Jane Yolen – Cannonball Read 17

How I used weltschmerz to inspire my reviews

P Is for Palestine : A Palestine Alphabet Book by Golbarg Bashi

The Many Problems of Rochel-Leah by Jane Yolen

June 6, 2024 by BlackRaven Leave a Comment

Currently the world events should be causing us all weltschmerz (thank you to the word of the day at our morning meeting). It means “world pain” (or a feeling of sadness about the state of the world. Melancholy or world weariness). And I am naive enough to believe that if we start reading about the people involved, it can show us how we are not different from each other, but how our similarities should be bringing us together. Like P Is for Palestine : A […]

Tea for you and me

Tea with an Old Giant by Jane Yolen

May 31, 2024 by BlackRaven Leave a Comment

Sometimes when you find/see a book and/or title, you think it is one thing. You base that assumption on the cover image and/or the author and/or illustrator’s name. Or you base it even on other books you have recently read. And when you finally do read that book (I was lucky enough to have one of my book dealers send me a finished copy), they turn out to be different than expected. Now, a title called Tea with an Old Giant that has a giant […]

Kiki Kicks her Anxiety

Kiki Kicks by Jane Yolen

May 1, 2023 by BlackRaven Leave a Comment

Jane Yolen, inspired by her granddaughter, Ariel Stemple (coauthor), own journey of self-confidence and overcoming her fears, is coming out in mid-October 2023 with the picture book Kiki Kicks. As many of my future publication book reviews, I found this as an online reader copy. The story is straight forward with the sister half of a brother-sister twin duo, finally decides she is ready to try the martial arts that her mother and brother practice. Of course, like many young kids, she wants to fly […]

That’s a nice tree

Deborah’s Tree by Jane Yolen

November 1, 2022 by BlackRaven Leave a Comment

Deborah’s Tree by Jane Yolen and illustrated by Cosei Kawa is a picture book that has multiple layers. It is a book on religion and women’s history. I knew the name Deborah was biblical but did not know the history of the woman behind the story. Deborah was a female judge. In fact, the only one the bible mentions. We follow Deborah from a child to an adult. We see her visions (let us put divine intervention aside for the moment and I will say […]

A Fairytale Romance

The Scarlet Circus by Jane Yolen

August 24, 2022 by Pooja Leave a Comment

In this collection of eleven short stories, the reader encounters love in its myriad forms – romance, but familial love and friendship and love of duty too – all splashed with plenty of fantasy. I am a little embarrassed to admit that I did not recognize Jane Yolen right away – she has written over four hundred books, and it turns out that though I have not read any of them, I knew plenty of them. Anyway I have rectified that sad oversight with The […]

“His skin neatly tailored over his bones:” A Great YA SF/F Novel

Dragon's Blood by Jane Yolen

January 18, 2022 by GentleRain Leave a Comment

I’m unable to be objective about this book since I’ve been reading it since childhood. I love it, it really is a perfect book to start a person onto sf/f. Dragon’s Blood follows Jakkin, who is an indentured servant at a dragon fighting stable. He’s an orphan whose father was killed when he was trying to train a feral dragon and whose mother died after they went into indentured servitude. The book blends science fiction and fantasy, as the dragon fighting happens on an alien planet […]

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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