Cannonball Read 17

Sticking It to Cancer One Book at a Time

The size of history

We Are American, Too by Kristen Mei Chase and Jieting Chen

The Memory Cake by Caroline L. Perry and Jen Bricking

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History is all around us. And history can be as large as World War II or as small as being the second person of your race being born in a town.  We Are American, Too tackles that second theme. Kristen Mei Chase and illustrator Jieting Chen follow a family on an important day of celebration. They are honoring their history, family, their people and even themselves. The originality of the book comes from how the story is told, instead of “just another immigrant story” which […]

That feeling

Saudade: Our Longing for Brazil, by Ana Crespo and André Ceolin

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Older books are just as good as a current book or a future publication book. Because, Hello … BOOK! Books are things we long for! Hope for! Need! Now, I am not sure if it fits the definition of saudade (a word that has no real direct to English translation, but basically means “an intense longing for something or someone.”) What is saudade, is the mothers feeling in the story Saudade: Our Longing for Brazil, for the things she left behind in Brazil. Ana Crespo, […]

A girl and her dog learn what loves got to do with it

What's Love All About, Minimoni? by Rocio Bonilla

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While What’s Love All About, Minimoni?, written and illustrated by Rocio Bonilla, is a bit idealistic, it is also cute. When a young girl asks about what love is, she has a mature journey to finding it. What she learns is what many adults do not even realize: Love is a little bit of everything that is good. And she can imagine sharing that with the world. As I said, it is a bit idealistic, but it does have some silly moments, too. This means […]

Finding Happy

The Happy Shop by Brittany Long Olsen

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The Happy Shop by Brittany Long Olsen was a book I had on my TBR for awhile now. I didn’t know what to expect, except it was a graphic novel and would have some type of magic in it. And in the short run, that is what it is all about: A girl finds a magical shop, magical things happen, she makes magical friends. Yet, there is a bit more. It is about how and why the girl is in need of a magical shop. […]

Old idea, new presentation

Papilio by Ben Clanton, Andy Chou Musser and Corey R. Tabor

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The concept of coming of age is told through the eyes of a butterfly in Papilio. Ben Clanton, Andy Chou Musser, and Corey R. Tabor created a unique read (the coming of age concept) but still is a book about a butterfly and its life cycle. We follow Papilio from the changes they have from egg to a falling (though feels like flying) caterpillar, to an actual flying butterfly. Told in three “chapters” these sections show us the stages of going from caterpillar, to caterpillar […]

Feelings Wo-o-o feelings

Max and the Purple Worry by Kitty Black

Sometimes When I'm Jealous by Deborah Serani

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Emotions are an interesting thing. And recently I read two picture books that dealt with them in different, but equally well presented ways. Both books are available, but I read them via an online reader’s copy. “Is that a seven or a chicken?” Worry asks in Max and the Purple Worry. Well if Max does math the way I do? It is a chicken. And like Max, I worried about my math work, too. The numbers (or me) didn’t run away, but I wanted to. […]



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