Cannonball Read 17

Sticking It to Cancer One Book at a Time

Still relevant 75 years later

1984 by George Orwell

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Despite being 75 years old, this novel holds up remarkably well. I think people can relate 1984 to a variety of things in their lives – an abusive family life, an impossible workplace, or even the society in which they live. But the book is actually about a dystopian future society (which was 1984 according to Orwell, who wrote this novel in 1949). After an atomic war in the 50’s, the world condensed itself into three nation states: Eurasia, Oceania, and East Asia. Airstrip One, […]

Timothy Chalamet with nose plugs is gross

Dune by Frank Herbert

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I can’t say if I liked the movie or the book better. I fell asleep during the first (new) movie and I’m just meh about the book. I don’t know, the story was fine. It’s grand in scope, literally spanning the universe, but dealing mostly with one planet, the sand planet of Arrakis, inhabited by the Fremen and spaceship eating sandworms that produce something called, spice, which is necessary for interplanetary travel. Herbert writes about the struggle for power over Arrakis between two powerful families, […]

‘Aint no chocolates here

Heart Shaped Box by Joe Hill

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“Buy my step-father’s ghost.” You’d think this was a novel idea, but it is something you can find on ebay today. I was going to link something here but got the heebie jeebies just searching for haunted items and don’t need the bad vibes right now. Although I have to wonder, does it increase the value of an item to describe it as haunted? In either case, buyer beware! Heart Shaped Box is Hill’s first full-length novel, published in 2007 (he also published a collection […]

*Almost* Twenty years later and still a Potter head!

Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets by J.K.Rowling

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This is the second installment of the illustrated Harry Potter books. I love reading these books with my 7-year old son. They have just enough illustrations to keep him interested from page to page, especially since this is an unabridged version of the books. There are even a few extras, like this page: Not only is it relevant to the story, but it offers a little bit of extra information for those who can’t get enough of the wizarding world. In this story, we meet […]

Predictably informative and surprisingly interesting

The Library Book by Susan Orlean

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Susan Orlean, is a woman of many hats. She is a staff writer for the New Yorker and author of many books and articles, including The Orchid Thief. Apparently she is also a con artist, because she somehow convinced me to continue reading a book about libraries to the last page. In the same vein, The Library Book just might cross as many genres as hats worn by Susan. First The Library Book is non-fiction. Orlean educates us about libraries in general – including their […]

Books for kids, better left read by kids

Dinosaurs Before Dark by Mary Pope Osborne

Dolphins at Daybreak by Mary Pope Osborne

Ghost Town at Sundown by Mary Pope Osborne

Tonight on the Titanic by Mary Pope Osborne

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These are short, easy to read fantasy novels for children about a brother and sister who can travel anywhere a book is set via their magic treehouse. There is a little bit of subplot connecting one book to another (specifically the first 28 – yes you read that correctly – involve the Morgan LeFay missions where the mystical Morgan tasks the siblings with various errands). But my 7-year old son and I skipped books and found them readable without much confusion. Here’s a summary of […]



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