Cannonball Read 17

Sticking It to Cancer One Book at a Time

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From the US. Living in the UK. Used to review under the name Lollygagger. (Learn more about this Cannonballer: ASKReviews' Quick Questions interview - as Lollygagger.)

ASKReviews's Reviews:

Nice Little Encyclopedia of Trivia

The Book of London Place Names by Caroline Taggart

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Best for: Those who like to have access to basic trivia about places they live or visit. In a nutshell: Author Taggart provides some history in an accessible way. Worth quoting: “…no one seems to be sure, but there was probably once …” (Seriously, it seems like for half the names, this is the answer.) Why I chose it: Moved to London. Wanted to learn more. Review: I think this is the last of the books I bought on sort of a whim when I […]

I Should Have Liked It More

The Blind Assassin by Margaret Atwood

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Best for: Me, I thought, but apparently not, as I was not able to get through it all. In a nutshell: Oh boy. Iris’s sister has driven herself off a bridge and is dead. Then there’s another book, a science-fiction-y type book. Then Iris is a child, and we learn about her life growing up. Apparently later on there are many twists. Worth quoting: “Farewells can be shattering, but returns are surely worse. Solid flesh can never live up to the bright shadow case by […]

Some Tips I Can Use Now, Some I Can Use Later

Waste Not: Make a Big Difference by Throwing Away Less by Erin Rhoads

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Best for: Anyone looking for ways to to reduce their waste across multiple areas of their life and home. In a nutshell: Author Rhoads provides tips, suggestions, examples, and recipes for ways we can make more things ourselves and rely less on single-use items. Worth quoting: N/A Why I chose it: I was at an exhibition about food growth, distribution, and waste, and they were selling this book. Review: This book is great for its genre. It’s not oblivious to the benefits of plastic (the […]

More Travel Guide Than Fun Facts

I Never Knew That About London by Christopher Winn

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Best for: Someone on a walking tour of London boroughs (with a well-fitted backpack to hold the book, because it is heavy). In a nutshell: A sort of abbreviated encyclopedia about central London. Worth quoting: N/A Why I chose it: When I first moved back to London a couple of years ago, I went through a phase of buying a lot of trivia-type books about London and England. I read a few, then stopped. Thought while I’m unable to go exploring the city as I […]

A Bit of Perspective

The Salt Path by Raynor Winn

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Best for: Those who like nature writing; those who appreciate quality narrative non-fiction; those who just want to remember what it is list to be outside. In a nutshell: Ray and Moth and in their 50s with two grown children. They have lost their home, which is also their farm and livelihood, to a sketchy business partner and a punitive judge. A couple of days later, Moth receives a diagnosis of a terminal neurological disorder. The decide to sell what they have left, store what […]

Housing Is a Human Right

Evicted: Poverty and Profit in the American City by Matthew Desmond

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Best For: Those interested in poverty, society, and housing. People who appreciate less academic, more narrative non-fiction books. In a nutshell: Ethnographer Desmond follows a couple of landlords (really slumlords) and a handful of tenants through housing struggles. Worth quoting: Landlords were allowed to rent units with property code violations, and even units that did not meet “basic habitability requirements,” as long as they were up front about the problems. Between 2007 and 2010, the average white family experienced an 11 percent reduction in wealth, […]



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