Cannonball Read 18

Sticking It to Cancer One Book at a Time
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About cosbrarian

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I'm a librarian, a singer, a cosplayer, an overachiever... @cosbrarian on most platforms. (Learn more about this Cannonballer: Cosbrarian's 2025 Quick Questions interview.)

cosbrarian's Reviews:

Getting lost and found again

Home Away From Home by Cynthia Lord

August 8, 2024 by cosbrarian Leave a Comment

Mia is visiting her grandmother in Maine on her own for the first time. This would be exciting, but the reason her mom is staying behind is to sell their old family house, so they can move in with her new boyfriend. The changes are freaking Mia out a little, so she’s glad to visit her reliable Grandma in the small town of Stone Harbour. But when she arrives, she finds that things have changed at Grandma’s too – a boy about her age named […]

Filed Under: Children's Books Tagged With: Addiction, animals, birding, birds, Cynthia Lord, family drama, friendship, maine, middle grade

cosbrarian's CBR16 Review No:10 · Genres: Children's Books · Tags: Addiction, animals, birding, birds, Cynthia Lord, family drama, friendship, maine, middle grade ·
Rating:
· 0 Comments
This book cover features a green and terra cotta colored little free library. A long-haired orange cat sits on top with a brown mouse who is holding a key. The top and bottom shelves contain multicolored books. On the bottom shelf is the ghost of a library building with a boy standing in front of it, reading. Someone watches from the library window.

Feeling lost after loss

The Lost Library by Rebecca Stead and Wendy Mass

July 17, 2024 by cosbrarian 1 Comment

When you’ve been a children’s librarian for years, it is easy to get burnt out on the material. For me, that also meant I got cocky. Can any kids book really hook me anymore as a bitter adult who has READ IT ALL? Are there any GOOD STORIES LEFT? Yes, of course, to both of those things. THE LOST LIBRARY by Rebecca Stead and Wendy Mass proved just that. The last day of fifth grade is approaching, and Evan is pretty nervous about moving up […]

Filed Under: Children's Books, Featured, Mystery Tagged With: Cats, grief, libraries, mice, middle grade, mystery, Rebecca Stead, Rebecca Stead and Wendy Mass, Wendy Mass

cosbrarian's CBR16 Review No:8 · Genres: Children's Books, Featured, Mystery · Tags: Cats, grief, libraries, mice, middle grade, mystery, Rebecca Stead, Rebecca Stead and Wendy Mass, Wendy Mass ·
Rating:
· 1 Comment

Fairy Tales: a genre by and for “we the people”

Old Wives' Fairy Tale Book by Angela Carter

June 10, 2024 by cosbrarian Leave a Comment

I picked up this fairy tale collection in Tim’s Books, a tiny off-the-path used bookstore in Provincetown, because it had Angela Carter’s name on it, and I’ve been dedicating my book-buying to hoarding collections by the best fairy tale scholars, especially the feminist ones. It has, as you can see, a delightfully dated cover, but its ideas are very radical and timeless. The book is a selection of fairy tales and folktales chosen by Carter (author of the brilliant The Bloody Chamber), highlighting some of the […]

Filed Under: Fantasy, Short Stories Tagged With: Angela Carter, Fairy Tales, feminism, folklore, folktales, short stories, working class

cosbrarian's CBR16 Review No:7 · Genres: Fantasy, Short Stories · Tags: Angela Carter, Fairy Tales, feminism, folklore, folktales, short stories, working class ·
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“Maybe all I need is a purpose.”

Singing With Elephants by Margarita Engle

May 22, 2024 by cosbrarian Leave a Comment

11-year-old Oriol wants to go back to Cuba. Ever since her grandmother died, she’s felt lost at her Santa Barbara, CA home. School is difficult, her older sister has less time for her since she got a boyfriend, and the only place she is truly happy is helping her parents at their veterinarian clinic. This clinic is no ordinary vet: her parents are specialty vets, assisting with wild and unique animals. In a show-biz state like California, they have a lot of work. One day, […]

Filed Under: Children's Books, Poetry Tagged With: 1940s, Cuba, Elephants, historical fiction, latinx author, latinx poetry, Margarita Engle, middle grade, poetry, verse

cosbrarian's CBR16 Review No:6 · Genres: Children's Books, Poetry · Tags: 1940s, Cuba, Elephants, historical fiction, latinx author, latinx poetry, Margarita Engle, middle grade, poetry, verse ·
Rating:
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Radicalize your reading through fairy tales

The Castle of Truth and Other Revolutionary Tales by Hermynia Zur Mühlen, Jack Zipes

Smack-Bam, or The Art of Governing Men: Political Fairy Tales of Édouard Laboulaye by Édouard Laboulaye, Jack Zipes

The Dragon Daughter and Other Lin Lan Fairy Tales by Juwen Zhang

May 20, 2024 by cosbrarian Leave a Comment

If you ask me “What’s the best thing about fairy tales?” my brain will combust. But in this very moment, I’ll say one of the best things is that there are so many forgotten or “undiscovered” tales to enjoy. In an effort to bring some forgotten folklorists to the forefront, fairy tale scholar Jack Zipes (my nerdiest old man crush) and Princeton University Press came together for a new-ish series called Oddly Modern Fairy Tales. Each volume concentrates on a writer or movement in fairy […]

Filed Under: Non-Fiction, Short Stories Tagged With: #history, Édouard Laboulaye, Jack Zipes, Fairy Tales, folklore, folktales, Hermynia Zur Mühlen, Jack Zipes, Jack Zipes, Juwen Zhang, Series, short stories

cosbrarian's CBR16 Review No:5 · Genres: Non-Fiction, Short Stories · Tags: #history, Édouard Laboulaye, Jack Zipes, Fairy Tales, folklore, folktales, Hermynia Zur Mühlen, Jack Zipes, Jack Zipes, Juwen Zhang, Series, short stories ·
Rating:
· 0 Comments

Navigating grief and mermaids in the Caribbean

A Comb of Wishes by Lisa Stringfellow

May 18, 2024 by cosbrarian Leave a Comment

Kela and her father have been pretty lost on their Caribbean island of St. Rita since Kela’s mother died. Her father spends his days manning his shop while Kela avoids friends, collecting sea glass for her jewelry projects. One day, she finds a mysterious looking antique comb in a coral reef. She is drawn to it. What she doesn’t realize is that she has stolen a mermaid’s comb, and its owner Ophidia is crushed by its loss. Her grudge against humans doesn’t leave Ophidia feeling […]

Filed Under: Children's Books Tagged With: black girl magic, fairy tale, folklore, lisa stringfellow, mermaids, middle grade

cosbrarian's CBR16 Review No:2 · Genres: Children's Books · Tags: black girl magic, fairy tale, folklore, lisa stringfellow, mermaids, middle grade ·
Rating:
· 0 Comments
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Recent Comments

  • Classic
    on The Witch by Fredia McFadden
    Definitely skipping that one. Never read it.
  • esmemoria
    on The Witch by Fredia McFadden
    It’s called Suicide Med. It’s bonkers.
  • Classic
    on The Witch by Fredia McFadden
    Oh man. What was that? Did I read that and block it out? LOL
  • Kit Moonstar
    on CBR Diversion – Bingo – “Bird”
    As a birder, there are some silly bird books that I really love: The Birding Dictionary by Rosemary MoscoBirding for...
  • esmemoria
    on The Witch by Fredia McFadden
    I went through such a tear of McFadden books a few years ago. I pretty much gave her up when...
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