Cannonball Read 17

Sticking It to Cancer One Book at a Time

Beyond Self-Acceptance

The Body is Not an Apology: The Power of Radical Self-Love by Sonya Renee Taylor

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BINGO: Violet (I mean, she’s on a bed of ACTUAL VIOLETS) Best for: Those open to reconsidering the ways they view themselves and others. In a nutshell: Author Sonya Renee Taylor offers up the idea that society’s ills are based on hatred of bodies that deviate from ‘the norm,’ and that by moving beyond self-acceptance to self-love, we will be able to create “a world that works for every body.” Worth quoting: “Our societies have defined what is considered a ‘normal’ body and have assigned […]

“I googled ‘monkey brothel’, had an existential crisis, and eventually found the details I wanted in a New Yorker article titled ‘Monkey Business’.”

Sex Power Money by Sara Pascoe

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Frequently, I find myself disagreeing with Sara Pascoe- but it’s not a problem! She’s funny, curious, and well-researched, and she makes no claims about being objective. She leans right into the fact that she her opinions are colored by her past experiences, and she remains open to other ideas and beliefs even if they do not mesh with hers. She is open and honest about her past experiences- especially those that pertain to sex, power, and money. Some are truly harrowing, yet she is a […]

A Good Starting Point

White Fragility by Robin DiAngelo

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Let me start by saying there is a reason why this title is on often near the top of many lists for anyone but especially white people who want to educate themselves on racism and racial inequality especially in the US. The author is up front about her being white herself, in fact she repeats that every so often throughout the book, often in order to point out that a lot of the things she has to say sound a little better to most other […]

Housing Is a Human Right

Evicted: Poverty and Profit in the American City by Matthew Desmond

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Best For: Those interested in poverty, society, and housing. People who appreciate less academic, more narrative non-fiction books. In a nutshell: Ethnographer Desmond follows a couple of landlords (really slumlords) and a handful of tenants through housing struggles. Worth quoting: Landlords were allowed to rent units with property code violations, and even units that did not meet “basic habitability requirements,” as long as they were up front about the problems. Between 2007 and 2010, the average white family experienced an 11 percent reduction in wealth, […]

The Gift of The Gifts of Imperfection

The Gifts of Imperfection by Brene Brown

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“Understanding the difference between healthy striving and perfectionism is critical to laying down the shield and picking up your life. Research shows that perfectionism hampers success. In fact, it’s often the path to depression, anxiety, addiction, and life paralysis.” This is one of those books I wish I had as a young girl. Perhaps I wouldn’t have picked up on all of the intricacies and layers then that are understandable only with development and years of self-discovery; however, this may have helped to lay a […]

I Feel Seen

Childfree by Choice: The Movement Redefining Family & Creating a New Age of Independence by Dr. Amy Blackstone

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BINGO: I Love This Best for: I wish everyone would read this. Parents who don’t understand why people would choose to not be parents can learn a lot about society’s misconceptions, but us childfree folks really benefit from writing that treats us as well-adjusted adults, not selfish, juvenile misanthropes. In a nutshell: Sociologist Blackstone looks at what it means to choose a life without children of one’s own. Worth quoting: I underlined something on nearly every page, and starred something especially poignant probably every three […]



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