Cannonball Read 18

Sticking It to Cancer One Book at a Time

Thanks, Obama

Trust by Hernan Diaz

by Leave a Comment

I found Trust (2022) by Hernan Diaz on Barack Obama’s Recommended Reading List. I tend to follow many of Obama’s recommendations, and Trust also won a Pultizer Prize. Trust is the story of Benjamin and Helen Rask: a rather eccentric power couple in New York City. What makes this book more memorable and thought provoking, though, is how we learn about the couple. I think this book is best when you don’t know what you’re getting into. Therefore, if you’re interested in reading the book, I would recommend skipping the rest […]

Flowing friendship

The Musician (Lofty Mountains and Flowing Water) by Xuefeng Liu

by Leave a Comment

The Musician (Lofty Mountains and Flowing Water) by Xuefeng Liu, Gunter Grossholz (Illustrator) and Yuxi Wan (Illustrator) had a so-so story to it. It was a nice journey and an interesting folktale, myth or legend (depending on how you define those genres, and how you look at the story itself). However, it was the illustrations that grabbed me. That makes this book really more of a 4 than 5 for me, but the potential for other people and the fact it is, while familiar, it […]

Where the Animals Have Better Manners

Riders by Jilly Cooper

by Leave a Comment

CBR15 Bingo – Sex: What would a bonkbuster be without sex? And here it drives much of the action and drama of the book as well. Jake Lovell and Rupert Campbell-Black were born to very different circumstances which have made them very different men, but they both have the same goal – to rise to the top of the spectacular, high-octane world of… show jumping. As I was embarking on an international trip with limited internet access, I thought it would be prudent to stock up […]

More of an emotional review than read

Mythos by Jaysen Headley

by Leave a Comment

I have been debating if I should write a review for the novel, Mythos by Jaysen Headley. I will start my review with why. I really did not like this book. I appreciate the hard work that went into it. Yet, it was not “good.” To be fair, I am a book snob. I have very high expectations for my reading. Could I do better than these results? Probably not, but I was hoping Headley had more oomph behind him.  You might be familiar with […]

The Big Cheese is a Big Wheel

The Big Cheese by Jory John

by Leave a Comment

There is a new Jory John and Pete Oswald book coming out in early November 2023. And it is a big deal. In fact, you could say it is a big wheel called The Big Cheese. Starting back in 2017 withThe Bad Seed, the themes of the Food Group books are lessons for everyone about personalities, emotions, social themes, and more. When we meet Cheese they are a big deal. They tell us they started life normal enough, but had big plans. And they achieved them. And […]

Where Have You Been, My Blue-Eyed Son?

Hard Rain Falling by Don Carpenter

by Leave a Comment

Recently, New York Review Books held a big sale on forgotten noir classics and I availed myself of the opportunity to grab a few. (Stay tuned.) Of those, Don Carpenter’s Hard Rain Falling was the one I knew the least about, but which was also the most intriguing. It’s advocates speak very highly of it’s unsparing honestly and hardboiled vibe. I mean, just look at that cover. The story has an unusual structure. The narrative switches perspective at odd intervals, just as the reader begins […]



Help Our Mission

You can donate to CBR via:

  1. PayPal
  2. Venmo