Cannonball Read 17

Sticking It to Cancer One Book at a Time

The universal language of unconditional love

Quiet Time with My Seeya by Dinalie Dabarera

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CBR15Passport country When you see a title like, Quiet Time with My Seeya (or at least me), I assume that you will get an outlined story. Meaning: Step one: Grandparent is coming. Or child goes to grandparent. Step two: Child is bored, and grandparent makes magic. Or the child knows grandparent makes magic. Step three: They have lots of fun, maybe learning something new, but always a happy generational story.   There is nothing wrong with this story format. It is a good format and I like […]

Rich language and culture

Spanish Is the Language of My Family by Michael Genhart

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I assumed that Spanish Is the Language of My Family would take the format of “this is my family, and we speak Spanish” and then a list of wonderful Spanish words such as an alphabet book might give or beginning Spanish words would be given. Well, we get the wonderful words, but also a bit more. There is a spelling bee and a history lesson on how many children (we will learn from the 1930s to 1960s) that were not allowed to speak Spanish outside […]

“Lexicography Moves So Slowly That Scientists Classify It As a Solid”

Word by Word by Kory Stamper

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This book is just chock full of interesting nuggets of information (case in point: I considered titling this post “Did you know that the word “pumpernickel” comes from German for “fart goblin”?). In some ways the book is more interesting than it seems like it has any right to be. A book about writing dictionaries? Sounds boring, but Kory Stamper writes with humor (see post title) and an informal style that makes it an interesting and entertaining read. Each chapter focuses on an element of […]

Big Ideas and Big Friends

Big Dreams, Small Fish by Paula Cohen

Gibberish by Young Vo

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Culture is an interesting subject. And when you come from one and go to a different one, things get interesting.  The publisher Levine Querido has stories that are about cultures we may/may not be familiar with. In the process of reading them, there is a lot to learn about how we are not only different, but the same, too. Shirley is a child with big ideas, her family are immigrants, they live over their grocery store, and they cannot sell their gefilte fish. Her parents […]

“At last we meet again for the first time, for the last time.”

Cultish: The Language of Fanaticism by Amanda Montell

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All I’ve got in my head right now is that line from Spaceballs (see title of this review). I say that because every year I read a handful of books that I am just absolutely at a loss for how to review. This is my first one of 2022! I just want to say la la la la la and maybe read it again, but I’m expected instead to verbalize my thoughts about a book that covered so much and was so good and so […]

“Are you in a cult?”

Cultish: The Language of Fanaticism by Amanda Montell

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Well, I might be! Really, I’m inundated with cultish language- much like most of you are as well! The above question, posited by our own CBR gurus and shared across social media, was attached to an excellent review by faintingviolet. Her review kindled a blaze with other CBR readers- myself included! Our Goodreads walls are packed with update-after-update barrages of people frantically ripping through this read! I am very much looking forward to the Cultish flood headed our way. Now- back to the question. Am I […]



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