Cannonball Read 17

Sticking It to Cancer One Book at a Time

How do you solve a problem like Maria?

Maria Longworth Storer: From Music and Art to Popes and Presidents by Constance J. Moore and Nancy M. Broermann

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As a native Cincinnatian, I am familiar with the name Longworth and that family’s connection to local history. Maria Longworth Storer was the founder of and one of the creators at the world renowned Rookwood Pottery. This new biography of Maria Longworth Storer opened my eyes not just to this formidable woman’s business acumen, artistic sensibility and philanthropy, which were already well known and documented, but also to her religious and political views and ambitions. Maria Longworth Storer came from a wealthy society family, but […]

We will do what others expect of us.

The Other Wes Moore: One Name Two Fates by Wes Moore

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CBR11 BINGO: True Story The premise of this book is interesting. How can two people, born a year apart in the same neighborhood turn out differently? At what point could the path split to lead to a successful and happy life for one and life in prison for the other? What happened along the way and can something be learned from that? As author Wes Moore is awarded a Rhodes Scholarship to study at Oxford, a man hunt is underway to arrest suspects wanted in […]

“The important thing about Margaret Wise Brown is…” (cbr11bingo – true story)

The Important Thing About Margaret Wise Brown by Mac Barnett

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“The important thing about Margaret Wise Brown is that she wrote books.” Mac Barnett, if you haven’t spent any time with him, is one of the most delightful children’s book authors of our time.  If I summed him up in one insignificant word, I’d say “funny” because it mostly captures the breadth of his work, from his silly picture books to Wimpy-Kid readalike chapter books. But in his biography of predecessor Margaret Wise Brown, he showcases a positively stunning simplicity of language, a thoughtful exploration […]

So did you know Napoleon wrote romance novels early in his career?

Ambition and Desire: The Dangerous Life of Josephine Bonaparte by Kate Williams

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#CBR11 Bingo: True Story From Goodreads: Their love was legendary, their ambition flagrant and unashamed. Napoleon Bonaparte and his wife, Josephine, came to power during one of the most turbulent periods in the history of France. The story of the Corsican soldier’s incredible rise has been well documented. Now, in this spellbinding, luminous account, Kate Williams draws back the curtain on the woman who beguiled him: her humble origins, her exorbitant appetites, and the tragic turn of events that led to her undoing. Born Marie-Josèphe-Rose […]

My first DNF in years

Headstrong: 52 Women Who Changed Science - and the World by Rachel Swaby

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From Goodreads: Fifty-two inspiring and insightful profiles of history’s brightest female scientists. In 2013, the New York Times published an obituary for Yvonne Brill. It began: “She made a mean beef stroganoff, followed her husband from job to job, and took eight years off from work to raise three children.” It wasn’t until the second paragraph that readers discovered why the Times had devoted several hundred words to her life: Brill was a brilliant rocket scientist who invented a propulsion system to keep communications satellites […]

Learn about your different voices

I Am Kind: A Little Book about Abraham Lincoln by Brad Meltzer

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I Am Kind: A Little Book about Abraham Lincoln talks about the personality of Lincoln with the backdrop of being kind (a trait he was known for) as the moral to the story. And while being kind is a subject or moral for all ages to learn, the overall feeling of the book (the fact that it is being told by the point of view of Lincoln and dealing with in simple terms, the personality and events of Lincoln) seems a bit mature for the […]



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