Cannonball Read 17

Sticking It to Cancer One Book at a Time

A new alphabet

Letters to Live By: An Alphabet Book with Intention by Lisa Frenkel Riddiough

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I was not sure how Letters to Live By: An Alphabet Book with Intention would present itself. What is an “intention” alphabet book? It seemed a little old fashioned. Maybe it would more spiritual?  Maybe it would a bit more conservative? It was not conservative, but it was with a classic tone and some “old fashioned” but needed ideas. What Lisa Frenkel Riddiough did was take the alphabet and paired same lettered words to teach such concepts as generosity, excellence, joy, and compassion. I was […]

“This could be the most mentally ill family in America.”

Hidden Valley Road by Robert Kolker

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This was the non-fiction pick for my book club, and I was really looking forward to reading it. Hidden Valley Road is the story of the Galvin family: Don and Mimi, and their 12 children, born between 1945 and 1965. Of the 10 boys, six developed schizophrenia. Kolker traces the Galvin family from Mimi and Don’s early lives, to their marriage and the beginnings of their family, all the way through to the next generation. We learn about the sick kids and the well ones, […]

Turning in my Feminist Card

Our Stories, Our Voices: 21 YA Authors Get Real about Injustice, Empowerment, and Growing Up Female in America by Amy Reed

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I am turning in my Feminist Card now I have written this review that will most likely be controversial. While I agree with much of what was said in Our Stories, Our Voices: 21 YA Authors Get Real about Injustice, Empowerment, and Growing Up Female in America edited and introduction by Amy Reed, I had a hard time empathizing with most of the essays presented and therefore, had a hard time reading these essays by twenty-one authors. But then again, that was the point of […]

How to live a longer, healthier life with 9 strategies

The blue zones: lessons for living longer from the people who've lived the longest by Dan Buettner

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Maybe it’s just because I read this in January, you know, that time of year when we all get excited about what we can do to better ourselves… or maybe it’s just because I really enjoy reading Dan Buettner’s research on centenarians alongside real life stories. In any case, here I am again with a review of another book about Blue Zones. In this book, evidence and data about the healthiest and longest lived people are given expression through the stories of individuals who epitomise […]

Dishes don’t think. Dishes don’t judge. Care tasks are morally neutral

How to Keep House While Drowning: a gentle approach to cleaning and organizing by KC Davis

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I read KC Davis’ self published How to Keep House While Drowning in January 2021 and since then I have recommended it to many many people and bought it for a few. I was delighted to see that Davis’ book is being republished by a Simon & Schuster imprint, Simon Element. I hope it gets in the hands of more people. I consider this an essential book. I value this book on several levels. One: my ability to stay on top of multiple care tasks […]

Hold on….let me think

Hold That Thought by Bree Galbraith

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When a young child starts finding the smallest form of an idea, it slowly grows until it is a giant bloom of creativity and wonder. Most of their family and friends support them, but there is that one bully that tells the child, “That is not how an idea is supposed to look.” And this, of course, starts doubt. Yet, they realize, since they and the others who added to the idea, and had their own, each looked different, and combining them made each even […]



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