imagination – Page 2 – Cannonball Read 17

I’m not sure what was true

Almost True by Clarice Lispector

October 3, 2025 by BlackRaven Leave a Comment

I am not the reader for Almost True by Clarice Lispector. It did not “grab me” but I know several people will find this amusing and clever. The illustrations are unusual and have a little fun going on but are also not over the top silly. Yet, they are oddly abstract with a realistic touch, Once I realized that it was translated by Benjamin Moser I figured that it was the translation of things that was not being liked by my reading ear. The text […]

Discover the Moonlight Zoo

The Midnight Zoo by Maudie Powell-Tuck

August 20, 2025 by BlackRaven Leave a Comment

Author Maudie Powell-Tuck starts in the middle of the story in The Midnight Zoo where we learn Eva has lost her cat Luna. Eva has looked all over and taken all sorts of actions to find them. Of course, as bedtime comes around, and Luna is not found, Eva is obviously distressed. Then, in what you can believe is a real event, or a dream, Eva finds herself at the titled zoo, where the animals help her look for said cat. Overall, things are whimsical, […]

This book went to the dogs

Smithy and Me by Darcy Day Zoells

April 28, 2025 by BlackRaven Leave a Comment

The illustrations are fun and colorful in Smithy and Me by Darcy Day Zoells. And while they are not overly detailed they are not lacking either. They set the tone, give the story the push along to make you wonder “what is next?” and keep the reader engaged. The story is “50/50” (you will or won’t like it). I might not have been the exact reader for it, but it is going to be a big hit and I see awards in the future. The […]

Princesses, pirates and sisters

Story Spinners: A Sisterly Tale of Danger, a Princess, and Her Crew of Lady Pirates by Cassandra Federman

April 25, 2025 by BlackRaven Leave a Comment

I started a review once that said that I like sibling books and sister books in particular. Story Spinners: A Sisterly Tale of Danger, a Princess, and Her Crew of Lady Pirates written and illustrated by Cassandra Federman is one of those books. Currently available, this is a cute story about modern day sisters, with one having some old school ideas that get messy when the sisters unite to tell their “other sister” a bedtime story. Of course, there is more than that. The oldest […]

Two reviews for you

Mary Had a Little Jam by Tammi Sauer and Vanessa Brantley-Newton

Pencil by Hye-Eun Kim

April 10, 2025 by BlackRaven Leave a Comment

My recent picture book reading day included a lot of books. So many in fact that I had to break them into two different reviews. Also read and now included in this review were Mary Had a Little Jam by Tammi Sauer and Vanessa Brantley-Newton and Pencil by Hye-Eun Kim. Well, Hye-Eun Kim’s book was more looked at than read as it is a wordless picture book. And still Pencil is something that I can write several words about. The fun part of this book […]

Charles Addams, Shel Silverstein, AA Milne and Edward Gorey had a baby this would be its cousin.

The Boy Who Lived in a Shell: Snippets for Wandering Minds by John Himmelman

February 10, 2025 by BlackRaven Leave a Comment

If Charles Addams, Shel Silverstein, AA Milne and Edward Gorey had a baby this would be its cousin. The Boy Who Lived in a Shell: Snippets for Wandering Minds by John Himmelman is not necessarily spooky or kooky like Addams or Gorey; or rhyming like Silverstein and does not have the sweetness or innocence of Milne, but a mixture that is all its own. Due mid-March 2025, I read via an online reader’s copy. The stories the boy talks about, or actually writes, are on […]

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.

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