Matthew Raptis of Raptis Rare Books was recently featured in the Palm Beach Daily News in the article below:
Book store owners in Palm Beach choose best books to read and give for holidays
The holidays can provide a perfect opportunity to grab a quiet moment with a great book — while also providing a great opportunity to give a special book to someone you love.
Palm Beach offers an embarrassment of riches for book lovers from four distinct bookstores, each offering a selection of tomes that could be the perfect item to grab on your way out of town for the holiday, to give as a hostess gift or to wrap and place under the tree.
The Daily News asked the owners of each bookstore — Classic Bookshop, Palm Beach Book Store, Raptis Rare Books and Assouline — to share their picks for the best books to read or give this holiday season.
Raptis Rare Books
Matthew Raptis, proprietor of Raptis Rare Books, selected these books that are available at his store at 329 Worth Ave.
“A History of the English-Speaking Peoples” by Winston Churchill: This collection of four volumes “stands out for its masterful blend of vivid storytelling, historical insight, and national pride, offering a compelling narrative of the development of English-speaking societies from ancient times to the modern era,” Raptis said. “A compelling read and Churchill’s last great work, published between 1956 and 1958.”
“The Great Gatsby” by F. Scott Fitzgerald: Considered Fitzgerald’s masterpiece, this 1925 novel tells the story of the enigmatic Jay Gatsby and his love of the beautiful Daisy. “An intricately patterned, vivid depiction of The Jazz Age, it remains a timeless literary classic and contender for the title ‘Great American Novel,'” Raptis said.
“The Catcher in the Rye” by J.D. Salinger: Lead character Holden Caulfield experiences the range of teen emotions in this groundbreaking work from Salinger. The novel “captures the raw emotions of adolescence, exploring themes of identity, alienation, and the search for meaning, all through the voice of its uniquely relatable protagonist, Holden Caulfield,” Raptis said.
“Casino Royale” by Ian Fleming: The first novel in Fleming’s James Bond series — which would grow into a major cultural phenomenon and later be adapted three times for the screen — “introduced one of the world’s most famous fictional spies, James Bond, in a masterful blending of espionage, high-stakes gambling, and thrilling action,” Raptis said.
For more information, visit RaptisRareBooks.com.
