Cannonball Read 11

Sticking it to Cancer One Book at a Time

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Ale

I'm adjuncting in creative writing, and I'm in the midst of finishing a novel I'd like to send for publication by the end of 2019. CBR has definitely helped my writing since now I know what readers are looking for and not looking for in their works. So, thank you, CBR! Hopefully someday, we'll be able to review my novel on this blog. :)

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Ale's Reviews:

Fresh Fantasy

How Long Til Black Future Month? by N.K. Jemisin

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It took me a long time to get through this book, but not because I didn’t like it. I really loved many of the stories in this collection. Jemisin’s prose is tight, and fresh, and wonderful. She creates full-bodied characters in small spaces, and in many ways, the largest reason it took me almost a whole month to read was because I’d be so bereft at having to leave a  character or environment that I love, and I simply wasn’t ready to move on to the next one. It was like experiencing book grief over and over again, which is […]

Help Support Cannonball Read

Buy the following on Amazon and help our mission to stick it to cancer, one book at a time:

We pay for our website first, and then all proceeds above and beyond those fees are donated to the American Cancer Society in AlabamaPink's name. Find out how else you can help support our mission.

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4/18/2019 | 's CBR11 Review No:13 |

Drug Trip or Wacky Plot….Who Can Say?

Remedia: A Picaresque by Micahel Joyce

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I was asked to read this book for a lit mag and do a review of it. The last several books I’ve done for them have been pretty awesome, so I was optimistic going into this one. It’s a picaresque style novel, which I’ve never encountered before, and I had high hopes that I would enjoy this new type of genre. But, alas, I’ve DNFed this one at page 256 because I just can’t anymore with the crazitude. Remedia starts out like it’s going to be interesting, with a 1st person narrator (who’s name I truly don’t remember….maybe he’s never […]

Help Support Cannonball Read

Buy the following on Amazon and help our mission to stick it to cancer, one book at a time:

We pay for our website first, and then all proceeds above and beyond those fees are donated to the American Cancer Society in AlabamaPink's name. Find out how else you can help support our mission.

Share the post "Drug Trip or Wacky Plot….Who Can Say?"

4/9/2019 | 's CBR11 Review No:12 |

Fresh Perspective

All Systems Red: The Muderbot Diaries by Martha Wells

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A big thank you to Faintingviolet for suggesting the Muderbot diaries to me. I’m not a huge Sci-Fi fan, but this book was perfect. Martha Wells masterfully creates an enormous world full of technological advancement and space travel but stays close enough to character to let us non-SciFi loving people into her world. ‘Murderbot’ is a robot with more human qualities than some of the humans we meet, and every introvert’s best friend. When not doing its job as armed security, it prefers to sit under its helmet and watch its downloaded entertainment feed and not talk to people. This […]

Help Support Cannonball Read

Buy the following on Amazon and help our mission to stick it to cancer, one book at a time:

We pay for our website first, and then all proceeds above and beyond those fees are donated to the American Cancer Society in AlabamaPink's name. Find out how else you can help support our mission.

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3/28/2019 | 's CBR11 Review No:11 |

Trouble in FantasyLand

Get in Trouble: Stories by Kelly Link

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The lovely faintingviolet turned me onto Kelly Link, and I’m here to report that her latest book of short fiction, Get In Trouble, is a delight and there was not a story in this collection that didn’t simultaneously charm and terrify me. As a whole, Link’s greatest achievement is her ability to build entire universes in 40 pages or less. It’s an incredible feat that includes massive speculative worlds and full character development, while still using beautiful prose packed with metaphor and description. Here’s the breakdown: “The Summer People” – this was hands-down my favorite in the collection. Set somewhere up in […]

Help Support Cannonball Read

Buy the following on Amazon and help our mission to stick it to cancer, one book at a time:

We pay for our website first, and then all proceeds above and beyond those fees are donated to the American Cancer Society in AlabamaPink's name. Find out how else you can help support our mission.

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2/27/2019 | 's CBR11 Review No:9 |

The Saddest Bug in the World

The Metamorphosis by Franz Kafka

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I read The Metamorphosis under great duress during both high school and undergrad. I remember despising it both times, and only reading enough to get through class discussion. But my mentor is teaching it this semester, and I’ve had no choice but to revisit it. It’s amazing how much perspective a decade and a half can give. I loved this novella, and aside from general immaturity and lack of language skills, I don’t know why I was so vehemently against this story in the past. Gregor the beetle is the most pitiful, sad character on the planet, and for most of the […]

Help Support Cannonball Read

Buy the following on Amazon and help our mission to stick it to cancer, one book at a time:

We pay for our website first, and then all proceeds above and beyond those fees are donated to the American Cancer Society in AlabamaPink's name. Find out how else you can help support our mission.

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1/31/2019 | 's CBR11 Review No:8 |

Cats and their Owners

What's Michael?: Michael's Album by Makoto Kobayashi

What's Michael?: The Ideal Cat by Makoto Kobayashi

What's Michael?: Off the Deep End by Makoto Kobayashi

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I have a hard time with graphic novels, particularly Japanese manga. I’ve never quite been able to figure out why, but they’re difficult for me to follow and I tend to get lost easily. A friend of mine loves manga and suggested I try the “What’s Michael?” series as an intro since I’m an avid cat lover/owner.  And seriously, who wouldn’t want to look at fun stories about cats? I’m happy to say these were a delight. There’s not a direct story line to our hero’s adventures. Michael seems to be companion to a family, a Japanese gang member, and […]

Help Support Cannonball Read

Buy the following on Amazon and help our mission to stick it to cancer, one book at a time:

We pay for our website first, and then all proceeds above and beyond those fees are donated to the American Cancer Society in AlabamaPink's name. Find out how else you can help support our mission.

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1/25/2019 | 's CBR11 Review No:7 |

Magically Delightful

Sorcerer to the Crown by Zen Cho

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It took me a while to find my feet in this one, but once I did, it was a delightful romp through a fantastical Regency England. In Cho’s world, magic is in the air….or it would be if the Fairy Courts hadn’t plugged up the hole allowing their magic to trickle into England. But someone’s pissed off the Fairy Queen, and it becomes quite the kerfuffle for our titular Sorcerer Royal, Zacharias. On top of Fairy feelings, Zacharais is also fighting deep seated racism since he’s *gasp* African and *double gasp* the son of slaves with no societal connections to […]

Help Support Cannonball Read

Buy the following on Amazon and help our mission to stick it to cancer, one book at a time:

We pay for our website first, and then all proceeds above and beyond those fees are donated to the American Cancer Society in AlabamaPink's name. Find out how else you can help support our mission.

Share the post "Magically Delightful"

1/17/2019 | 's CBR11 Review No:4 |


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