Cannonball Read 17

Sticking It to Cancer One Book at a Time

About crystalclear

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Crystalclear can usually think of something clever to say, except when she can't. She has a giant stack of unread books at home but will always find an excuse to buy/acquire/borrow another one. (Learn more about this Cannonballer: crystalclear's Quick Questions interview.)

crystalclear's Reviews:

The enemy’s gate is down

Ender's Game by Orson Scott Card

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This was the book my library chose to have as our Teen Book Club pick for the summer.  It was my suggestion, both because it’s an awesome book and because we had multiple copies in our library.  I was supposed to have a grand total of *one* teen show up today, and instead I got *zero.* Sadness.  This was one of my favorite books in high school, enough that I read the sequels, which are weird AF.  (My suggestion: skip them, and read the Ender’s […]

Fans of Marissa Meyer’s Lunar Chronicles will also enjoy this new novel

The Kingdom by Jess Rothenberg

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The Kingdom is an amusement park far in the future.  It is a complete fantasy land, and can make any dream come true.  (It’s Disney on steroids.) To help with that, there are Fantasists, who are half human, half android hybrids.  There are seven ‘princesses,’ and they have been developed to be perfect. They are designed to learn and grow, and of course things start to go wrong.   The girls have strict rules and schedules, for their safety, they’re told.  They cannot access the internet […]

Sometimes a trip takes a bad turn

The Secret of the Stone Frog by David Nytra

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Another selection from the library book sale, I initially picked this one up because it was in really good condition.  A hardcover graphic novel that was initially published in 2012, this copy is pristine.  I don’t know why it didn’t circulate enough to get weeded out of the collection, but perhaps the black and white illustrations were not enough to catch the eye of children browsing.  It seems that either bright colors or manga style art move the best, and this has neither of those. […]

Sometimes the editors miss stuff…

Briar and Rose and Jack by Katherine Coville

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Overall, this was a delightful story, and I do recommend it!  It’s a combination of Sleeping Beauty and Jack and the Beanstalk.  The Queen gives birth to twins, but the first baby has deformed features and is deemed unsuitable to be the heir.  Luckily, the second baby is perfect. Due to some quick thinking on the Queen’s part, the first baby is going to be raised as the daughter of a distant Duke who passed away, but brought to the castle to be a playmate […]

You can always learn something, even amid explosion sound effects

Rivals! Frienemies Who Changed the World by Scott McCormick

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They say this is for ages 8 and up, and the sound effects and voices help with that, but there really is a lot of information in this! After finishing my other Audible Original for the month of July, The Grown-Up Guide to Dinosaurs, I thought I was pretty caught up on my dino knowledge.  Turns out, nope! That didn’t even mention anything (that I remember) that was featured in this section!  Maybe it was due to the fact that that one was made in […]

Not all heroes wear capes, but some do!

Cape by Kate Hannigan

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I picked this up mainly for the cover.  It is bright and makes me think the story inside is going to be exciting.  And it is! Our story follows Josie O’Malley, an Irish-American (I think she’s an immigrant, but she might be first-generation.)  She spends her time working at a diner to help out with the household expenses, which is a big help since her father is fighting in WWII.  She is also trying to control her temper while trying to fight the injustices she […]



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