Cannonball Read 17

Sticking It to Cancer One Book at a Time

Reviews 1 & 2

A Hen for Izzy Pippik by Aubrey Davis and Marie Lafrance

Yasmeen Lari, Green Architect : The True Story of Pakistan's First Woman Architect by Marzieh Abbas and Hoda Hadadi

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I decided to start my 2025 reading with a few books I found in 2024. And as I like easing into the new year, I decided to start with a picture book or two. Always a favorite genre of mine, as they can be both fun and informative. And the below titles are fun and especially informative with the second. I read both via an online reader copy but they are currently available.  Book One: A Hen for Izzy Pippik by Aubrey Davis and illustrated […]

Nostalgia

Amla Mater by Devi Menon

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Even though I have trouble reading online, I am finding even my longer reads there. Such as Amla Mater by Devi Menon. It is less than 200 pages, and therefore more of a novella graphic novel, but what I mean by longer is not a picture book. Actually picture books can be relatively easy to read online (unless they have a smaller print, a lot of print or illustrations that need the book to be turned to read), but when I do my young adult […]

The other parts of faith

On a Chariot of Fire: The Story of India’s Bene Israel by Erica Lyons

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Due to recent world events, I have tried to find books that show another side to the people involved in these conflicts. In my search I have found several books, including an Ukrainian folktale, such as a counting book from Palestine and books on Judaism or the people. And one of those that I recently found was, On a Chariot of Fire: The Story of India’s Bene Israel by Erica Lyons, (currently available, read via an online reader). I cannot say a lot about the […]

Perils of Journalism

I Am On the Hit List: A Journalist's Murder and the Rise of Autocracy in India by Rollo Romig

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Read as part of CBR16 Bingo: Bollywood. This is a true crime novel about a journalist in India who was murdered, as well as the uniqueness of south Indian culture and the autocratic rule of Modi. Despite it being one of the largest countries in the world, I know very little about India. I knew Britain treated it like garbage for centuries and that, thanks in part to Gandhi, it won its freedom in 1947. I knew that there are tensions between Hindus and Muslims. […]

More toymakers for the children!

Asha and the Toymaker by Sakshi Mangal

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cbr16bingo  Bollywood (child lives in a village of India and the author is from Mumbai, India)   Asha and the Toymaker by Sakshi Mangal is something that one needs to experience themselves. I can say it is about Asha and her father in India. I can say that she is a young girl whose father wants her to study hard, not worry about money (that is his job to raise money so she can go to school) and have the opportunities that he did not […]

“Women were built to endure the rules men make.”

The Bandit Queens by Parini Shroff

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I would think it a real challenge to make a story about women suffering under abusive husbands and the difficulties of living in the caste system in India incredibly funny, but this book managed to do that. The humor is dark, but the characters (mostly women) are authentic, interesting and very relatable as they try to navigate the world of men while finding ways to advocate for themselves in a world that doesn’t want them to do much at all. Geeta’s awful husband disappeared 5 […]



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