Cannonball Read 17

Sticking It to Cancer One Book at a Time

12 months of the year in English, French, Spanish and German

One Year: Une Année  Un Año  Ein Jahr by Ioana Stoain

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There is a lot to love about the book One Year: Une Année  Un Año  Ein Jahr. There are adorable illustrations by Julia Leister that give things a bright, fun, and whimsical look. As the publisher’s description says, these  “retro-style illustrations” make things cozy and happy. The images tell you the month with the people’s clothing and actions, plus the weather is a great clue. I really enjoyed all of this until the whole point of the book. The four different languages. Ioana Stoain puts […]

A seasonal book that takes a season to read

Seasonal Fears by Seanan McGuire

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Bingo 18: Earth Day   Seanan McGuire knows her folklore, and it shows. In Seasonal Fears, there’s a ton of tropes, but mostly well handled. Basic plot involves the King of Winter and the Queen of Summer dying, and their crowns being up for grabs to those with affiliations for that season. The whole season emphasis thus qualifies for general environment theme, especially since the recently departed King of Winter was cheating the system where he was always in ascendance, which was probably causing climate […]

Plant a seed watch it grow

The Pumpkin Seed's Secret: A Life Cycle Poem by Hannah Barnaby

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The autumn season is upon those of us in those regions. We get to have cool nights, crisp days, wind, rain, sun and sometimes within a 15 minute time frame! And there are changing colors of the leaves, crazy squirrels and the thought of pumpkins. And in this review we learn about the pumpkin in a way that allows us not to be scientifically bombarded with just the facts. When you read a book and the title (The Pumpkin Seed’s Secret: A Life Cycle Poem) […]

I like picture books 2

In Praise of Mystery by Ada Limón

Wings of an Eagle: The Gold Medal Dreams of Billy Mills by Billy Mills and Donna Janell Bowman

It's Fall! (Celebrate the Seasons #1) by Renee Kurilla

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The only issue with picture books is that if you try to write a full review for each individual book it is hard to do. After all, you’re trying to write a 250 word review for a book that might have 50 pages and 200 words. But, that’s why a good Picture Book Roundup is a great way to find books for you to peruse!  Written by Ada Limón and illustrated by Peter Sís, In Praise of Mystery is a romantic and poetic book about […]

For the Children

The Father Goose Treasury of Poetry: 101 Favorite Poems for Children by Charles Ghigna

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The Father Goose Treasury of Poetry: 101 Favorite Poems for Children by Charles Ghigna and illustrated by  Sara Brezzi is an interesting, sweet, classical poetry that can be a “when you need to” read or a good bedtime read. Delightful illustrations are soft and solid, while also being bold and tame. It would be a lovely gift for a baby shower, first birthday or the adult in your life who likes more lyrical, classically presented poetry. There are sections for themed poetry. Each section can act […]

Rather hip witches

Wacky Witches and Their Peculiar Familiars by April Suddendorf

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cbr16bingo Celestial  When I hear the word celestial I don’t think of Space or Stars, I think more spiritual, lofty, and Sun. The spiritual does lead to some religious aspects, but also more magical things. Like earth, and mother, and witches. The female theme comes together in a book for young readers/listeners. And while I think of myself as a feminist, I think we can “overdo” that sentiment. This  time, we are not getting it pushed too “hard” but it is not lacking. It does […]



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