Cannonball Read 17

Sticking It to Cancer One Book at a Time

No ticket needed

William Still and His Freedom Stories: The Father of the Underground Railroad by Don Tate

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Who was William Still? One of the most important people who helped run The Underground Railroad and I would wager few know his name. As the book William Still and His Freedom Stories: The Father of the Underground Railroad will point out, several people of color were involved in the everyday workings of the Railroad, few are still known. And Don Tate authors and illustrates one man’s journey. The youngest of his siblings, some left behind in slavery when their parents escaped, Still always wanted […]

City of Sisterly Love

Long Bright River by Liz Moore

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Parts of this one hit me hard. I’ve lost multiple high school classmates to drugs/opioids. It’s painful. I don’t even really have the words to express some of the sorrow I’ve felt over lives lost. I never looked at my old neighborhood as a place to escape. I was happy there growing up. But times change. At the heart of the book, this is a story of two sisters who take divergent paths. Those kinds of tales usually aren’t my thing, writers often rely too […]

It’s Always Sunny in Philadelphia

Black Friday by David Goodis

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A few months ago, a journalist whose newsletter I follow posted about how much he loved David Goodis’ books. We had exchanged e-mails in the past; he turned me on to the fabulous Martin Beck series (bless him forever). Hearing him laud Goodis made me want to read more of the man’s work. When I saw a Black Lizard (bless them forever) copy for sale, I pounced. My favorite avenue to explore existentialism is not in the philosophical novels of graying old men but in […]

Maybe one of us should retire from these books, Mr. Demarkian

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According to Goodreads, there are 29 Gregor Demarkian novels. I’ve read at least 26. I know some Cannonballers have become slightly disillusioned with the Stephanie Plum series, and narfna posted recently about not loving the latest Flavia de Luce as much. I have a similar feeling of Demarkian fatigue. The mystery in this one was interesting, but I think I’m a little tired of Haddam’s writing style. Mark DeAvecca is a student at a posh, hipster high school for rich kids. Before transfering to Windsor […]

A great (imo) twist that I did not see coming

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Ok guys.  I consider myself to be pretty intelligent.  Like I totally know words, and even how to use them!  I can name all of the James Bond movies, and who played Bond in each of them.  Additionally, I’m a great Googler.  Now that I’ve laid out my case (ooh it’s a legal book – unintentional pun!) for my unparalleled wit, I want to say that I did not see the twist in this story coming.  And it wasn’t one of those out of left […]

I really love talking about the 1840s, everything was a mess – including medicine.

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I want to thank my fellow ‘ballers for bringing this book to my attention. I work in museums, and I have two conferences this month in Philadelphia. This meant that if I timed some things correctly, and gave myself a day, I could actually go to a couple museums in Philly. Let it be said that after living less than three hours away from the city for over 6 years I finally managed to go sightseeing in Philadelphia this week. Go me! As part of […]



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