Cannonball Read 17

Sticking It to Cancer One Book at a Time

Our Universe

Sophie Shares the Stars by Heather Smith and Catherine Petit

by Leave a Comment

Sophie Shares the Stars by Heather Smith and Catherine Petit is an interesting book due to the different layers it has. First, it is an adoption story. Sophie has lived with “”My Michael” since she was three. And this is why she calls him what she does and his mother “Our Julia.” But the second level is he is a “real” parent as he does the things all good parents do, takes care of her when she is sick, helps her clean up messes, and […]

All pigeon

Seven: A Most Remarkable Pigeon by Sandra Nickel

by Leave a Comment

Seven: A Most Remarkable Pigeon by Sandra Nickel and illustrator Aimée Sicuro is a story about a pigeon, their pigeon community and being yourself. Being yourself is not a new theme, however, with pigeons as the main character it helps make it fresh. This is partly because we learn pigeon behaviors and pigeons are not usually a serious character in a story. This fun read is due early May 2025 and I read via an online reader copy. Which I’m glad I did read before […]

The Bookwork and the Rugby player

Brielle and Bear: Volume 1: (A Graphic Novel) (Once Upon a Time University) by Salomey Doku

by Leave a Comment

Maybe Brielle and Bear: Volume 1: (A Graphic Novel) (Once Upon a Time University) is not a pure 4, but it is a silly, fun, “meet cute” romance that has a bit of potential to be a smidgen darker and that potential gives it a slight boost over. Based on Beauty and the Beast (Brielle=Belle; Bear=Beast), this fairy tale follows the (so far) 10 rules of fairy tales. All the elements of falling in love, learning about each other and more are wrapped up in […]

She’s not the spirit we wanted, but the one we needed

Zawa + The Belly of the Beast by Michael Dialynas

by Leave a Comment

I was a few pages into Zawa + The Belly of the Beast by Michael Dialynas when I said, “I think this might be a rating of four.” I was not sure why, but the humor and story up to this point made me think I was going to really really like it. Well, I did enjoy it, but not really really liked it. As the story went along, there were some missing pieces, and I was not liking some of the characters (the ones […]

What’s scarier than a cucuy?

The Unlikely Aventuras of Ramón and El Cucuy: An Illustrated Chapter Book by Donna Barba Higuera

by Leave a Comment

The Unlikely Aventuras of Ramón and El Cucuy: An Illustrated Chapter Book by Donna Barba Higuera and some funny illustrations by Juliana Perdomo is a fun story about family and a bit of mythology, that I read via an online reader copy.  Our narrator/main character is a young monster on the eve of his first assignment to scare a human child. They are the youngest in their class, and one of the few cucuys who do not have a Clump or name. Therefore, they must […]

Look forward with the words of Watson

Black Girl You Are Atlas by Renée Watson and Ekua Holmes

by Leave a Comment

Black Girl You Are Atlas by Renée Watson was one of those books I had heard about, seen, but never really wanted to read. I mean, I like young adult literature, I like poetry and I like young adult poetry. However, I judged the book by the cover and theme. I assumed it would be some flowery “poor me” story. Instead, it is a truly strong and amazing short collection of poems that are relatable, informative and thoughtful. The language is lovely, but straight forward. […]



Help Our Mission

You can donate to CBR via:

  1. PayPal
  2. Venmo