Cannonball Read 17

Sticking It to Cancer One Book at a Time

Sometimes a book seems like it was written just for you; then you actually read it, and then you are sad.

On a Sunbeam by Tillie Walden

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Much to my surprise, I didn’t really like this all that much. I will probably list some reasons down below, but bottom line ultimately is that something about it just never gelled with me. To elaborate, I didn’t really like any of the characters, except Elliott. The world-building makes no sense. (Or, there is no world-building?) SPOILERS Oxygen, where is it? How are they dealing with all the background cosmic radiation? Why are all these random fucking buildings floating in space? When is this set? […]

Short stories in comic form.

The Sandman, Vol. 3: Dream Country by Neil Gaiman

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This is essentially a short story collection in comic form. The afterword notes that Gaiman needed a break from the main storyline after finishing up The Doll’s House arc, and had a few ideas he wanted to play around with. I found all of them to be satisfying enough, but none of them really knocked my socks off, either. The standout in the collection for me was the first one, “Calliope,” in which a novelist with a terrible case of writer’s block holds one of […]

Guts is Great!

Guts by Raina Telgemeier

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Raina Telgemeier is a comic artist who has created some all time greats (Drama, Smile, Sisters, Ghost) that fearlessly touch on topics most child/teen comics staunchly avoid – family struggles, LGBTQ characters, etc. Her latest is a semi-autobiographical story about a 12 year old who starts to struggle with anxiety. It starts one night when she throws up. The worst right? So she starts considering what caused her to throw up. Maybe she caught a bug from somebody else. Better not share snacks! Maybe it […]

Alone at sea

Alone by Christophe Chaboute

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On Saturday, my mom came over and, as she often does, was there before I was ready to go. Before I jumped in the shower, I put Alone down in front of her and said, “Oh hey, check out this graphic novel I picked up!” figuring she’d give it a glance and go back to her e-reader with the book she was already working on. Now, I’ve read comic books and graphic novels my whole life, from every genre and style, and never, ever, has […]

Over the edge for yonks (in the best possible way)

The Complete Far Side by Gary Larson

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I’m about to date myself with some very specific references: when I was a kid, my parents clipped their favourite Far Side cartoons out of the Sunday newspaper and scotch-taped them to the wall next to the rotary phone.  Because my Dad is a farmer of mostly cattle, he shared Gary Larson’s love of all things bovine, so there was no shortage of Far Sides to ponder while tethered to the phone line.  I recently happened on the complete three volume Far Side set in […]

Ms. Marvel at war

Ms. Marvel Vol. 6: Civil War II by G Willow Wilson

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Bingo Square : Illustrated   I haven’t been in to comic books since for about 30 years, back when I would beg my mom to buy me Archie at the checkout of the grocery store and finish it before we got home. Ms. Marvel really has changed that. Kamala Khan is an American teenager living in Jersey City, New Jersey and dealing with regular teenage stuff- school, her parents’ expectations, and the occasional boy trouble. The big difference is that Kamala’s boy trouble is usually […]



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