Cannonball Read 17

Sticking It to Cancer One Book at a Time

“Life is messy, unpredictable, and seldom tied into neat little boxes”, JVN.

Over the Top: A Raw Journey to Self-Love by Jonathan Van Ness

by 3 Comments

CBR Bingo: Queer Lives – Jonathan Van Ness identifies as non-binary (using all pronouns interchangeably, I’m choosing to use he/him since that is predominantly what is used on the Netflix show Queer Eye) and is happily married to his husband. Over the Top: A Raw Journey to Self-Love was the pick of my book club.  Most people know him from the Netflix revival of Queer Eye.  Or perhaps you’ve seen the ads for his haircare line on Facebook (he does have gorgeous hair).  At the […]

This book got canceled because of its author’s online behavior, but I think we should be reading it anyway.

Leaving Isn't the Hardest Thing by Lauren Hough

by 11 Comments

I just need to write this review. It just needs to happen. I read the book back in APRIL and it is now August. I’ve been letting the whole THING around this book and it getting canceled and review-bombed get to me. This was a book club pick for one of my in-person book clubs, and my friend Alison who picked it definitely picked it in part because it was a controversial book and she likes drama. If you’re not aware of the drama surrounding […]

What Are We?

Culture: The Story of Us by Martin Puchner

by Leave a Comment

This was another library impulse grab in my mission to read more non-fiction and I’m glad I made it through! Using key moments and figures, Martin Puchner lays out a brief sketch of human culture over the millennia. Which, you know, huge task! He focuses on times of cultural exchange, whether willing or not, and how we are constantly borrowing, assimilating, and rediscovering who we are. The examples he chooses are diverse and not just the frogmarch of Western Civ that would have us believe […]

Around the world in 72 days – and more than that

19th Century Female Explorers by Caroline Roope

by Leave a Comment

CBR 15 Bingo – In the Wild: The women of this book ventured into the wild spaces of pretty much very continent at some point or another. In the heyday of European colonialism, social mores were constrained for women, who were expected to stay domestic and tend hearth and home. Despite this, many European women managed to go traveling around the world on just as exciting adventures as their males counterparts did, and often recorded what they saw with clearer eyes as well. Truth is […]

“After all, the Statue of Liberty is an immigrant, too.”

Her Right Foot by Dave Eggers, Shawn Harris

by Leave a Comment

Cbr5bingo Picture this I saw a blurb about this children’s book on July 4 and thought it sounded interesting, and it absolutely is. This is a story about the making and gifting of the Statue of Liberty. While it contains fascinating facts on every page, it is the attention to one detail — the statue’s right foot — that provides a powerful and moving message to the reader.  Her Right Foot is aimed at readers aged 5-9 and contains truly delightful art. It reminded me […]

“I’m still going to move them out of my wanigan, but I’ll give you odds two-to-one that after they move out there’s going to be spontaneous combustion.”

Pilgrim's Wilderness: A True Story of Faith and Madness on the Alaska Frontier by Tom Kizzia

by Leave a Comment

The Pilgrim family seems to be a lovable, if eccentric addition to the town of McCarthy, Alaska, and soon win many supporters for their battle for landowner rights with the National Park Service. But the head of the clan is keeping some secrets, and the family’s lifestyle is not as idyllic as it seems. Having lived in bustling cities all my life, life in remote Alaska has always sounded surreal to me – and so I’ve often thought about how it would go if I […]



Help Our Mission

You can donate to CBR via:

  1. PayPal
  2. Venmo