Cannonball Read 17

Sticking It to Cancer One Book at a Time

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Sparrow by Mary Tebo

Home Away From Home by Nazneen Akbari

Upside-Down Iftar by Maysa Odeh

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  Culture is an interesting subject to read about. I have recently read several titles that give us a little insight into some cultures that might be different from ours, but also show how things are universal, too. Worldly books are perfect additions to anyone’s library. In the Western Wall, lives a Sparrow. The story slowly builds to the end where the idea of hope has unfolded in a special way. Mary Tebo’s story is clever and sweet, but also has a bit of an […]

Cool drink of love

Zamzam for Everyone: Sharing Water at Hajj by Razeena Omar Gutta

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I was going to cut back on the number of reviews I did this year, but then well, books happened! Books like Zamzam for Everyone: Sharing Water at Hajj by Razeena Omar Gutta and illustrated by Bassent Dawoud (due January 2026, read via an online reader copy). There are several books on the Islamic faith for the younger crowd. However, they are mostly repetitive and hit the “big events” and there is nothing wrong with that, but I needed something different and I found it […]

To tell the truth, the whole truth

Muhammad Najem, War Reporter: How One Boy Put the Spotlight on Syria by Muhammad Najem

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cbr17bingo Diaspora (this could be culture, but he upheaval of the Syrian people unfortunately fits.) Sadly, this book, Muhammad Najem, War Reporter: How One Boy Put the Spotlight on Syria, is nonfiction. I say sadly as nobody, let alone children and teenagers should have to go through what he did. Muhammad Najem, Nora Neus and Julie Robine gathered their talents and told the story of Muhammad as he risked not only his life, but the lives of his family, friends and neighbors. He wanted to be […]

I really got into Leila Boukarim books!

Mariam’s Dream: The Story of Mariam Al-Shaar and Her Food Truck of Hope by Leila Boukarim

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Leila Boukarim’s Mariam’s Dream: The Story of Mariam Al-Shaar and Her Food Truck of Hope is not a biography about a “woman done good.” Or an Arab woman “done good” or even an Arab refugee woman “done good.” It is all those things and much more. It shows that even if you were born into a situation where all you knew was being a refugee or if you have many obstacles to overcome, you can make your dream come true. Of course, that is a […]

From India to Israel

The Blue Butterfly of Cochin by Ariana Mizrahi & Siona Benjamin (Illustrator)

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I like finding out things that might not be familiar to me, or to the majority of people if it is presented in a fun way, as I do not care for “just the facts” and “dry textbooks.”  I like things like The Blue Butterfly of Cochin by Ariana Mizrahi and illustrated by Siona Benjamin. (Currently available, I read this via an online reader copy). I like taking a fictional story and basing it in the facts to make it relatable to the reader.  This […]

The littlest (quietest) revolutionary

The One & Only Googoosh: Iran's Beloved Superstar by Azadeh Westergaard

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Azadeh Westergaard’s The One & Only Googoosh: Iran’s Beloved Superstar is an interesting biographical book about a performer of Iran who is probably not well known to the general public. Even though she did a concert in the 2000’s I had never heard of her. But then again, I am not familiar with many international performers. But also, maybe her decades long forced silence in her homeland of Iran had something to do with it (and the fact that the concert mentioned in Westergaard’s book […]



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