Cannonball Read 17

Sticking It to Cancer One Book at a Time

Sometimes a short story is just enough, but sometimes it leaves you wanting. CBR13 Reviews 7-9

The Prince and the Troll by Rainbow Rowell

The Deal of a Lifetime by Fredrik Backman

If the Fates Allow by Rainbow Rowell

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I have been a very bad reviewer in 2021. I have been an amazing reader, with a list longer than any year I can remember. But sitting down to review has not been easy for me. I thought maybe I would try writing “bundles” of reviews, putting similar items together and knocking a few paragraphs out. Lets see how that goes. In order of least liked, to most: The Prince and the Troll. Blurb: It’s fate when a man accidentally drops his phone off the […]

I didn’t love Ove.

A Man Called Ove by Fredrik Backman

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She often said that “all roads lead to something that you were always predestined to do.” And for her, perhaps, it was something. But for Ove it was someone. Ove likes facts. He likes routine. And he doesn’t like change. So when the new neighbors run over his mailbox, it sends his world into upheaval. Suddenly a man who wanted nothing more than to grieve the loss of his wife is solving the neighborhoods problems: teaching the neighbor’s wife how to drive, running people to […]

From Cranky to Charming

A Man Called Ove by Fredrik Backman

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CBR Bingo – Rec’d I picked up Fredrik Backman’s A Man Called Ove after reading Leedock’s review and witcherwill’s suggestion in the comments. It took me awhile to warm up to the book and its main character. Ove is a widower who lives alone and has a metric ton of quirky habits. He is precise to the extreme. Everything has to be just so. He likes his lines clean and exact. He is excellent at building and repairing things. He gets infuriated by his neighbors ignoring […]

But she can’t help it. It’s too much reality for an almost-eight-year-old.

My Grandmother Asked Me to Tell You She's Sorry by Fredrik Backman

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cbr13bingo Book Club I wanted to do a pure Bingo. Unfortunately, I could not get myself to read the book I picked, Mary Jane by Jessica Anya Blau (a choice of a book group that purchases their books via the bookstore I work at). Therefore, I went hunting for an “easy book club recommend” and found lots of books that just sounded hard. (I am not sure what they considered easy, but one list had several over 300 paged books on it.)  But, as we […]

But she was color. All the color he had.

A Man Called Ove by Fredrik Backman

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CBR BINGO: Fauna Square (cat on the cover) Backman Summer continues and as the kids say: I’m not mad about it. Once I made my way through the two available Beartown books, I knew that I needed to pick this one up as well. I’m sure that I have mentioned in previous reviews that I love, love love a good epic tale. Spanning generations and continents is my bag. In my mind I also tend to throw “epic” around to describe those stories that may span generations […]

Sometimes a team needs an enemy to unite them.

Us Against You by Fredrik Backman

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Apparently it’s my summer of Backman (or Spring/Summer of Backman since almost 90 degree weather day after day isn’t really summer until the calendar says so). Loved Beartown, so I am more than happy to spend time with its inhabitants in this follow up, regardless of the season. This book picks up shortly after Beartown is turned upside down in the wake of an assault. Sides are drawn and redrawn. Narratives are rewritten. Blame is shifted. Teams are renamed. It’s a whirlwind of gaslighting, denial, anger, shame and […]



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