Profile Books has reissued an updated batch of its Economist A-Z Guides series, written by journalists on the eminent magazine. The latest ones include The Economist A-Z Guide to Economics by Matthew Bishop, the Economist's current New York bureau chief. (Other revamped titles include Investment, Directors and Negotiation.) The A-Z format doesn't do anything for me, but this is obviously a reliable and clear guide to basic concepts which many non-economists in your life will find useful as a reference work. What's more, it's a pocket paperback and so (although slightly cheekily priced at just under £10, compared to £8 for similar-sized books)  not too expensive.