Cannonball Read 18

Sticking It to Cancer One Book at a Time

“…a racehorse is a mirror, and a man sees his own reflection there. He wants to think he’s from the best breeding. He wants to think himself brave. Can he win against all comers? And if not, does he have self-mastery to take a loss, stay cool in defeat, and try again undaunted? Those are the qualities of a great racehorse and a great gentleman.”

Horse by Geraldine Brooks

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I didn’t realize I could or would enjoy a book about horse racing, but here we are! I’m a bit bummed I missed my library book club meeting about this book because it would be fascinating for a discussion. In 2019, a master’s student of art finds a painting of a horse in his neighbor’s trash pile by the side of the road. He is intrigued and takes it to see what he can learn about it. Maybe it can be part of his thesis? […]

Crashing Off the Rails

The Orphan's Letters by Glynis Peters

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Kitty, an orphaned young woman, works to gain her Red Cross qualification as she continues to work as a nurse during World War Two. I picked up this ARC on NetGalley a while ago, and came to realize sometime after that that WW2 historical fiction is generally not for me. I enjoy learning about the time period and the experiences of ordinary people, but I find that the plots zigzag between melodramatic and dull too much for my liking. But my NetGalley shelf needs to […]

In Which the Serial Killer Is Besides the Point

Devices and Dexires: An Adam Dalgliesh Mystery by PD James

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Commander Adam Dalgliesh, of the Scotland Yard, has just inherited a converted windmill from a favorite aunt, situated on a remote stretch of the Norfolk coast.  He has fond memories of visits there as a child, and is looking to escape publicity for a bit after having published a book of poetry.  Of course, it turns out to be a busman’s holiday, except he isn’t the one investigating the series of murders in the area.  In fact, technically he could be considered a possible suspect.  […]

A bit of a mixed bag (and a complete Passport!)

The Lost Apothecary: A Novel by Sarah Penner

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CBR15passport book you own (passport complete) I bought this book a while back as part of a sale. It’s historical fiction, which I almost always enjoy, and it moves back and forth between the late 18th century and present day London. Overall, it’s a decent read, the kind of book that you could finish on a long flight or over a weekend. Its focus is on female characters struggling to deal with dishonest and unfaithful men, and women finding fulfillment in their own work and […]

Donald Barthelme (2)

Sixty Stories by Donald Barthelme

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“Edward was explaining to Carl about margins.” This collection includes “The School” which along with “I Bought a Little City” (also in this collection) is worth the price of admission for me. That story includes one of the most subtly devastating lines in all of literature: “We weren’t even supposed to have a puppy.” In a previous review about one of Donald Barthelme’s novel Snow White, I talked about how it wasn’t much like a lot of his stories, and while I think that’s true, […]

Lawrence Durrell (1-2)

Justine by Lawrence Durrell

Balthazar by Lawrence Durrell

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Justine “The sea is high again today, with a thrilling flush of wind.” This is a reread of the first book in Lawrence Durrell’s Alexandria Quartet. I read these a few years ago, and well, I suppose I am reading them again. The books are odd in the sense that while they are companion pieces to one another, they are neither exactly sequels nor comprise a series. Instead, they are like different paintings, ostensibly portraying the same scene, but with different light and a slightly […]



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