Cannonball Read 17

Sticking It to Cancer One Book at a Time

Anda one book; anda two book; anda three!

The Eidi Bag by Shazia Afzal

The Jellyfish Bus by Suhyeon Lee

What if Marty Doesn’t Like My Party? by Katie Arthur

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Three books I enjoyed, but am not really able to give a full review to each individual are below. This is because if you try to write up a “full review” you just end up telling the story. And then, you, the reader of this review, will not want to read the actual books!  (Each one was read via an online reader copy.) Starting with The Eidi Bag  by Shazia Afzal and illustrated by Shiva Delsooz, we have a book (currently available) that dives into […]

She’s bad, bad Big Barda! Baddest gal in the whole of Apokolips

Barda by Ngozi Ukazu

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I do not know enough about Barda to understand all the ins and outs of her story. However, you can pick up some of it (the idea she is not the villain Granny Goodness wants, who Granny is, the Furies, etc.), in Ngozi Ukazu’s graphic novel of the same name. Some of the world was lost on me (why is the prisoner Scott Free the way he is? How did he get his name? What about the background he has with another person of Barda’s […]

When your dream turns to a nightmare

Dreamover by Dani Diaz

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Dreamover by Dani Diaz was another book won in a galley grab I entered. I had seen a few things about it, but wasn’t really sure what it was about.  It sounded a little more realistic than it turned out to be. But  I guess you cannot have a “Dream World” where you don’t have at least a little fantasy to it.   When all was said and read, this was a coming of age story where “true love” finds you, but the dream starts becoming […]

Self discovery and gender with a little musical accompaniment

A Song for You and I by K. O'Neill

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I always enjoy K. O’Neill’s writing, however, I found A Song for You and I a smidgen not as strong as usual. I think the issue was I was reading via an online reader copy and there were black and white images and not the full color illustrations of the final product. And since the book relies on the illustrations for most of the story, it was not what I needed. However, the story of being “other” and the fear and confusion that produces is […]

Two girls, couple mysteries and basketball.

Shirley and Jamila Save Their Summer by Gillian Goerz

Shirley and Jamila's Big Fall by Gillian Goerz

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When ten-year-olds Shirley and (new girl) Jamila meet accidentally at a local tag sale, their summer takes an interesting turn, one that neither expected it to take. They not only find a way to not go to the summer camps their mothers have signed them up for and find a bit of freedom, they also solve a case of stolen property and a missing gecko, not to mention they become friends. All of this and a bit more happens in Shirley and Jamila Save Their […]

When the clock doesn’t tick

Hourglass by Barbara Mazzi

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Twenty is just a cog in the wheel of the utopian society in Hourglass by Barbara Mazzi. Or at least for  the privileged.  Twenty is trying for one of the coveted positions on the team of engineers. If you make it to the top the reward is everything. But until then, they help keep the Hour Glass running so the privileged few can reap the reward of immortality. But when a real piece of the machine goes missing, more than the Hour Glass will fall […]



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