Cannonball Read 17

Sticking It to Cancer One Book at a Time

A special time of year for everyone

The Tree That’s Meant to Be by Yrval Zommer

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Christmas books are hit or misses. Are they “too Santa” or are they “too Spiritual” or are they trying too hard to mix the two? Or are they trying to be “cute” and fall so far from the mark that it is a puddle of mush on the page? During my morning rounds at work the other day, I spotted this book faced out. I was thinking either “too Santa” or “too religious” (and while neither is wrong, I just like books “in the middle” […]

No one likes a fart even one with heart

No One Likes a Fart by Zoe Foster Blake,

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No One Likes a Fart is yes, a piece of bad bathroom humor. Kids will love it. Zoe Foster Blake, personally, does not like farts, but has some clever ways of describing them (butt trumpet, Fart Simpson to name a few). As well as an interesting story: naive Fart does not understand that the horrible stench everyone is complaining about is him! After all, he is a friendly fart and just wanted to come out and make some new friends. And just when, after many […]

Lupita Nyong’o shows you what it means to be beautiful

Sulwe by Lupita Nyong’o

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Lupita Nyong’o has created a picture book that deals with the issue of loving yourself. Growing up darker than her family, Nyong’o always wanted to change her looks; wanted to be lighter, like her own family and like her character, Sulwe. And while the two took different journeys, the ending is the same. They both came to love who they were: inside and out. This is done in a not overly preachy manner and the journey to being yourself could be anyone’s journey due to […]

It was Hard Being Me Yesterday, but Today is a new day

Being Edie Is Hard Today by Ben Brashares

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Being Edie Is Hard Today is a modern story about imagination and the issues kids deal with due to a more heighten sense of issues they (and adults around them) have. In other words, this is a touchy-feely book at its best. And make sure that you are at your best when reading; because nothing can ruin this book more than having a “Being You Is Hard Today” kind of day yourself. Ben Brashares created a modern, not fairy tale, but fairy tale for today. […]

Oh boy! Oh boy!

Dear Boy by Paris Rosenthal

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I do not remember reading mother and daughter Amy Krouse Rosenthal and Paris Rosenthal’s collaboration Dear Girl. But if I had, it obviously did not make much of an impression. Therefore, I was unsure what to exactly expect from daughter and father collaborators, Paris and Jason Rosenthal’s Dear Boy. Though, I had my suspicions. And basically, what came out of my reading of Dear Boy was exactly what I was expecting: a sentimental, modern, touchy-feely and obvious book. It is a “make yourself a kinder, […]

Once Upon a time a baby named Tess was adopted….

Giant Tess by Dan Yaccarino

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Dan Yaccarino is known for a quirky style, but usually good, solid stories.  This time, Giant Tess combines classic Yaccarino and an old school flair to create a modern fairy tale. Which, unfortunately, is an obvious story that has been done before. It is a case of “Be yourself and anyone of any size can be a hero.” Tess, adopted as a baby, grows so quickly there is no denying it, she is a giant. And that, as one can assume, does not always work […]



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