Cannonball Read 17

Sticking It to Cancer One Book at a Time

Rich language and culture

Spanish Is the Language of My Family by Michael Genhart

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I assumed that Spanish Is the Language of My Family would take the format of “this is my family, and we speak Spanish” and then a list of wonderful Spanish words such as an alphabet book might give or beginning Spanish words would be given. Well, we get the wonderful words, but also a bit more. There is a spelling bee and a history lesson on how many children (we will learn from the 1930s to 1960s) that were not allowed to speak Spanish outside […]

Come light the Menorá

J Is for Janucá by Melanie Romero

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When I think of Hanukkah, I think of a winter celebration that I know a little about, but not enough to say much about. So, when J Is for Janucá came up on a list of books to read online via Edelweiss, I thought here is a great way to learn. And I learned more than expected. You see, this book is bilingual. Spanish and English words and phrases fill this alphabet book in ways you will be amazed at. Words you might know, such […]

The fun of family

Hide and Shh!: A Not -So-Sneaky Sister Story About Inclusion by Christina Dendy

A Song of Frutas by Margarita Engle

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These books have a loose connecting theme. Not only are they picture books, but they are about things that we might not be exposed to often. I mean A Song of Frutas and Hide and Shh!: A Not -So-Sneaky Sister Story About Inclusion are about the fruit vendors of Cuban, with Spanish words mixed in and two siblings, one who lives with Down Syndrome, finding common ground (and the not exposed to is having a special needs sibling). I grew up with first cousins, a […]

Food and Folks

Dumplings for Lili by Melissa Iwai

La Princesa and the Pea by Susan Middleton Elya

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A local school was purchasing a few titles for their library. I was unaware of the picture books Dumplings for Lili and La Princessa and the Pea. Therefore, I gave them a quick peak when they came in. Both were two of the sweetest books I have read all year! (Okay, got the year joke out early.) These two books are a modern fairytale and a reimaging of a classic. Dumplings for Lili by Melissa Iwai is a lovely, illustrated book about a young girl […]

What would you do with a spaceship full of psychic cats?

Chilling Effect by Valerie Valdes

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It might end up sounding like I didn’t like Chilling Effect, but I want to be clear from the beginning that this was a fun and mostly entertaining read. The basic premise might sound familiar: space-ship captain and rag-tag crew/found family go about their existence but then everything changes when they are faced with a seemingly impossible mission and chaos/adventure ensues. The same goes for most of the characters, including Eva Innocente, tough captain with some sort of tragic past who can’t seem to get […]

Expanding Horizons

The Murmur of Bees by Sofia Segovia (Author), Simon Bruni (Translator)

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Bingo Update: This is for my History/Schmistory square. The book is, according to the publisher, “set against the backdrop of the Mexican Revolution and the devastating influenza of 1918.” I learned SO MUCH about Mexican history reading this book, even if it is a work of fiction. Every now and then a monolith that should be seen as evil does something good, even Amazon (who we appreciate for our buyhole, obviously). Amazon sent out a list of books they were offering for free for World […]



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