Cannonball Read 17

Sticking It to Cancer One Book at a Time

About Chris

CBR11 participant

Hi, it's me. Really, I hate these bio things. I like to read.

Chris's Reviews:

Been there, but it isn’t bad

The Bear and the Nightingale by Katherine Arden

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I really wanted to like this much more than I did. However, parts of the book are very been there and done that. What makes the book stand out is the use Russian folklore and setting. Arden really does have the knowledge that makes the world believable. In fact, the best parts of the book are the ones where the heroine is growing up. These are so beautifully written, and quite frankly are the reason why the book rates three stars from me. When the […]

Must Read

As Long as Grass Grows by Dina Gilio-Whitaker

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Disclaimer: I won a copy via a Librarything giveaway. I suppose I could just say that I was reading this on the way back from work and when I looked up, somehow, the trolley had gotten to one stop from mine without me knowing. It was that absorbing. Gilio-Whitaker makes what might have been a somewhat dull topic and engages the reader. But I suppose you want more than that. When I mentioned I was reading this book to my friend who teaches in the […]

Beautiful

Kuessipan by Naomi Fontaine

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Early in her novel, Fontaine writes, “. . .the grey skin of a man who is too young for the varnished wooden box with its gilt pattern and golden handles” (13). A beautiful and tragic sentence, which in many ways sums up this slim novel. It isn’t so much a novel but more a collection of prose poems about the life of a reservation. The characters, if that is the right terms, are nameless and, for the most part faceless, but that makes it more […]

Fish Boy . . . .Fish Man

Aquaman Vol 1: The Drowning by Dan Abnett

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This is the first straight forward Aquaman comic I’ve read. The artwork isn’t bad. The fact that Mera says my love quite a bit is rather annoying. However, This issue has several great things about it. 1. Mera – she decks Superman (and the reaction to this action is so wonderful). She is also kick ass. 2. The look at how people see Aquaman – how despite being part of the Justice League, he is still a bit outside of the league. He isn’t part […]

Christmas in Paris

A Maigret Christmas and Other Stories by Georges Simenon

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This is the first Maigret that I have read, though it is not the first Simenon that I’ve read. I’ve read this after watching the Rowan Atkinson version of Maigret. And those are great. This book is actually three stories – one of which stars Maigret and his wife, while the other two use characters from the Maigret series. The first story is the title story and is about Maigret solving a mystery on Christmas day when he is at home with his wife. No, […]

Sara Holmes

A Study in Honor by Claire O'Dell

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So, if you are a Sherlock Holmes purist, this is not the book for you. For instance, if you are like my dad who believes the Rathbone movies are the only ones where Sherlock is allowed to be modern, you most likely wouldn’t like this book. (My dad hates the BBC recent Sherlock series. Hates it. I don’t like for it entirely different reasons. My dad, however, admits that Disney’s Great Mouse Detective is good but that’s because Basil is named after Rathbone). I’m not […]



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