Cannonball Read 17

Sticking It to Cancer One Book at a Time

About Pooja

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Ardent reader of pretty much anything, including the backs of shampoo bottles. (Learn more about this Cannonballer: Pooja's Quick Questions interview.)

Pooja's Reviews:

Jazz Baby

Where All Good Flappers Go: Essential Stories of the Jazz Age by David M. Earle (Editor)

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The flapper girl is an icon of the Roaring Twenties, appearing in plenty of novels and films of the era. In this anthology, Pushkin Press brings together some contemporary short stories about the flapper which were published in magazines and papers of the time that celebrated these young women as a mirror of the times. I haven’t read much literature from the 1920s beyond the obligatory The Great Gatsby, but I’ve always found it intriguing how quickly social mores seemed to swing round during this […]

Metamorphoses for a New Millennium

Fit For the Gods by Jenn Northington (Editor), S. Zainab Williams (Editor)

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Though Greek mythology originates from several millennia ago, their stories have been renewed again and again over the centuries through art and literature. In this anthology, more than a dozen authors tackle this too – but their tellings are with a twist, bringing racially, sexually, and culturally diverse takes to the classic stories. I’ve always loved Greek mythology and have engaged with in a plethora of ways, from reading classic translations to the Percy Jackson books to the recent trend in novel-length unpackings like Madeline […]

“It may be said of some very old places, as of some very old books, that they are destined to be forever new. The nearer we approach them, the more remote they seem: the more we study them, the more we have yet to learn. “

Women in the Valley of the Kings: The Untold Story of Women Egyptologists in the Gilded Age by Kathleen Sheppard

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In the so-called Golden Age of Egyptology, it was men who were known world-wide as the archeologists and academics who wrestled the secrets of Ancient Egypt from the desert, carrying away much of what they found. In this book, Sheppard turns the spotlight on female Egyptologists, who had less recognition but were equally instrumental in the early days of the discipline. I’m not very familiar with Egyptology in the Gilded Age beyond Howard Carter’s famous “Yes, wonderful things!” and a vague understanding of how the […]

A Lonely Grave in a Far Land

The Wide Wide Sea: Imperial Ambition, First Contact and the Fateful Final Voyage of Captain James Cook by Hampton Sides

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Captain James Cook was already a world-renowned explorer when he set out on his third great voyage around the world. Over the course of three years, he’d touch down on the shores of Tasmania, be the first European to come in contact with the people of the Hawaiian islands, and nearly destroy his ships and sailors in the search for the fabled Northwest Passage – and meet a grisly end in a strange murder that is still being debated to this very day. I read […]

It Follows

My Idol Sits the Next Desk Over!, Vol. 1 by Tetsu Tsutsui and Koyubi Sugawara

Hauntress by Minetarō Mochizuki

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My Idol Sits the Next Desk Over!, Vol. 1 by Tetsu Tsutsui and Koyubi Sugawara – 3.5 stars Sakiko is a die-hard fan of the upcoming idol girl group Spring Shine, so of course when the new girl at school introduces herself to the class, she immediately recognizes her as her very favorite singer Chiro-chan. This is a cute, breezy read about a young fangirl working very hard to balance her adoration of singer Chihiro with her wish to be friends on a personal level. […]

In Search of the Green Fairy

The Absinthe Forger: A True Story of Deception, Betrayal, and the World’s Most Dangerous Spirit by Evan Rail

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Among all liquors, absinthe, a high-proof anised-flavored spirit known for its green hue, has a special mystique for its alleged mind-altering properities, its association with the art and literature of the 19th century, and a nearly century-long ban in many countries in Europe and America. However, one unscrupulous enthusiast took advantage of its cult following to swindle collectors out of thousands of dollars. Last spring, in a small bar in Seattle, I was regaled by the story of how absinthe came to be banned. A […]



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