Cannonball Read 17

Sticking It to Cancer One Book at a Time

“The meaning of something so fleeting, life. Here and gone.”

Intermezzo by Sally Rooney

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Brothers Peter (32) and Ivan (22) could not be more different. Peter is a successful human rights lawyer and university lecturer, attractive, a social butterfly. Ivan, on the other hand, is an underemployed, underachieving chess player. He’s awkward and while he’s not ugly, his second-hand clothing (a deliberate choice made for ethical, not financial reasons) and braces make him a far cry from his more glamorous brother. They are both still grieving from the death of their father from cancer, a few months prior. Instead […]

“If you have thought seriously about mirrors, you will know about their mystery.”

Elizabeth by Ken Greenhall

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Elizabeth is a fairly short novel with spare prose that makes it a quick read, but Greenhall’s ability to evoke mood and tension makes it a strong novel. This was another Christmas gift Valancourt novel, and it’s been interesting to see that while I am not a fan of sci-fi around this time, I do tend to like horror novels from this era much better than modern ones. The mix of literary and genre here heightens the book as a whole. Elizabeth is a take […]

“It’s like everyone else got instructions, but we didn’t.”

Tegan and Sara: Junior High by Tegan Quin, Sara Quin, and Tillie Walden

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CBR15Bingo: Bodies, Bodies (physically growing up, stressing about getting your period, wanting to differentiate yourself when you’re an identical twin — the first chapter is actually called “Teenage Bodies.”) I read this without ever having listened to any Tegan and Sara music and loved it, so this is clearly a winner. I am a huge Tillie Walden fan, which is why I picked this up in the first place, and I’m really glad I did. I think this book does a great job of being […]

“You kids are different from the farm animals who have no way out. Running away in order to live is fine. Perfectly fine.”

Silver Spoon Vol. 1-15 by Hiromu Arakawa

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CBR14Bingo: Series (it’s a series) This is one of my favorite manga series and one I was re-reading again just out of a desire to read something cheerful and warm-hearted. Silver Spoon is by the same author as Fullmetal Alchemist, her much more famous work. It follows Yuugo Hachiken, who decides to go to an agricultural high school in rural Hokkaido because he hit a plateau in mainstream academia and was pushing himself so hard to succeed that he’d lost all enjoyment in life. By going […]

“Now that that is all taken care of, let’s talk about love and blackmail.”

A Proposal They Can't Refuse by Natalie Caña

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I landed on 3 stars for Natalie Caña’s A Proposal They Can’t Refuse. I knew there were going to be some family hijinks, because the blurb promises that Kamilah and Liam are forced into a fake engagement because their grandfather’s are threatening their dreams. I wasn’t expecting the heavy-duty unhealthy family dynamics. Caña writes an engaging story with well drawn characters. I had a hard time putting it down. But I screamed a few times because the there were moments where family members seemed to […]

“Fighting a one-man war against the twentieth century:” Jane Ridley’s Attempt to Make George V Interesting

George V: Never a Dull Moment by Jane Ridley

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For the general reader who’s curious about Royal history and will only read one book about George V, this is the best pick. Jane Ridley is a great writer and puts lots of interesting details in here. She has a real gift for summarizing complicated topics and synthesizing them into very readable prose. One of my most intense special interests is Edward VII, so I’ve read a lot of books about him and his family. I have a collection of coronation memorabilia and a pretty […]



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