Cannonball Read 18

Sticking It to Cancer One Book at a Time


Surprisingly, I liked it!

The Lovely Bones by Alice Sebold

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This book had been sitting on my TBR pile for years and I finally got to it this year. Not only do I get the satisfaction of finally finishing it, but I was pleasantly surprised to find that that I quite enjoyed it. Our first person narrator Susie Salmon is a 14 year old girl living with her family in small town Pennsylvania in the early 1970s. When the story starts, Susie is telling her story from beyond the grave (her ‘heaven’), sharing the story […]

“There’s a Lid for Every Pot”

The Matchmaker's Gift by Lynda Cohen Loigman

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I have been a fan of Lynda Cohen Loigman’s books for several years. I was looking forward to The Matchmaker’s Gift and it did not disappoint. Loigman writes historical fiction centering around the Jewish immigrant community in New York City. Her books are well researched and she captures their experiences very well. The book is set in two time periods.  In 1994 Abby is a divorce attorney working for a very demanding boss. She is mourning her grandmother, Sara, who helped raise her and her […]

Perfect Halloween Read

Cemetery Boys by Aiden Thomas

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I am part of a YA for everyone book group at my local library. The organizer tries to pick books that fit the time of year, so for October, Halloween, we are reading Cemetery Boys by Aiden Thomas. I had no idea what this book was about, which is sometimes a great way to be pleasantly surprised.  Well, I really liked this book, it was such a fun ghost story. Yadriel is a trans teen who is trying to become a brujo. His Latinix family […]

The moments of his life, shaping us all

All Boys Aren’t Blue by George M. Johnson

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I bounce between a 3.5 and 4 with All Boys Aren’t Blue as the flow of things sometimes was off for me. However, the subject is very good, and I think could be valuable to even those who have not/or will not follow a similar path as George M. Johnson. Even though his intended audience was not exactly aimed at someone like me, I was able to appreciate his voice and his story. For sure this is not for the very young due to language […]

We are the living that have always been here but have been erased.

All Boys Aren’t Blue by George M. Johnson

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I am pulling from a few recent books to construct this thought about All Boys Aren’t Blue and why this book is necessary. Empathy is a necessary component of understanding that other people have value. Empathy requires imagination and imagination needs at least a few points of reference. George M. Johnson’s memoir manifesto is their story of being black and queer in America. Their story is not intended to be the story, but a story that opens the doors for readers to find their own […]

down to the wire (as always) – BOOK CLUB TIME!

All Boys Aren't Blue by George M. Johnson

The Hate U Give by Angie Thomas

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Why did I wait so long to read these two? This isn’t just a question of Book Club procrastination; this is a “what was I thinking?” moment! I had heard good things about both, I was enraged as ever when they (and others) showed up on lists of challenged and banned books, and they were both available on scribd! Also- why did I treat these books like homework? “oh man, I have to read these before I can move on to other things”- at the […]



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