Cannonball Read 17

Sticking It to Cancer One Book at a Time

“my life will change utterly since my sinful eyes saw this noble land so much admired.”

Tombland: A Matthew Shardlake Tudor Mystery by C.J. Sansom

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Never in England were there so many gentlemen and so little gentleness. After two years working for Elizabeth on legal land matters, Matthew Shardlake is summoned in front of her. Edith Boleyn, a wife of a distant relation has been recently murdered, and her husband, John Boleyn, is on trial for it. As Elizabeth is fiercely protective of any relation of hers due to being unable to save her mother (seriously, I get the feeling from this book that if Elizabeth thought it would have […]

Does this author ever write a bad book?

Spent: A Comic Novel by Alison Bechdel

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Spent: A Comic Novel by Alison Bechdel This graphic novel is not perfect, but it is darn close. There were just one or two small “bumps” for me. But overall fans will get a huge kick out of this. There is much happening and Bechdel uses their usual wit and observations to get the job done. Even if they cannot get the job of writing their new book or the TV script done. It is life during the years of 2020 to “now” (or around […]

She loves moths, people!

A Girl of the Limberlost by Gene Stratton-Porter

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As a kid, I hated bugs. I feared many of them. But for some reason, in junior high, I fell in love with Gene Stratton-Porter’s A Girl of the Limberlost. I recently remembered how I’d re-read my favorite scenes aloud, imagining myself as the lead girl. But for the life of me I couldn’t remember anything else about it, so I decided a re-read was in order. The book was written in 1909, and is a companion to Freckles, which I have not read. This caused some […]

Works of Pimienta

Twin Cities by Jose Pimienta

Stars, Hide Your Fire by Kel McDonald

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Somewhere I have a copy of the book, Twin Cities by Joe Pimienta. Do I know where it is? Not a chance! Books have a habit of finding safe spots that are so safe even I don’t know where they are! Therefore, thank goodness for my local library.  I’m thinking that two readings for adults would be a good idea. First, read the text then second, read the illustrations. Trying to do both at the same time is a little hard. You see, this might […]

Two pieces of history around the world

A Place Called Galveston by Andrea Shapiro

Claudia Said Sí!: The Story of Mexico's First Woman President by Deborah Bodin Cohen, Kerry Olitzky and Carlos Vélez Aguilera

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Recently I mentioned to a friend of mine that there are a lot of political titles happening, even in the children’s genres. And most are slanted seriously and obviously in one direction or the other. Therefore, when I find something that is not political, but could fit current events I try to pay attention.  Two of those books are A Place Called Galveston by Andrea Shapiro and illustrator Valerya Milovanova, as well as Claudia Said Sí!: The Story of Mexico’s First Woman President by Deborah […]

North Brooklyn

Greenpoint Brooklyn's Forgotten Past by Gregory Cobb

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Read as part of CBR17 Bingo: book begins with the letter “G” I worked in Greenpoint for two years and really came to love the area. My grandmother was from east Baltimore, the same east Baltimore featured in John Waters’ Hairspray. Patterson Park, Canton, Dundalk. Those were her stomping grounds. Those neighborhoods featured a glorious mix of ethnicities, religions, languages, and cultures coming together in a dense rowhouse-packed area. She always spoke fondly of growing up there. Greenpoint gave me a similar feeling, though like most of […]



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