Cannonball Read 17

Sticking It to Cancer One Book at a Time

The Real Enemy is the Dirt

My Russian Grandmother and Her American Vacuum Cleaner: a family memoir by Meir Shalev

by Leave a Comment

This book is fundamentally the story of  immigration and coming of age during the pioneer period of the 20s and 30s, and in young State of Israel.  It is lighthearted and laugh out loud funny .  I immediately felt like a part of the family. Having lived in Israel, the constant battle with keeping dirt out of the house brought back memories and made me laugh. Shalev takes you though the history of the early Jewish pioneers to Israel in a unique way – through […]

The Rosie Project – Charming new take on a classic “will they won’t they”

The Rosie Project by Graeme Simsion

by 1 Comment

The monthly selection for my local library book club was new to me, and I went into it with an arched eyebrow and a prepared groan: a romance. Not my chosen genre, and one often prone to crazy plot climaxes and “will they won’t they but you know they will” feet dragging. So, I entered prepared and preordained not to like this book, but was pleasantly surprised to find it charming and a new take on an old standard. Through subtle plot devices we are, […]

A different kind of Wild one….

Junie B. Jones and the Yucky Blucky Fruitcake by Barbra Park

by Leave a Comment

In case you are not familiar with Junie B. Jones, she is a popular book series with the older first to younger third grade reader. She has several books in her series, take-offs and more. However, parents are not always a fan. She uses the words “dumb” and “stupid” to talk about things and people. Her actions are not “parent friendly” as well. (book 5) was my first, and most likely, last read in the Barbra Park series. I am torn about promoting this book. […]

Sorta bummed to hear that Life of Brian was originally called “Jesus Christ: Lust for Glory”, which is obviously superior

Always Look on the Bright Side of Life: A Sortabiography by Eric Idle

by Leave a Comment

My dad is a huge fan of Monty Python, so I have been exposed to Eric Idle’s music and characters for most of my life. That being said, I haven’t really seen him outside the context of Monty Python, and definitely don’t know as much about him as I do other members. John Cleese, for instance, has appeared in a lot of movies beyond Monty Python, and I’ve read books by both him and Michael Palin before. So I was interested an expanding my Monty […]

Watch out for pesky sisters running away and open graves to the underworld

Graveyard Shakes by Laura Terry

by Leave a Comment

I have mentioned before the fun thing about working in a bookstore is that you never know what you will find to read. I was waiting for a report to send (takes about 15 minutes) and instead of trying to find actual work, I picked up a book on our return shelf (sadly, yes unsold books must go back to the vendors) and in that 15 minutes I was over half way through Graveyard Shakes by Laura Terry. My first thought was, “I like these […]

A Light Fun Read

Good Riddance by Elinor Lipman

by 1 Comment

I love Elinor Lipman. Her books are always fun, light, and a quick read. My favorite one is The Pursuit of Alice Thrift, I think Good Riddance is now my second favorite! The book is especially timely as it starts with a twenty-something named Daphne “Marie Kondo-ing” her belongings by dumping into the recycling the 1968 yearbook her mother had left her. This yearbook was special to her mother as it was dedicated to her, at the time a young, new teacher who was also […]



Help Our Mission

You can donate to CBR via:

  1. PayPal
  2. Venmo