Cannonball Read 17

Sticking It to Cancer One Book at a Time

Before “I’ll get you my pretty and your little dog, too!”

What is the Story of the Wizard of Oz? by Kirsten Anderson

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What is the Story of the Wizard of Oz? In Kirsten Anderson’s book it starts at the end of the history (or the most recent piece of history) and works its way back to a boy who would write a beloved classic. We see the life and times of a man named Lyman Frank Baum (or more commonly known as L. Frank Baum) and how over a hundred-years one book (and eventually its sequels) is still in our sights. Each chapter does flow from the […]

The Heroines We Wanted in Childhood

Cheshire Crossing by Andy Weir & Sarah Anderson

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I’m not usually into graphic novels, but my friend showed up to our weekly DnD game with “Cheshire Crossing,” and was like, ‘you have to read this!’ Being that it was free (hello, #no money bingo square), I did, and was not disappointed. Now, I still haven’t read the Martin, so I didn’t realize who Andy Weir was, but I love Sarah Anderson’s art, and from the start, the cover and all the comics of this graphic novel are gorgeous. Weir’s writer’s note on the first […]

Down the Yellow-Brick Road

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“Folklore, legends, myths and fairy tales have followed childhood through the ages, for every healthy youngster has a wholesome and instinctive love for stores fantastic, marvelous and manifestly unreal. The winged fairies of Grimm and Andersen have brought more happiness to childish hearts than all other human creations.” – L. Frank Baum

I think she’s part of another story.

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I have been consistently conflicted about “The Dark Tower” series. Somehow, in spite of my frustrations, annoyances, aggravations, and declared boredom, I cannot put it down! This book, Book Four, Wizard and Glass, is a perfect example of this conflict: I am in love with the characters who come from “our” world: Eddie, Susannah, and Jake, the normals with whom, of course, we’re meant to identify, are the perfect hook for me. And then there’s sweet and loyal and probably brilliant, Oy, the billy bumbler […]

Down the Yellow Brick Road and Beyond the Rainbow

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The Wizard of Oz is an enduring and endearing classic. Who hasn’t seen it, perhaps even multiple times? It made a star out of cultural icon Judy Garland and has held up remarkable well over the years since its 1939 release, enchanting generations of young and old alike. There have been stories over the years about what went on behind-the-scenes of making the film. The most familiar factoids center around Buddy Ebsen, who was originally cast as the Tin Woodman, but had such a terrible reaction […]

“A brain!” “A heart!” “A home!” “Da vote!”

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It’s all too common for modern readers to look into the works of the past and see things that may or may not have been intended in the fullness of time.  What we may see as a delicate, subtly woven metaphor to rail against some then-incumbent wrongdoing the author may have added as nothing more than a narrative flourish.  How much exactly did L. Frank Baum intend to comment on women’s suffrage, transgender issues, and the monstrosity of the pun?  I can’t safely say, given […]



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