Cannonball Read 17

Sticking It to Cancer One Book at a Time

It was a dull and boring night…

The Shadow of the Wind by Carlos Ruiz Zafón

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As a 10-year-old, Daniel Sempere visits a mysterious place called the ‘Cemetery of Forgotten Books’ and chooses a book by the unknown author Julián Carax. Over the years, he tries to find out more about him, only to discover that someone is searching for all of Carax’ books just to burn them, and that he himself may possess one of the last copies. This is supposed to be a gothic novel full of doomed romance, tragedy, and mystery, but in the end, it is mostly […]

Jewish, Immigrant(s, they get the job done) (Bingo: Own Voices)

The Fever King by Victoria Lee

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The US has been ravaged by war and disease (and war over disease) and Noam Álvaro is sixteen and the child of Atlantean (Georgia, that is, not Atlantis) illegal immigrants to Carolina who is involved in the Atlantean Rights movement — until he, too, falls sick with the Fever. Unlike most of the population, however, Noam survives — and wakes up a technomancer, with the ability to talk to computer systems and all manner of technology. And then things get worse.

Not Quite “Wonder”ful

A Blade So Black by L.L. McKinney

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Bingo Update: This is for Not My Wheelhouse. I love fantasy, but I tend to skip Urban Fantasy. I read this specifically to challenge that about myself. Bonus Note: I won a free copy of this from a contest on GoodReads, courtesy of Fierce Reads. A quick summary with no spoilers. A Blade So Black is a contemporary reimagining of the Alice in Wonderland story. Sort of. Set in present day Atlanta, our heroine is Alice, this time portrayed by a badass black teen with […]

In which I struggle to understand the reasoning for risking everything you hold dear in life for the guy from Dude, Where’s My Car?

Inside Out: A Memoir by Demi Moore

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CBR11bingo #TrueStory First off, this was not a book I would have ever read on my own. My book club chose it for October. That’s not to say that I don’t appreciate a celebrity memoir, I just don’t have any feelings one way or the other about Demi Moore. Or at least, I didn’t. Now I guess I have a few. Demi “tells all” in this book, which starts off with a drug overdose, complete with an out-of-body experience. She definitely knows how to hook […]

Feelings, free will, and a robot adventure: CBR Bingo – Two heads are better than one, Bingo!

Cog by Greg Van Eekhout

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Completing the “Two heads are better than one” square fulfills my bingo column, “Cannonballer Says” to “Remix”, and gives me my first bingo!  I used my “Reader’s Choice” to replace “Remix” with “Classic”. Dome’Loki Greg van Eekhout is a local San Diego author who frequently does events at my favorite independent bookstore, Mysterious Galaxy.  He writes for both adult and middle grade audiences.  Greg’s two most recent books are middle grade and as a result, it has been great fun to take my kids with […]

BINGO BLACKOUT

Beowolf by Unknown, Francis Barton Gummere (Translation)

The Mere Wife by Maria Dahvana Headley

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I did it! I cannot believe I managed to pull this off but I realized that I would probably not participate next year and would have been disappointed to get so close this year only to fall short by a book or two. Lemme tell you though- these last two titles were a struggle…  CBR Bingo: Back to School Beowulf, Unknown Over the last few years I have reread several books from my high school years that I loved: In Cold Blood, The Great Gatsby, A […]



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