Cannonball Read 17

Sticking It to Cancer One Book at a Time

Head, Shoulders, Knees, and Balls, and it’s a war story

Henry V by William Shakespeare

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Bingo 14: Détente I’ve re-read Henry V the Shakespeare history play because I’m teaching it and haven’t actually re-read it for a good long while. This play both ends and begins with questionable peace between England and France, so it’s suitable for this square. I don’t actually remember my first read, just being really impressed by Kenneth Branagh’s film version, or perhaps more specifically Patrick Doyle’s score. The choral bit after the battle of Agincourt is pretty impressive. One big thing I noticed upon re-reading […]

Mission Be Funny While Stopping Duncan’s Murder

Miss Blaine's Prefect and the Weird Sisters by Olga Wojtas

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Bingo 3: Fanfic Miss Blaine’s Prefect and the Weird Sisters is a re-imagining of Shakespeare’s Macbeth; it’s definitely fanfic, both in that it’s a self-insertion into an established world/story and that it’s loaded with basically Easter Eggs that only a fan of the original would appreciate. The premise is that Shona McMonagle is a middle-aged librarian who is somehow capable of time-travel. The time travel thing is not really explained, and it doesn’t really matter as that’s not the point. When Shona was younger, she […]

A great Shakespearean actor

Ira’s Shakespeare Dream by Glenda Armand

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Ira’s Shakespeare Dream by Glenda Armand and illustrated by Floyd Cooper was the right book at the right time. Had I read it any other time than recently in APril 2024, I don’t think it would have hit me the same. I had just read a book that had put all the well-known people in the theme, and I needed something that would give me the unknown. Read via an online reader copy and currently available, Armand takes a probably mostly unknown actor of color […]

A Sweet Spin on Shakespeare

Midsummer's Mayhem by Rajani LaRocca

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I am a regular listener of the podcast The Worst Bestsellers. While the hosts often read and make gentle fun of some very popular books, they also recommend books to read instead of the bestseller. This book was recommended and I really enjoyed it. Midsummer’s Mayhem is a cute confection of a book for readers ages 8-12 and loosely follows the plot of a Midsummer Night’s Dream. Mimi Jackson is 11, living with her two older sisters and one older brother. One day, a new […]

Of Mice and Metaphors

Hamnet by Maggie O'Farrell

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In a small Warwickshire village, an eleven year old succumbs to the plague. The year is 1596; the boy’s name is Hamnet. His father, who remains nameless throughout the book, goes on to write a famous play about a young Danish prince, while his mother stays behind with the boy’s sisters, trying to pick up the pieces of their life.  Hamnet is about a side of Shakespeare we rarely get a glimpse of, mostly because not a lot is known about it save for a […]

Witchy ways

Witch Poems by Daisy Wallace

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If this book has not at least been challenged at least once, I would be amazed. Witch Poems edited by Daisy Wallace includes some fantastic poems. However, while this is a great collection of poetry about witches and spooky fun (and not so much fun), it can be dated with language and imagery. Trina Schart Hyman had a style that when you saw it, you knew it was them. They had diverse characters before diverseness was prominent in children’s books. Yet, there are some stereotypes […]



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