book follow the evolution of the culture of small cats in the United States. A tribute not only to these little creatures, but also to a remarkable artist who died this year at the age of 98 and whose compassion can be felt in each setting. Through his work, Chandoha sought to represent the relationship between humans and pets in the years following the WWII. The man felt three elements were necessary to capture the perfect shot of an animal: patience, food, and sound. His secret? He used a tin can to make a group of cats look in the same direction for the perfect shot. 

Cats: Photographs 1942-2018, by Walter Chandoha, Taschen Editions.

To celebrate 30 years of work, Fabienne Delvigne has released an exclusive work entitled Sublimating through difference. The book brims with the milliner's exquisite creations, evidence of the talent of this Belgian entrepreneur and perfectionist, who for over 20 years has enjoyed the honorary title of "milliner of the Queen". 

Sublimating through difference, Marot editions. 

An astronaut, dancer, computer scientist, and paleontologist; muse of Dior, Karl Lagerfeld, Christian Louboutin, and Jean Paul Gaultier; a children's game and an adult's mascot; an influencer with more than a million followers - Barbie celebrates her 60th birthday this year with this richly illustrated book.  

Barbie: Sixty years of inspiration, Assouline editions. 

For some of the shots in this book, Stephen Wilkes had to wait without moving for more than 30 hours. Moments suspended in time, where the man was waiting and watching in order to capture the details as closely as possible. Dubbed Day to Night, his new book presents 60 breathtaking landscapes, carefully selected by the photographer. Captured over a period of almost 10 years between 2009 and 2018, the panoramas are those of places like the Champs-Elysees, Trafalgar Square, the Red Square in Russia, Coney Island, and many more. For each composition, the artist has shown incredible patience, like a shot of Pope Francis captured while celebrating Easter Mass at the Vatican,for which he had to wait two years for authorisation. The results are simply breathtaking. 

Day to Night, by Stephen Wilkes and Lyle Rexer, Taschen editions. 

The funniest and sharpest of fashion journalists, Loïc Prigent is back with a new book that promises to be a collector's edition. A compilation of some of the quirkiest quotes from fashion, like "She has an allergy to simplicity", or "You only say that when I wear my Chanel bag", these short sentences mix humour with antipathy, revealing all the frenzy and absurdity of the fashion industry.

Pass me the champagne, I have a cat in the throat, by Loïc Prigent, Grasset editions.