Cannonball Read 17

Sticking It to Cancer One Book at a Time

We care too much, or not enough

The Plot by Jean Hanff Korelitz

Stone Yard Devotional by Charlotte Wood

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It feels weird putting these two in the same review, but there you have it. I’ve been struck by the dreaded reading slump.  The Plot (Jean Hanff Korelitz) ** The plot of The Plot: author Jacob is struggling. His first novel made a modest impact, but didn’t sell well despite positive reviews. His second novel went ignored entirely. To make ends meet, Jacob teaches writing to a group of wannabes and one of them tells him the plot of a novel he is planning to […]

Celebrate Ramadan

Ramadan for Everyone: A Muslim Community Story by Aya Khalil

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Again, I almost did not read a book. I have read several books about Ramadan, and thought that perhaps Ramadan for Everyone: A Muslim Community Story by Aya Khalil would be just like those. Turns out, it is and is not like other books. We have the concept of Ramadan, the events and things one does to honor Allah, but there is more as well. The young girl of the story has a voice that is different from other stories, and yet is familiar too. […]

That Rumpelstiltskin is my name

Rumpelstiltskin by Mac Barnett and Carson Ellis

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Do you like fairy or folk tales? Do you like pure telling of said fairy tales with a small change? And do you like Rumpelstiltskin? Or at least the story, it is a little hard to like Rumpelstitskin. And if you answered yes to any of the above, you should read Mac Barnett’s version of the story. It is the story we know: king meets a miller, who brags about how awesome his daughter is, the king is greedy and wants the spun gold, the […]

I like cats. And drawings.

The Boy Who Drew Cats: A Japanese Folktale by Lafcadio Hearn

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There are three main times when I swear. In no particular order, when I am tired and/or mad; when I want to make a point and when something is just so fudging (only I didn’t say fudge) good. And The Boy Who Drew Cats: A Japanese Folktale by Lafcadio Hearn is one of those fudging good books. Amazing story, amazing illustrations, amazing feeling to it, even an amazing back story of the author. Perhaps more for adults (collectors of art books, of Japanese folk tales, […]

It’s the 1980s and punk is hot & so are Nina & Kerri. So, now what?

Punk Like Me by JD Glass

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Really the only part of Punk Like Me by JD Glass and illustrations by Kris Dresen is that the end happened a little too quickly, and (SPOILER) it was a little too neatly wrapped up. But that is really the only issue I have with the “overallness” of things. We follow Nina, a girl who will have many labels put on her (sister, daughter, friend, girlfriend, dyke, lesbian, swimmer, student, trouble maker, possible Annapolis bound) as she grows, but which is really her? What is […]

The unofficial Best and Worst List 2025 (so far!)

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I know I put in the official Best and Worst List but honestly out of almost 600 reviews (and several I haven’t posted yet) I’m going to have more than three best and one worst. Therefore, I am going to honor y’all with my list of only the ones I have posted a review for here that could have been used. The bold are the ones I used in the official count, italics almost used and the rest were on the list. WORST DAYGLOAYHOLE #1 […]



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