Cannonball Read 18

Sticking It to Cancer One Book at a Time


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I might have posted about this book before, but I can’t help it! I keep reading and liking it.

Here in Harlem: Poems in Many Voices by Walter Dean Myers

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Here in Harlem: Poems in Many Voices by Walter Dean Myers Read it! It’s terribly cool! Yes, that is a short, not completely grammatically solid comment, but it is how I feel about Here in Harlem. I could ramble on about how the poems are dealing with the life and death of the people of Harlem, so some themes are mature. And I could say that each voice is fun and unique and clever and sad, and beautiful and even though sometimes we are listening […]

She just wanted to be a doctor

Carlotta's Special Dress: How a Walk to School Changed Civil Rights History by Carlotta Walls Lanier, Lisa Frazier Page and Vanessa Brantley-Newton

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Carlotta’s Special Dress: How a Walk to School Changed Civil Rights History by Carlotta Walls Lanier, Lisa Frazier Page, and illustrator Vanessa Brantley-Newton   Read  via online reader, the book is actually out and about for purchase and reading. This book seemed like it would be “okay” or a nice book on a person I knew a little about, what a nice way to introduce them to kids, but would not be anything “wow.” Don’t judge a book by its cover and don’t assume because […]

Zora Neale Hurston looking for gold

Small-Girl Zora and the Shower of Stories: A Tall Tale Based on the Life and Work of Zora Neale Hurston by Giselle Anatol and Raissa Figueroa

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I did not love nor hate Small-Girl Zora and the Shower of Stories: A Tall Tale Based on the Life and Work of Zora Neale Hurston by Giselle Anatol and Raissa Figueroa as the illustrator. It was an experience book where after reading you need to stop and think about it. You need to take your time in the first place and I would even recommend a second read.. It was interesting and different but had a familiar overtone as well. Taking the life experiences […]

The courage to sing

Songbird in the Light: A Picture Book by Billy Porter and Chris Clarkson

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Access to online readers is not really an issue for me if I play around with my work computer. However, I am not able to access all that I do wish to read. Thankfully I had access to Songbird in the Light: A Picture Book by Billy Porter and Chris Clarkson. This March 2026 picture book talks about the life and times of performer Billy Porter in a roundabout way. We do not do a deep dive, but we get the overall picture of someone […]

The women poets of the Harlem Renaissance

Legacy: Women Poets of the Harlem Renaissance by Nikki Grimes

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When a book has a good backstory, be it how it was made, inspired or the author themselves I usually enjoy that as much as the book. And when my personal journey is the backstory, well of course I love that! The backstory to how I found Legacy: Women Poets of the Harlem Renaissance by Nikki Grimes (to me) was funny. The library trip with my nephew had me in the wrong section (non fiction) when we first wandered into the children’s room. Well, I […]

When was the last time your clothes made you smile?

Clothes to Make You Smile: Patrick Kelly Designs His Dreams by Eric Darnell Pritchard and Shannon Wright

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Two things are happening to let us know that time moves on. First, we are starting to get 2026 calendars in (and already have the August 2025-June 2026 planners) at my work, and second, 2026 reader copies are becoming available so we are ready for next year (and here we’re not even halfway through 2025!). But one of those readers (that I found online) which is due mid-January 2026 was Clothes to Make You Smile: Patrick Kelly Designs His Dreams by Eric Darnell Pritchard and […]



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