The Tao of Pooh and The Te of Piglet - Benjamin Hoff

Pooh has a certain way of doing things which Hoff has realised relates closely to the ancient principles of Taoist philosophy. As for piglet he has the Virtue of the Small (or Chinese for Te). Hoff explains the basic principles of these Chinese philosophies using examples from the Classic Winnie the Pooh Tales.

Fasting, Feasting - Anita Desai

Uma the plain spinster daughter of a close-knit Indian family is trapped at home, smothered by her overbearing parents and their traditions, unlike her ambitious younger sister Aruna, who brings off a "good" marriage and brother Arun, the disappointing son and heir who is studying in America.

Almost Moon - Alice Sebold

A woman steps over the line into the unthinkable in this searing portrait of a to-the-death struggle between a mother and a daughter. Clair Knightly and her daughter Helen are locked in a relationship so unrelenting that it has sucked the air out of both of their lives. And as this electrifying novel opens, Helen crosses a boundary she never dreamt she would even approach. But while her act is almost unconscious, it also seems like the fulfillment of a lifetime's buried desire. Over the next twenty-four hours, Helen's life rushes in at her as she confronts the choices that have brought her to this crossroads. A woman who has spent a lifetime trying to win the love of a mother who had none to spare, she now faces an uncertain and dangerous freedom.

In "The Almost Moon", Sebold explores the complex ties within families, the meaning of devotion and the fragility of the boundary that separates us from our darkest impulses. This is an unforgettable novel, a raw and powerful story, written with the clarity and insight that only Alice Sebold can bring to the page.

Picture Perfect - Jodie Picoult

A woman wakes to find herself in a graveyard, hurt and bleeding, her memory wiped clean. She doesn't know what she's doing there - or even who she is.She is rescued by a police officer, himself a newcomer to Los Angeles. After days of waiting, she is taken by complete surprise when she is finally identified by Alex Rivers, Hollywood's biggest movie star - and her husband.Cassie is dazzled and bewildered by the fairytale in which she suddenly finds herself. But everything is not quite right, and there is something dark and disturbing behind this glamorous facade. It is only as her memory gradually returns that her picture perfect life comes crumbling down, and Cassie is faced with choices she never dreamed she would have to make.

Down Under - Bill Bryson

Bill Bryson turns his roving eye to Australia, the only island that is also a continent and the only continent that is also a country. It is the driest, flattest, most desiccated, infertile and climatically aggressive of all the inhabited continents. It has more things that can kill you in a very nasty way that anywhere else. Yet when Bill Bryson travelled to Australia he promptly fell in love with the country. And who can blame him? The people are cheerful, the cities safe and clean, the food is excellent, the beer is cold and the sun nearly always shines. He tries to find out why Aussies are so cool, digging up a past that reveals convicts, explorers, gold diggers and outlaws.

The Snowman - Jo Nesbo

A young boy wakes to find his mother missing. Their house is empty but outside he sees his mothers favourite scarf - wrapped around a snowman.  Harry Hole, the leading detective finds an alarming number of wives and mothers have gone missing over the years and he finds himself searching for a serial killer.

Zuitoun - Dave Eggers

In August 2005 Hurricane Katrina destroyed most of New Orleans city. Most residents had abounded the city before she struck, but Zuitoun stayed behind to look after the properties he had so carefully built and managed.  Whilst in the city he began to rescue some of his fellow neighbours and look after their dogs, however things were about to take an ugly turn. His wife who had fled to keep the family safe could only learn through brief phone calls and radio and TV broadcasts the horrors that were truly unfolding in the city.