Cannonball Read 17

Sticking It to Cancer One Book at a Time

A special cup of tea

The Amazing Leaf in the Cup: A Tale of Tea Retold in English and Chinese by Yiping Wei

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It is probably a copout to just copy and paste the publisher’s description of The Amazing Leaf in the Cup: A Tale of Tea Retold in English and Chinese by Yiping Wei. However, I’ll summarize it “a man, named Ding Xian, has qualified for the imperial examinations. In his travels, he passes through Wuyi Mountain, where he meets a monk that helps him by giving him a drink that restores his energy. It is just hot water and leaves, but makes an impact on the […]

A great Shakespearean actor

Ira’s Shakespeare Dream by Glenda Armand

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Ira’s Shakespeare Dream by Glenda Armand and illustrated by Floyd Cooper was the right book at the right time. Had I read it any other time than recently in APril 2024, I don’t think it would have hit me the same. I had just read a book that had put all the well-known people in the theme, and I needed something that would give me the unknown. Read via an online reader copy and currently available, Armand takes a probably mostly unknown actor of color […]

The historical and personal flood of events that lead a woman to find herself

Feeding Ghosts: A Graphic Memoir by Tessa Hulls

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Feeding Ghosts: A Graphic Memoir by Tessa Hulls is an intense read, with several triggers. It is not meant for the sensitive reader, or someone who is just starting graphic novels. The style of illustrations are both what makes and breaks things. The black and white gives the tone but everything can blend together, especially when the author uses words as the illustrations or within the actual image. A few fourth wall breaks can stop the flow of stories, but overall this is an interesting […]

There but for the grace of god go I

Friends, Lovers, and the Big Terrible Thing by Matthew Perry

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Some of my favorite audiobooks are memoirs that are read by the author, so I tend to look for memoirs when I need a new audiobook for my commute. I had heard of Matthew Perry’s book: Friends, Lovers, and the Big Terrible Thing (2022), but hadn’t gotten around to it. Then Matthew Perry died on October 28, 2023 with Ketamine in his system. Although I never followed his life very closely, I was a fan of Friends when I was younger, and I felt I owed it to him […]

Hero Poetry

Queer and Fearless: Poems Celebrating the Lives Of LGBTQ+ Heroes by Rob Sanders

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Since April is Poetry Month and Queer and Fearless: Poems Celebrating the Lives Of LGBTQ+ Heroes is due mid-April I felt this was as good as any time to read and review this Rob Sanders book. The idea is of course, Heroes of the Movement. We see the men and women that started the pathway for others. There are names you’ll probably know, such as Marsha P. Johnson and Harvey Milk, but a few were new to me and possibly to you as well (or […]

Home is where your body is

Homebody by Theo Parish

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Perhaps the first thing I noticed about Homebody (outside of the “removal of color” and the use of color in a non-traditional fashion) was how open Theo Parish’s story was. They are not giving you the “down and dirty details” (unless you count one of the cats giving themselves a um… down there … bath) but they allow you into their world. We also are not given all the “bad things,” just honesty that they were there. The third was, how they do not use […]



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