ElCicco – Page 47 – Cannonball Read 17

Have you ever thought of books as “small flattish boxes… packed with mystery and threat”?

A Judgement in Stone by Ruth Rendell

March 23, 2021 by ElCicco Leave a Comment

“Eunice Parchman killed the Coverdale family because she could not read or write.” I have to say, I found it weird that Ruth Rendell would start a murder mystery by eliminating the mystery in the very first sentence. It’s been a while since I read any Rendell, but I have always found her murder mysteries to be absorbing and unsettling, which is where the fun is. One would never describe her mysteries as “cozy.” The fact that we readers know the who and the why […]

“…isn’t it simpler to believe that we are all of us what we assume to be?”

The Lady Vanishes by Ethel Lina White

March 17, 2021 by ElCicco Leave a Comment

It never occurred to me that the Hitchcock film The Lady Vanishes, which I have not seen, was based upon a novel. I forget how I even came across this one, but I like a good mystery and figured this would not disappoint. Turns out, this mystery is an amazingly suspenseful thriller, with the threat of evil and psychological imbalance on nearly every page. The Lady Vanishes, originally published in 1936 as The Wheel Spins, keeps both the reader and the story’s protagonist guessing until […]

Stand Tall and Reach Deep

Wishtree by Katherine Applegate

March 10, 2021 by ElCicco 4 Comments

Wishtree is a lovely and charming story for children ages 8-12, but I’m 56 and adored it. I heard about this book from a friend whose little girl loves it and reads it repeatedly. I can totally understand why that is. Wishtree is about friendship, community, diversity, and acceptance of those who are new in our “messy garden.” It’s full of delightful characters, gorgeously detailed ink illustrations, and an important message about speaking up for your neighbors. The narrator of Wishtree is a 216-year-old red […]

“White supremacy … is gravity. It is a ceaseless pressure intended to keep blackness ground-bound and sick.”

What Doesn’t Kill You Makes You Blacker by Damon Young

March 7, 2021 by ElCicco 3 Comments

Damon Young is a Black Pittsburgh writer who has gotten national attention thanks in part to a blog he co-writes called Very Smart Brothas (now part of The Root). I started following it on social media a few years ago and have found it to be funny, entertaining, informative and a source of sharp social criticism. The local story that really put Damon Young and VSB on my radar had to do with a local white female newscaster who stepped in it with some horribly […]

“…I hunt monsters. And I got a sword that sings.”

Ring Shout or Hunting Ku Kluxes in the End Times by P. Djeli Clark

February 19, 2021 by ElCicco 2 Comments

P. Djeli Clark continues to amaze me with his writing. In this short novel, he leaves behind the “steampunk” and adds plenty of horror to a story set in 1922 Macon, Georgia. As with his previously reviewed works, Clark creates a world where magic is real and plenty of strong women of color stand ready to wield it. Ring Shout or Hunting Ku Kluxes in the End Times focuses, unsurprisingly, on American racism and white supremacy. I think we all accept that Klansmen are monsters, […]

A good read for Mardi Gras

The Black God’s Drums by P. Djéli Clark

February 7, 2021 by ElCicco 2 Comments

P. Djéli Clark won a 2019 Alex Award for The Black God’s Drums, which was also a finalist for the Nebula, Hugo, Locus, and World Fantasy Awards. The Alex Award is given to 10 books annually by the Young Adult Library Services Association to books written for adults that appeal to readers aged 12-18. This is a short but riveting, action-packed novel set in New Orleans, 1884. As with his previous two works set in 1912 Cairo (A Dead Djinn in Cairo, The Haunting of […]

Zirza on A Gothic Classic for a ReasonIt's one of those wish-you-could-read-it-again-for-the-first-time books. I loved it.
Emmalita on “It came to something when you found yourself hoping that the footsteps you heard were ghosts.”I loved the ending! I don’t think it’s been out long enough to talk about why though.
Dixie on Track Her Down by Melinda LeighI am just starting Track Her Down and I have read them all in order till now and thought I...
Roland of Gilead on How can you give us the gift of a crazy character named Rando Thoughtful and then just as suddenly take that gift away? We need to talk, Uncle Stevie.I came across this randomly years after it was written because I was searching "Random Thoughtful. But I have the...
Emmalita on “Only you, Em, would refer to heartbreak as a distraction. I think I would have a more sympathetic response if I asked to marry a bookcase.”Oh my goodness, Gallifrey was beautiful. I’m sure her mittens were gloriously murdery.

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