Cannonball Read 18

Sticking It to Cancer One Book at a Time


Join the CBR18 Book Bingo Reading Challenge—Now Underway!   

Not the most fun of road trips

America the Beautiful? by Blythe Roberson

by Leave a Comment

My husband recommended America the Beautiful?: One Woman in a Borrowed Prius on the Road Most Traveled (2023) by Blythe Roberson. I have a bit of a contest going with my oldest brother to see who can get to more U.S. national parks (I’m winning), and this book seemed on point. Roberson was taking an epic summer road trip to visit every U.S. National Park in the lower 48 that she hadn’t yet been to. I chose at the time not to read it, but this summer […]

this one brought up a lot of emotions that I’ve spent a lot of time processing

Strangers: A Memoir of Marriage by Belle Burden

by 1 Comment

CBR Bingo: Versus, because there’s something very antagonistic about the divorce proceedings) (originally sheep, because while reading this I did feel a lot like I’d been a bit of a sheeple and Belle had been too) hot take: Can you get upset at someone for doing something stupid that you yourself did? longer take: I don’t know how to review this book in detail without getting into some personal history and details that, honestly, I don’t think about that much and are pretty well resolved […]

The Doctor is a Life Saver

A Doctor at Heart: The Story of Groundbreaking Scientist and Teacher Vivien Thomas by Joan Schoettler and Steffi Walthall

by Leave a Comment

This man grew up in a family that demanded perfection, he would grow up to graduate with honors, he would lose all his money in the stock market crash, and he would go on to be the man who helped find a cure for blue baby syndrome. He was Vivien Thomas. Oddly enough, though they mention the pay discrepancies, there is not a lot about the racism Thomas would have faced.  And though there is the story of how he got his “girls name,” I […]

“No one has listened to me my whole life and I really want to be heard.”

Rebel Girl: My Life as a Feminist Punk by Kathleen Hanna

by Leave a Comment

My observation about punks, the real ones, is that they’re hard on everyone. Even themselves. Their highest standards come from a desire for things to be better than they are. It’s from having an open heart and caring deeply. In my younger years, a lot of my heroes were exacting artists who cared deeply. Unfortunately, a lot of them are now dead. The world was too much. Therefore, I’m very interested in the punks who survived and seem to be more at peace with the […]

I need to learn more about Jane Austen

Patchwork by Kate Evans

by 2 Comments

I try to read a graphic novel every once in awhile to expand my literary tastes. This year, I saw Patchwork (2025) by Kate Evans on NPR’s Books We Love List and knew that I needed to read it. I love Jane Austen, and Pride and Prejudice has been my favorite book since I first read it back in college. I’ve heard little tidbits about Austen’s life here and there, but I really don’t know much about her. I figured this book would be perfect for me. Jane Austen and her […]

Eat a Peach by David Chang

Eat a Peach by David Chang

by 4 Comments

I have to say upfront I wasn’t paying attention and borrowed the wrong book from the library. I was looking for Ted Chiang’s latest and my freaking Libby showed this even though I typed in Ted Chiang. I wasn’t paying attention to the author’s name when I put it on my hold list. Imagine my surprise when I opened this up and it starts talking about Chef David Chang. I know of him since I have seen some of his tv shows, and honestly my […]



Help Our Mission

You can donate to CBR via:

  1. PayPal
  2. Venmo