Cannonball Read 17

Sticking It to Cancer One Book at a Time

Never Underestimate the New York Transit System

One Last Stop by Casey McQuiston

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At the beginning of 2020 and thanks to many glowing CBR reviews, I devoured Casey McQuiston’s first novel, Red, White, and Royal Blue, which was just the mix of humor and escapism I needed at that moment (little knowing what a raging dumpster fire the next year would be).  I knew I would be on board for whatever McQuiston did next. Though a time-travel love story set in a New York subway was not quite what I expected, I found One Last Stop to be […]

Using Lovecraft Against Himself

The City We Became by N. K. Jemisin

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I have to admit: I tried to read N. K. Jemisin’s Fifth Season but had to put it down. The world and premise was good, but something about the style bothered me. I then picked up The City We Became which has an equally interesting premise. I still had some issues with the style, but I did manage to finish it. The City We Became is set in a world where major cities eventually develop avatars, people who represent the spirit of that place incarnate. […]

Come for the Historical Lady Police Offer, Stay for the Cozy Mystery

An Orphan of Hell's Kitchen by Liz Freeland

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Full disclosure, I requested this book based on its description and did not realize it was the third book in a series! It’s a testament to the author that I didn’t feel out of sorts reading this novel out of order as she did a good job ensuring any plot points from the first books were subtly explained or inconsequential. Louise, our main character, is a policewoman in New York City right before the United States enters World War I. Louise has German immigrant parents […]

Too much of the less interesting Fleishman

Fleishman is in Trouble by Taffy Brodesser-Akner

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I’m a big fan of Taffy Brodesser-Akner’s celebrity profile pieces for magazines like The New Yorker and GQ- they are smart, insightful and well-written essays that reflect on larger cultural issues as filtered through the lens of a particular celebrity.  Given this history, I had high hopes for her first novel. The plot in Fleishman is straightforward: Toby Fleishman, a specialist physician in Manhattan, is in the process of divorcing his wife, Rachel.  Rachel drops their two kids off at Toby’s rental apartment one morning […]

On The Avenue

Losers Live Longer by Russell Atwood

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Starting in September, I’ve resolved to read at least one Hard Case Crime novel per month. I collect Hard Case Crime books as a hobby, though there are getting harder and harder to find in used book stores. I always enjoy reading them but I sort of take it for granted that I can do so at anytime; knowing they’ll always be there. I had to force myself to read Casino Moon last month in order to check off a library bingo square. It wound up being […]

Grown-Up Me May Have Overthought Things in Places but Wins in the End

From the Mixed-Up Files of Mrs. Basil E. Frankenweiler by E.L. Konigsburg

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Bingo 21 (Back to School) I remember in elementary school being mightily impressed by From the Mixed-Up Files of Mrs. Basil E. Frankenweiler, but have no memory of what it was I liked or why I’d had to read the book in the first place. I suspect it was likely for a book report or reading hours. I kind of remember now upon a re-read over two decades later, in spite of some reactions to characters and situations that are likely the grown-up in me, […]



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