Cannonball Read 17

Sticking It to Cancer One Book at a Time

Told in English and Chinese

Grandpa’s Magic Mask: A Story of Growth and Bravery in English and Chinese by Siping Wu

A House Just for Mommy: A Bedtime Story Told in English and Chinese by Dayong Gan

The Boy, the Deer, and the King: A Legend Retold in English and Chinese by Xiaochun Tang

Little Malan’s Debut: A Story of Courage Told in English and Chinese by Lumin Qian

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I do not speak a second language. As an adult, I regret not working harder on that, but I take solace in the fact that there are bilingual books out there and I can read the English part and admire the second language. Usually this is French or Spanish, but I have noticed that Chinese is taking its place. I’m not sure if the Chinese in these four books is Mandarin or Cantonese, so please let me know if you know! All will be available […]

Bats and dragons and mysteries

Silverwing: The Graphic Novel by Kenneth Oppel and Christopher Steininger

Winter Turning: A Graphic Novel (Wings of Fire Graphic Novel) by Tui T Sutherland and Mike Holmes

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If you haven’t guessed, I like graphic novels. It wasn’t always that way, but they opened up to me unique experiences. I used to recommend them to my customers and had to overcome the “they are just comic books….” (sneering the whole time). No, they are much more (and besides, what’s wrong with a comic book? Your child is reading, right?) Anyway, I found a new graphic novel series and have almost finished an old one. Both of them are fantasy, but dig deep into […]

A dog is a dog

My Name is Jem: a tale of a guide dog superstar by Olivia Muscat

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My Name is Jem: a tale of a guide dog superstar is a delightful introduction to the subject of a guide/service dog. In a child friendly (but slightly “talk down” to adults at times), and through the eyes of Jem themselves, we see the things a guide/service dog does. Such as how they help their handler or how they became a guide dog and so forth. We also learn that a dog, regardless of their job, is a dog and likes downtime, playtime, pets and […]

You know you’ve told a dad joke or two!

How to Make a Robot Laugh: Funny and Easy to Read Jokes for Children Who Love Robotics and Silly Engineering Humor by Chris Cate

How to Make a Shark Laugh by Chris Cate

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I don’t hate dad jokes (in fact, I have proudly told a few myself) but a bad one is not worth the effort! So, when I see a joke book for kids I usually assume they are going to be at best, okay dad jokes, or jokes that are really not funny if you’re over say five-years-old (maybe six for some). However, How to Make a Robot Laugh: Funny and Easy to Read Jokes for Children Who Love Robotics and Silly Engineering Humor by Chris […]

Which pollinator has the shiny hiney?

The Great Pollinator Count by Susan Edwards Richmond

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The subject in The Great Pollinator Count by Susan Edwards Richmond is not new, but the presentation is fresh and gives the information in an informative (even I learned a few things; such as how to know which pollinator has the shiny hiney) but it is also done in a fun manner. Learning to count the insects, learning about the plants included and more make this a clever book. I wish the illustrations by Stephanie Fizer Coleman were a bit more realistic, but they work […]

Dogs slobber! They smell! They POOP! And they bark!

Dog Trouble by Kristin Varner

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Dog Trouble by Kristin Varner came up in my older online reader copies. I was at first not thinking I would read as I am a cat, not dog person, and the cover made me think I knew what was going to happen (a lot of chasing rowdy dogs that really aren’t cute but annoying and a kid who doesn’t “get” the seriousness of things). But it was more than that. At first things felt like “all the other books” about separated and/or divorced families […]



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