Cannonball Read 17

Sticking It to Cancer One Book at a Time

Impact of books and other really cool things

The Blue Jays That Grew a Forest by Lynn Street

Little Monk Writes Rain by Hsu-Kung Liu

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As you know I enjoy reading picture books. They are not just for the “kid crowd” as I have found (and highly encourage others  to do so, too) many books that give me information about something or someone I was unfamiliar with. I also find poetry, poetic prose, silliness and much more. But sometimes I am unable to write a “full review” so I must combine them to make one larger review. I do try to “theme” them, and I hope I did with the […]

Fun with haiku

A Pond, a Poet, and Three Pests by Caroline Adderson

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I found myself on an online picture book reading frenzy awhile back. I read (or wanted to read, or have read previous) several books by this one publisher, Groundwood Books. One of those books was A Pond, a Poet, and Three Pests by Caroline Adderson and illustrated by Lauren Tamaki. This book is an artistic imagining of how a famous poet wrote one of his most famous haikus. In simple, but far from simple text, there is an actually in depth story about the Japanese […]

I forgot  to take a photo of the book I had, so borrowed from internet, but that’s ok as it’s the book itself that really matters

Drawing from Memory by Allen Say

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The publisher description of Drawing from Memory by Allen Say:  Caldecott Medalist Say (“Grandfather’s Journey”) presents a stunning graphic novel chronicling his journey as an artist during World War II, when he apprenticed under Noro Shinpei, Japan’s premier cartoonist. But that does not scratch the surface. He was a young child during the war, dealing with a father who thought artists were shiftless and would never make anything of themselves. He was dealing with the war, his parents divorce, living with his seemingly judgmental grandmother, […]

Strength and kindness of the dragon

Powerful Like a Dragon by Christopher Cheng

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When it comes to history, picture books are a great way to introduce the subject. You are able to present the situation and/or issue and yet, keep it so that it gives the point of view without being “too much” and it allows all ages to be exposed to concepts, ideas and events. With Powerful Like a Dragon by Christopher Cheng and illustrator Jacqueline Tam we turn to 1941 Hong Kong during World War II and the Japanese invasion of the city. The story is […]

1998, Colombo. The Sri Lankan Civil War is raging and there is Kavi

I Am Kavi by Thushanthi Ponweera

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There are a few spoilers below about the book I Am Kavi by Thushanthi Ponweera.   Overall it is an interesting book. It had a few bumps for my personal tastes, but for the aged 10 and up crowd (and me back then) it is a will love title. The themes are mostly familiar, but the setting is fresh. You should read the afterwards and author notes for the extra background, information and author commentary. The format while prose poetry flows as full prose, the […]

She climbed and protected so we all could enjoy

Up, Up, Ever Up! Junko Tabei: A Life in the Mountains by Anita Yasuda and Yuko Shimizu

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I am not a sports person. I am not an outdoors person. I am not a hiking person. And I am certainly not a mountain climbing person. I am a person who will read a book outside (but it’s a porch and there better be running water/bathroom and cool drinks nearby). And I am a person who will read a book about someone who is an outdoors, sporty, mountain climbing person. And  Up, Up, Ever Up! Junko Tabei: A Life in the Mountains by Anita […]



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