we have come up with a few choices of books we think would be good to read over the summer..the dilemma is we want you to select your choice for the July Book of the Month from them

hope you like the choices I think there is something there for everyone, we have added the books suggested by members as well as others recommended in various reviews or that are similar to ones already selected as previous book of the month choices...... hopefully there will be an outright choice.....if there are any you think we should add to a future poll then please add them into the suggestions thread

If you have read any already then let other members know why they should or shouldnt vote for them!!

so here they are.....along with a brief synopsis and a link to the TA Chat bookshop in case you want to read more reviews or order them.

Remeber its not too late to join us in the book club and post your reviews and opinions of books we have read

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Dorothy Koomson

What would you do for the friend who broke your heart? Best friends Kamryn Matika and Adele Brannon thought nothing could come between them - until Adele did the unthinkable and slept with Kamryn's fiance, Nate. Worse still, she got pregnant and had his child. When Kamryn discovered the truth about their betrayal she vowed never to see any of them again. Two years later, Kamryn receives a letter from Adele asking her to visit her in hospital. Adele is dying and begs Kamryn to adopt her daughter, Tegan. With a great job and a hectic social life, the last thing Kamryn needs is a five year old to disrupt things. Especially not one who reminds her of Nate. But with no one else to take care of Tegan and Adele fading fast, does she have any other choice? So begins a difficult journey that leads Kamryn towards forgiveness, love, responsibility and, ultimately, a better understanding of herself.

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Elizabeth Kostova

Elizabeth Kostova's fast-paced novel plunges the reader into a world of evil secrets, sinister histories, dark pasts and a shockingly vibrant version of Dracula with a rather terrifying taste for librarians... An ingenious book!

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Ben Sherwood

Heartwarming and uplifting novel examining love in all its guises. As a boy, Charlie St Cloud narrowly survived a car crash that killed Sam, his little brother. Years later, still unable to recover from his loss, Charlie has taken a job tending to the lawns and monuments in the New England cemetery where Sam is buried. When he meets Tess Carroll, a captivating, adventurous woman in training for a solo sailing trip around the globe, they discover a beautiful and uncommon connection that, after a violent storm at sea, eventually forces them to choose between death and live, past and present, holding on and letting go. The Death and Life of Charlie St Cloud is a romantic and uplifting novel about second chances and the liberating power of love.

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Lesley Pearse

The Queen of Storytellers is back - with a triumphant tale of one woman's struggle over adversity. In 1786 a fisherman's daughter from Cornwall called Mary Broad was sentenced to be hung for theft. But her sentence was commuted, and she was transported to Australia, one of the first convicts to arrive there. How Mary escaped the harsh existence of the colony and found true love, and how she was captured and taken back to London in chains, only to be released after a trial where she was defended by no less than James Boswell, is one of the most gripping and moving stories of human endeavour (based on an amazing true story) you will ever read.

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Deborah Rodriguez

Account of an American hairdresser who went to Afghanistan and helped set up a beauty school to train and empower women who could then work in their own businesses and have money that was independent of their husbands/ fathers/ brothers. Tells of the situation in the area - and the stories of some of the students.

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John Grogan

John and Jenny were just beginning their life together. They were young and in love, with a perfect little house and not a care in the world. Then they bought home Marley, a wiggly yellow fur ball of a puppy. Life would never be the same. Marley quickly grew into a barrelling, ninety-seven pound steamroller of a Labrador retriever, a dog like no other. This is the heartwarming and unforgettable story of a family in the making and the wondrously neurotic dog who taught them what really matters in life.

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Kate Saunders

In Edwardian England a vow of friendship is a thing of innocence. Even when tested by the passionate militancy of the suffragette movement or the rigorous demands of the Season, the bonds between Rory, Eleanor, Jenny and Francesca hold fast. But nothing can withstand the onslaught of World War I.

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Yann Martel

Reading Life of Pi, you find yourself at the mercy of a great storyteller. Yann Martel will dazzle you with his prose and his mastery of arcane facts, and challenges you to believe his story. You will be left with a better understanding of animals, including man, and much to ponder and question. Life of Pi is a delicious treat to savour.

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David Mitchell

In a novel spread across six chapters set in varied times and places, the essence of what makes us human echoes distantly carrying the voices of these lost people through the clouds. These six seemingly disparate plots come together in a startlingly coherent book that is a genuine thrill and delight to read.

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Alice Sebold

The story of a teenage girl who, after being brutally raped and murdered, watches from heaven as her family and friends go on with their lives, while she herself comes to terms with her own death.

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Markus Zusak

Set during World War II in Germany is the story of Liesel Meminger, a foster girl living outside of Munich. Liesel scratches out a meager existence for herself by stealing when she encounters something she can’t resist–books. With the help of her accordion-playing foster father, she learns to read and shares her stolen books with her neighbours during bombing raids as well as with the Jewish man hidden in her basement before he is marched to Dachau.

Have voted for the book thief as it's the next book I am going to read

The only book on the lost I have read is Kabul Beauty School and I would recommend it as a great read. There are a lot of books around at the moment about Afghanistan and this one looks at the situation from the women's point of view, with the help of an outsider. While the book itself is a good read, the topic opened my eyes a bit to the lives of the ordinary people in Afghanistan. A book I will read again - and I don't do that often!

Remember me is fantastic. As well as a good fictional story it is really interesting to understand the historical context of the first convicts being shipped to Australia.

I am now on Lesley Pearce's 5th book and I haven't read a bad one yet. But overall remember me is the most memorial one.

Went to the library yesterday and got Remember Me, The Life and Death of Charlie St Cloud and Cloud Atlas - not a bad haul

well done Shirazee you can let us know what they are like!

Started reading Remember Me yesterday & realised within a page or two that I've read it before carried on reading it as it was several years ago & I remembered it being a really good book - nearly halfway through now

any more votes...???

I've gone for The Book Thief - it's already in my 'To Read Soon' pile!

Have read Lovely Bones - I really enjoyed this one, very moving.
I couldn't get in to Life of Pi - found it quite slow.

ok going to go with the top 2 choices for July and August

so for July

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Lesley Pearse

and for August

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Markus Zusak

hope you enjoy them

Just over half way through the book thief and am really enjoying it

Tried to start Cloud Atlas last night but couldn't get into it at all, went back to the library today & found My Best Friend's Girl which I've definitely been able to get into

excellent. I'll take the book theif on holiday with me

i will be reading that on holiday too