Cannonball Read 17

Sticking It to Cancer One Book at a Time

The sights, sounds, smells and food of the forest

On a Mushroom Day by Chris Baker and Alexandra Finkeldey

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I have read On a Mushroom Day by Chris Baker and Alexandra Finkeldey before (or it did feel  familiar at least). Maybe that was because I have read books about mushrooms/fungi before, so it might be a case of remembering that instead of this one. Either way, Baker’s book is a poetic story that could grab most readers. Even if you are not interested in edible (and not so edible) fungus, this is a nice book about the connection between us and nature. The child […]

Taste the story

Every Peach Is a Story: A Picture Book by David Mas Masumoto

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I have been reading picture books coming out in 2025 from online reader copies recently. Every Peach Is a Story: A Picture Book by David Mas Masumoto, Nikiko Masumoto, and Lauren Tamaki (due in March 2025) is one of those. The cover was a bit awkward, being busy and (frankly) a bit messy looking. Yet, I knew that if I didn’t like it, I didn’t have to finish it. And while it is not my favorite read this year, it has a strong place. It […]

Yo-Yo Ma and His Gifts

The Music Inside Us: Yo-Yo Ma and His Gifts to the World (A Picture Book Biography) by James Howe

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The Music Inside Us: Yo-Yo Ma and His Gifts to the World (A Picture Book Biography) by James Howe and illustrated by Jack Wong might be one of my favorite new picture biographies. Read via an online reader copy, however, you’ll have to wait until early June 2025 for your chance to read it.  We hit the highlights of the life and times of this cellist. There are several facts in the text itself, along with extras as well. This lets the book grow with […]

Told in English and Chinese

Grandpa’s Magic Mask: A Story of Growth and Bravery in English and Chinese by Siping Wu

A House Just for Mommy: A Bedtime Story Told in English and Chinese by Dayong Gan

The Boy, the Deer, and the King: A Legend Retold in English and Chinese by Xiaochun Tang

Little Malan’s Debut: A Story of Courage Told in English and Chinese by Lumin Qian

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I do not speak a second language. As an adult, I regret not working harder on that, but I take solace in the fact that there are bilingual books out there and I can read the English part and admire the second language. Usually this is French or Spanish, but I have noticed that Chinese is taking its place. I’m not sure if the Chinese in these four books is Mandarin or Cantonese, so please let me know if you know! All will be available […]

Few things as fun as a good book or two

O.K. Is Gay: A Picture Book by Vincent X. Kirsch

Here Is a Book:  A Picture Book by Elisha Cooper

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There are few things as fun as a good book. Two of those books were found recently by me via online reader copies. The first by Vincent X. Kirsch is a contemporary story on how it is okay to be gay. And the other is a book about books. Or more accurately how a book goes from idea to your hands. I was a little skeptical about O.K. Is Gay: A Picture Book  as it was mostly starting out as “just another it’s okay to […]

Bats and dragons and mysteries

Silverwing: The Graphic Novel by Kenneth Oppel and Christopher Steininger

Winter Turning: A Graphic Novel (Wings of Fire Graphic Novel) by Tui T Sutherland and Mike Holmes

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If you haven’t guessed, I like graphic novels. It wasn’t always that way, but they opened up to me unique experiences. I used to recommend them to my customers and had to overcome the “they are just comic books….” (sneering the whole time). No, they are much more (and besides, what’s wrong with a comic book? Your child is reading, right?) Anyway, I found a new graphic novel series and have almost finished an old one. Both of them are fantasy, but dig deep into […]



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