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:

Probably very good, but not my cup of tea

Dry by Neal and Jarrod Shusterman

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The only reason I read this is because of a coworker.  She was super into it, and wanted our department to read it as a mini book club.  So I picked it up, and I could tell it wasn’t my preferred reading genre. This is realistic fiction, and it’s a little too real for me.  And depressing. And I was reading this while listening to The Book Thief, and that was waaaaay too much depressing at once.     The basic premise is that Colorado […]

Sometimes it’s best to get out while you still can

Mr. Darcy's Debt by April Floyd

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Another foray into the world of Pride and Prejudice variations.  I’m not sure how I feel about this one.  In the prologue, Mr. Thomas Bennet is a young man who is friends with the Fitzwilliam family siblings, including Bertram, Reginald, Anne (who will be Darcy’s mother) and Catherine (who will be Lady Catherine).  The party goes ice skating, and Thomas ends up saving Bertram and Anne’s lives, but Bertram ultimately succumbs to the illness that follows. Grateful that his sister is safe, Bertram vows that […]

An adorable graphic novel series

Zita the Spacegirl by Ben Hatke

Legends of Zita the Spacegirl by Ben Hatke

The Return of Zita the Spacegirl by Ben Hatke

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I am super happy that I picked up this series.  Ben Hatke is the author of one of my favorite picture books (Julia’s Home for Lost Creatures) and I got my copy signed at the New York Comic Con last year.  (He’s super nice, by the way!) He asked if I had read Zita yet, and I told him I had not, but would put her on my TBR list.  And then I found out that this year’s Summer Reading theme in our library is […]

Books about books

Otto the Book Bear by Katie Cleminson

A Child of Books by Oliver Jeffers and Sam Winston

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A Child of Books By Oliver Jeffers and Sam Winston   This isn’t just a picture book.  It’s a work of art! There is so much packed into these few pages.  The story is simple. A child of books (real or imagined, we don’t quite know, and it doesn’t really matter) is introducing a boy to her world.  I could definitely see this being made into a short film, but the problem with that would be people constantly pausing to read what was on the […]

The results of raiding the library where I now work

Bedtime is Canceled by Cece Meng

Help! We Need a Title! by Hervé Tullet

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I work in the Youth Services department of a library now, so I can totally take out picture books for “work” and no one thinks twice about it!  It’s actually my job now! So I’ve been going through my TBR list for picture books and seeing what they’re all about. I probably won’t actually use either of these for work, not because they aren’t good, but because aren’t suited for my ages for storytime.    Bedtime is Canceled By Cece Meng, Illustrated by Aurélie Neyret […]

Whelp, at least I know what I don’t like

A Knot in the Grain by Robin McKinley

The Door in the Hedge by Robin McKinley

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I thought I liked Robin McKinley.  I remember reading Deerskin and thinking it was really weird, but I thought I read other stuff by her that I liked.  I wonder if it’s a case of seeing her stuff around for a long time and assuming that I had read and liked it.  Well, I can now say I’ve read it, can’t say I’ve liked it. “The Healer” Lily is born mute, but with the gift of healing.  She can communicate some things by whistling, but […]



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