Must-have coffee table books for your living room

No one can travel all the time, but you can escape with this gorgeous travel book from Lonely Planet anytime you want. Detailing the top 500 best travel spots, it has beautiful photos and secrets from both the most-visited and lesser-known destinations. 

Lonely Planet's Ultimate Travel 1st Edition, $36, chapters.indigo.ca.

BUY NOW

Do you ever look at a cloud and see a something else? This book is all about artwork—the kind that's made using flora and fauna instead of paint. Meditative, inspirational, and activity-based, it walks the reader through intricately arranged petals, rocks and more. 

Foraged Art by Peter Cole and Leslie Jonath, $27, amazon.ca.

BUY NOW

This beautiful book features never-before-seen artwork of yokai, monsters in Japanese folklore. Unique, historic and timely, this book is for art enthusiasts or anyone who loves a good story. 

Yokai Wonderland by Koichi Yumoto, $35, amazon.ca.

BUY NOW 

This is the classic coffee table book everyone should own. A New York Times Bestseller, this is the book based on the popular blog of the same name. Stunning photos of ordinary people are accompanied by their funny, heart wrenching and ultimately human, stories. 

Humans of New York: Stories by Brandon Stanton, $34, chapters.indigo.ca.

BUY NOW

Taking care of indoor plants can be complicated and intimidating, but not with the right tools. This book is your all-in-one guide to plant care (and by extension, self care). It's a book that's interesting to read and pretty to look at even when you're not reading it. 

Living with Plants: A Guide to Indoor Gardening by Sophie Lee, $35, chapters.indigo.ca.

BUY NOW

If you ever dreamed of living in a tree house as a child (or have children of your own), you'll want a copy of this book. As a Globe & Mail bestseller, it contains photographs of 50 different tree houses from around the world. 

Tree Houses: Fairy Tale Castles in the Air by Philip Jodidio, from $9.50, amazon.ca.

BUY NOW

When you can't take a stroll through an art gallery, this is the book to pick up. Detailing the journey of artistic styles throughout the ages, this book features artworks, illustrations and interesting commentary. Be inspired! 

A Chronology of Art by Iain Zaczek, $40, chapters.indigo.ca.

BUY NOW

Many fashion books are inaccessible for anyone but a professional fashion designer, but this one provides a good overview. It guides the viewer through the changes in fashion over the decades and the impact on our society. Including images from famous fashion photographers, this book is not to be missed. 

Fashion Photography: The Story in 180 Pictures by Eugenie Shrinkle, $48.50, amazon.ca.

BUY NOW

For those of us who are foodies, a cookbook lying on the coffee table wouldn't be out of character. Kinfolk is about bringing people together through food. Featuring stories of tastemakers and their recipes, this is a guide to easy entertaining you can use for any gathering.

The Kinfolk Table by Nathan Williams, $53, chapters.indigo.ca.

BUY NOW

Although this isn't a technically a coffee table book in the normal sense, it's something you'll want hanging around your home if you love literature. It's a compilation of the best stories by up-and-coming writers in Canada. This year's anthology goes on sale September 25, 2018, so you may have to wait if you want a copy!

The Journey Prize Stories 30, $20, amazon.ca.

BUY NOW

There's a reason this book made it on the New York Times Bestseller list. Foraged Flora is an inspirational book on beautiful wildflower gathering and arranging. If you've always wanted to have a rotating vase of flowers in your home, this is a good way to start.

Foraged Flora: A Year of Gathering and Arranging Wild Plants and Flowers, $39, amazon.ca.

BUY NOW

If you're into something more text-based, this coffee table book will have you on the edge of your seat. Containing a collection of short stories from different countries and time periods, it follows characters in their search for wholeness and healing. 

The Mountain: Stories by Paul Yoon, $34, chapters.indigo.ca.

BUY NOW

This book is a celebration of the diversity of beauty around the world. Photographer and author Mihaela Noroc took her camera to over 50 countries to capture photos of women in their homes, cities and streets. Gathered into a gorgeous hardcover, these photos speak to women's lives across the globe.  

The Atlas of Beauty: Women of the World in 500 Portraits by Mihaela Noroc, $40, chapters.indigo.ca.

BUY NOW

Flip through this book and start dreaming, because it's all about doing the things you've always wanted to do. Whether your dream is to go on a daring travel expedition, accomplish exciting activities or learn a new skill, The Bucket List will get you inspired. 

The Bucket List: 100 Adventures & Small by Kath Stathers, $35, urbanoutfitters.com.

BUY NOW