iPad and iPod touch books show off TUAW pride

There's a Yiddish word, naches, that doesn't refer to tortilla chips with kosher sour cream; it translates literally as 'joy' but with a strong connotation of pride and pleasure in the achievements of family or friends. It is, therefore, with substantial naches that we point to the work of several TUAW contributors gracing bookstore shelves near you.

First up, from authors Michael Grothaus and Steve Sande with technical review by Erica Sadun, Apress' Taking Your iPad to the Max delivers a thorough guide to the magical and revolutionary tablet for both new buyers and existing owners. Retail price is $29.99, and Amazon will be happy to deliver it to you in plenty of time for the holidays.

Second, Michael and Erica collaborated on the Taking Your iPod touch to the Max volume, also from Apress. The book guides iPod touch owners through all the information they'll need to make the most of their new devices, and it looks very pretty sitting under the tree with a new iPod. The book is $24.99 at retail.

It's possible that longtime TUAW readers may already know a good bit of the information in these books, but there's always the chance to learn something new -- and for those family members or friends who are new to the world of iDevices, one of these books would be a great way to get them rolling.