Cannonball Read 17

Sticking It to Cancer One Book at a Time

Who says a woman can’t fight?

To the Front!: Clara Barton Braves the Battle of Antietam by Claudia Friddell

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The poetic prose manner of the book, To the Front!: Clara Barton Braves the Battle of Antietam, might have been suited best for a non-picture book format. Also, the subject, as it is portrayed on the pages created by Claudia Friddell, might be too old for the picture book crowd. I would put the ages at least second grade to a fourth grader who is slightly on the younger side. But the subject is for not sensitive readers. This was not an easy read for […]

A monumental achievement that mostly worked like I thought it would

Roots: The Saga of an American Family by Alex Haley

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I was shocked to see that this book had only been reviewed one time for Cannonball Read. My cultural frame of reference for this show is that it came out before my time, was one of the biggest shows in the history of television. The show premiered in January of 1977 and Part I garnered a 40.5 share. The show was aired over the course of a single week because CBS was afraid it was going to be a bust, and preferred one bad week […]

In which I finally rectify having never read an American master of writing

Beloved by Toni Morrison

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[TW: violence against children, racial slurs, depictions of slavery, abuse] BINGO – UnCannon In high school I took two AP English classes. In college, I took a Comparative Western Literature course. Toni Morrison was not on any of my reading lists for those courses despite the fact that Morrison was awarded the Nobel Prize in Literature and that Beloved was a finalist for the National Book Award in 1987 and won the Pulitzer Prize for Fiction in 1988. Perhaps, Morrison is not read more at […]

No ticket needed

William Still and His Freedom Stories: The Father of the Underground Railroad by Don Tate

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Who was William Still? One of the most important people who helped run The Underground Railroad and I would wager few know his name. As the book William Still and His Freedom Stories: The Father of the Underground Railroad will point out, several people of color were involved in the everyday workings of the Railroad, few are still known. And Don Tate authors and illustrates one man’s journey. The youngest of his siblings, some left behind in slavery when their parents escaped, Still always wanted […]

DNF of January – Your mileage may vary

Harriet Tubman: The Moses of Her People by Sarah H. Bradford

Midnight in Mexico by Alfredo Corchado

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Harriet Tubman by Sarah Hopkins Bradford (3 stars) I know surprisingly little about Harriet Tubman. Were I to sum up the totality of my knowledge, I would say, “she freed a bunch of slaves using the Underground Railroad.” That’s it. I literally don’t know anything else. This book…was ok. It’s not thorough, at all. It’s really short, and would probably be best for a young audience. I downloaded it as a free book on Audible, and I was hoping it was going to be a […]

The Voices of the Ignored

The Colors of Courage: Gettysburg's Forgotten History, Immigrants, women, & African Americans in the Civil War's Defining Battle by Margaret S. Creighton

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Until I joined a reenactment group about 6 years ago, I’d never had any interest in the Civil War since its most popular focus is white men shooting each other. Now, this isn’t to say that the experiences of the white, male soldiers consumed by the jaws of war aren’t important, it just means I don’t particularly care what Gen. So-&-So did at noon on July 2nd, 1863. And unfortunately, at least at Gettysburg, ninety-nine percent of the focus is what white men did in […]



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