Cannonball Read 17

Sticking It to Cancer One Book at a Time

When Boy Met Girl, she changed his world

They Call Her Fregona: A Border Kid's Poems by David Bowles

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My vacation was filled with snacks and naps. In between that it was filled with reading books and three of those were sequels (two volumes that were volume threes and one book was volume two). One of those reads was a more a companion novel, or I should say, a prose poetry story/novel and not a traditional novel. Yet, it  does help to have read They Call Me Güero: A Border Kid’s Poems by David Bowles first. This time we follow Joanna, or “Fregona” (a […]

Food and family

Rainbow Shopping by Qing Zhuang

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The publisher’s description of Rainbow Shopping by Qing Zhuang says “Shopping for and preparing a delicious meal helps a young Chinese American girl feel connected to her family.” But it is more than that. It is a way of her having a connection with her past and the present. And it shows a piece of her old home and her new home. We are able to see that while she cannot find everything she and her mother wanted for their special dinners (the whole family […]

2024 is going to be a busy year

Our Nipa Hut: A Story in the Philippines by Rachell Abalos

I Am Both : A Vietnamese Refugee Story  by Kerisa Greene

Two Homes, One Heart  by Jessica Young

All About Color by Elizabeth Rusch

Of Words and Water: The Story of Wilma Dykeman—Writer, Historian, Environmentalist  by Shannon Hitchcock

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It is a picture book reviewing round up time! My theme is that of cultures. Of course we know the concept of “country and culture” but sometimes a culture can be something you do not immediately think of.  Yelena and Papa take care of their nipa hut and it takes care of them in Rachell Abalos’s picture book, Our Nipa Hut: A Story in the Philippines. Due in February 2024, I was lucky enough to have my book dealer send me a finished copy, as this is a book that needs […]

Warmth in its forms

What You Need to Be Warm by Neil Gaiman

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I am just going to say that this awesome book of poems was created by Neil Gaiman. They called it, What You Need to Be Warm. And they had a long list of illustrators, some I knew and others were new to me. And then I will say it is about refugees and other displaced people and what images, things, places or people that made them feel warm. And then just gush that this is both the best and worst thing I have read this […]

Grandma and Felix

Words Between Us by Angela Pham Krans

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When I first saw Words Between Us as an online reader copy and noticed the cover, it made me assume that this was going to be a grandparent/grandchild story and one where their language difficulties would cause problems. However, I was mostly right. This was a grandmother and grandson story, but they are able to speak to each other (both speak Vietnamese). They have a tight and special bond as time goes by and the two of them learn about each other. However, the grandmother […]

Languages for the power

My Mother's Tongues: A Weaving of Languages by Uma Menon

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My Mother’s Tongues: A Weaving of Languages is a clever story of a young girl and her family’s talents with languages. Well, her mother can speak two different languages. She has one for her mother and daughter, and another for the cashier. However, sometimes the two are mixed. And the young girl explores her family and how they learned to speak several languages, and what that means. The connection between the generations is sweet and the cultural connections are delightful to learn. Uma Menon introduces […]



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