hollywood history – Cannonball Read 17

What is a flop, anyway?

Box Office Poison by Tim Robey

October 5, 2025 by faintingviolet 6 Comments

One of my coworkers and I love to chat movies. When his birthday came this year I went on the hunt for a book about Hollywood that I thought would be up his alley and while I couldn’t put my hands on my first choice for him Pictures at a Revolution by Mark Harris (a book I read back in 2008 before my time with Cannonball and LOVED) quick enough, I went browsing shelves at the bookstore and Box Office Poison by Tim Robey jumped out to me and a copy was […]

“Steve gets back up because it’s the right thing to do. Carol gets back up because fuck you.”

MCU: The Reign of Marvel Studios by Joanna Robinson, Dave Gonzales, Gavin Edwards

November 29, 2023 by faintingviolet 6 Comments

I love the nitty gritty inner workings of how movies and television get made. It’s the reason why I listen to so many pop culture and Hollywood history podcasts. Podcasts are another reason I knew I was going to enjoy MCU: The Reign of Marvel Studios. Two of its authors are podcasters that I have been listening to for the better part of a decade (Joanna Robinson and Dave Gonzales) and I trust them to be able to put together a narrative in a way […]

Fetch the Bolt Cutters

Burn It Down by Maureen Ryan

October 18, 2023 by donttrustthe_bea Leave a Comment

The number of times I had to pick my jaw up off the floor while reading this…too many to count. Maureen Ryan is now one of my favorite authors. She did not hold back at all, and I loved the snark and straight up reads she dished out in Burn It Down without it ever feeling salacious or slanderous. She has clearly worked a very long time in the industry and this book was her way of exposing the BS she has seen and experienced. While most […]

For the love of great romcoms

From Hollywood with Love: The Rise and Fall (and Rise Again) of the Romantic Comedy by Scott Meslow

February 21, 2023 by faintingviolet Leave a Comment

I love romantic comedies. It’s the same reason I love Romance novels, I’m sure. There’s a joy in knowing that the end of the story is going to be happy, and that you’ll be treated to laughs along the way. They are my re-charge kind of story. When I saw Ellesfena’s review last year I plunked Scott Meslow’s From Hollywood with Love: The Rise and Fall (and Rise Again) of the Romantic Comedy on my to read list. When putting in my library requests this […]

I still wish we’d have done this one for CannonBookClub.

August 22, 2017 by narfna Leave a Comment

This book was an alternative pick for the non-fiction (Hollywood history-centric) #CannonBookClub, and it was my pick. I saw it and I knew I had to read it ASAP, even if it didn’t end up winning the vote (it didn’t; that honor, of course, went to Life Moves Pretty Fast, which I haven’t read yet as of writing this review). I’d actually never seen Breakfast at Tiffany’s before a couple of weeks ago, though I’m familiar with its legacy, both positive and negative. (Positive: Audrey […]

Zirza on A Gothic Classic for a ReasonIt's one of those wish-you-could-read-it-again-for-the-first-time books. I loved it.
Emmalita on “It came to something when you found yourself hoping that the footsteps you heard were ghosts.”I loved the ending! I don’t think it’s been out long enough to talk about why though.
Dixie on Track Her Down by Melinda LeighI am just starting Track Her Down and I have read them all in order till now and thought I...
Roland of Gilead on How can you give us the gift of a crazy character named Rando Thoughtful and then just as suddenly take that gift away? We need to talk, Uncle Stevie.I came across this randomly years after it was written because I was searching "Random Thoughtful. But I have the...
Emmalita on “Only you, Em, would refer to heartbreak as a distraction. I think I would have a more sympathetic response if I asked to marry a bookcase.”Oh my goodness, Gallifrey was beautiful. I’m sure her mittens were gloriously murdery.

Help Our Mission