Cannonball Read 17

Sticking It to Cancer One Book at a Time

“I think everyone should just figure out what works for them and enjoy it on their own terms.”

I Think Our Son Is Gay Vol. 3 by Okura

I Think Our Son Is Gay Vol. 4 by Okura

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This is a very sweet slice-of-life series that follows Tomoko, a mother who suspects that her son Hiroki is gay. Throughout the course of the series, she challenges her own internalized prejudices and learns more about how to support her son even if he’s not able to come out to her yet. I think what stands out to me the most with this series is how grounded in reality it is. The author, Okura, is gay, and I think that lends itself to the books […]

“When you get older, you may never have anyone sing to you personally again, but go all over the world and I bet you can’t find one baby that has never been sung to.”

The Good Times Are Killing Me by Lynda Barry

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Lynda Barry’s other near-perfect YA novel, The Good Times Are Killing Me, marks my completing re-reading her non comics work, as I read and reviewed Cruddy last year. I do think Cruddy is a singular work of genius, but this novel is a close second and one that I find deeply moving and beautiful. It’s a short book, only 131 pages, but Barry manages to pack a lot of emotion and layered, thoughtful commentary on growing up, friendship, systemic societal racism, and the power of […]

“I own me!” A powerful memoir of healing from trauma

Sex Cult Nun by Faith Jones

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Thanks again to Jake for this Book Exchange gift! I tore right through this one, as it hits a lot of my interest areas and is well written. Sex Cult Nun details Faith Jones’ life growing up in the Children of God/The Family cult during the 80s and 90s. Having watched several documentaries and read about this group before, this was less of a shocking book for me than for someone who has no knowledge about the Children of God. For me, it was more […]

“I was rudderless and raw, and the worst part was that no one wanted to talk about any of it.”

Dancing at the Pity Party by Tyler Feder

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Dancing at the Pity Party is, as the subtitle states, “a dead mom graphic memoir.” As someone whose dad died when I was a kid, I related a lot to this book and think it’s one of the best depictions I’ve read of the messy, chaotic, complicated process of grief. Feder’s mother is diagnosed with cancer during her first year away at college, and she dies right when she comes home after finals. The narrative covers their relationship growing up, the illness and death of […]

Two Memoirs of Growing Up During The Troubles

Did Ye Hear Mammy Died? by Seamas O'Reilly

The Troubles With Us by Alix O'Neill

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These two memoirs tread a lot of the same ground (Northern Ireland during The Troubles, family drama/grief, all told humorously), but I honestly liked Did Ye Hear Mammy Died? better than The Troubles With Us simply because Séamas O’Reilly is a better writer and I really enjoy his voice. His memoir follows his family in the aftermath of his mother’s death when he’s five. His father is left with eleven children to take care of and the rest of the book is a series of […]

“…for a while I needed to believe that my mother was not dead and that she would come back.”

Walk Two Moons by Sharon Creech

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Somehow I never read this as a kid and had always wondered if was any good. I finally picked this up on vacation in August (only £3, bless used bookstores) and it turns out that this is a classic and won the Newbery Medal for a reason. Often when you read a children’s/middle grade book, there’s a preachy tone or a sense they’re trying hard to impart a lesson, and that lack of authentic voice makes the book feel boring and irritating. Walk Two Moons […]



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