Cannonball Read 9

Sticking it to Cancer One Book at a Time

This is book eight; time to stop wanting this series to be something it’s not.

Thrice the Brinded Cat Hath Mew'd (Flavia de Luce, #8) by Alan Bradley

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This was back on form after the disappointment of the last one. This series still isn’t perfect for me, but I find it really comforting and enjoyable anyway. I think I just need to let this series be itself and stop wanting it to be what it’s not. The mysteries and plot twists are always going to be predictable. Flavia is always going to pursue random avenues of inquiry that somehow magically lead her to answers. There is probably always going to be a misbalance between the mystery plot and the character plot. And Bradley’s sense of narrative is always going to be […]

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7/20/2017 | 's CBR9 Review No:47 |

Quests for chivalry and loyalty in Westeros

A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms (The Hedge Knight, The Sworn Sword, The Mystery Knight) by George R R Martin

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This is a review for the audiobook version of the first three ‘Dunk and Egg’ novellas by George R R Martin, set about a hundred years before Game of Thrones. They come together in one file on Audible, which is quite nice and easy. Each novella is about 3-4 hours long (much easier to digest than the 33+ hours of A Game of Thrones, for example). The novellas are difficult to find on their own, coming in edited volumes from a variety of sci-fi/fantasy authors (at least they were when I bought them a few years ago), so it is fantastic […]

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6/27/2017 | 's CBR9 Review No:16 |

Sometimes the Drama Just Finds You

Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire by J. K. Rowling, narrated by Jim Dale

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The great re-read continues. I feel that I owe this story an apology. I have long stated that its movie counterpart was my least favorite in the series (yes, even more so than all of that camping in movie 7), and had let that color my memory of the actual book. Friends – I do not remotely hate this book! I might even love it. I’ve been debating with myself for days whether this 4.5 rounds up or down. In my review of Career of Evil, I extolled Rowling’s ability to build out her universes, and go back to the […]

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6/8/2017 | 's CBR9 Review No:32 |

You Mean All This Time, We Could’ve Been Friends?

The Prestige by Christopher Priest

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The Prestige tells the story of a lifelong feud between two magicians in turn-of-the-century England. You’ve probably seen or at least heard of the movie, which starred Christian Bale and Hugh Jackman (and David Bowie as Nicola Tesla! Whee!). The Prestige is the story of Alfred Borden and Rupert Angier, two magicians who rise to fame somewhat simultaneously, and whose lives are marred by a deadly feud that started when Borden exposed Angier as a fraud at a seance. That is. . . one weird sentence. Things get even weirder, though, when the two compete over who has the better […]

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5/29/2017 | 's CBR9 Review No:19 |

“We clung to books and to our friends; they reminded us that we had another part to us.”

The Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Pie Society by Mary Ann Shaffer, Annie Barrows (full cast audio)

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I have had this book on my to read list since CBR5 in 2013. This year I decided as part of my overall Cannonball goal of 78 books, that I was also going to work my way through my audiobook and owned book backlog. A little. With that goal in mind I set up a monthly goal list, with a book or two I already own, a book or two I have in audio form in Audible, and then I pick a couple more to take out from the library. In making up April’s goals, I came across The Guernsey […]

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5/19/2017 | 's CBR9 Review No:30 |

Light, Lies, and Hope

A Trick of the Light (Inspector Gamache #7) by Louise Penny, Ralph Cosham (narrator)

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When I finished this book, I quickly posted on Goodreads my placeholder review, as I do with all books. Usually it is just the star rating and the phrase “full review to follow”. However, that wasn’t enough to wrap up how I was feeling. Instead, I wrote “It is almost unthinkable that a series can be getting better, more nuanced, and satisfying in its seventh installment but that is where we are with Louise Penny and Inspector Gamache” because this might be the best book yet in the series. Several days later, I feel the same way. I think kella, […]

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5/12/2017 | 's CBR9 Review No:27 |

Thoughts and Prayers

Columbine by Dave Cullen

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I drive a lot for work, so I’ve started listening to audiobooks when I get sick of music. I’ve had Columbine on my TBR list for years and since it was free on Audible, I thought maybe it might be a good choice. ‘Twas not. Now, please don’t confuse my review of the book itself with my review of the audio version. The book itself was exactly what you’ve heard: powerful, disturbing, sad, and full of new information about the Columbine High School massacre that I didn’t know before. But if you want to read this, do yourself a favor […]

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Funds raised are donated to the American Cancer Society in AlabamaPink's name.

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4/29/2017 | 's CBR9 Review No:18 |

Boulders, Heartstrings, and thoughts on The Prisoner of Azkaban

Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban by J. K. Rowling, narrated by Jim Dale

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As we’ve discussed before, I haven’t reread the Harry Potter books in over a decade. For Prisoner of Azkaban, that probably puts the last time around late 2003 or early 2004. This is where the darkness of my own timeline greatly affected my reading of the series, and the meaning I have pulled from the books over time. You see, my own dad passed away in 2003 and I had just been sent home from university for failing to maintain my grade point average, which was caused by the worst episode I’ve had to date of depression. You all signed […]

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Purchase Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban by J. K. Rowling, narrated by Jim Dale or any item from amazon via our link.

Funds raised are donated to the American Cancer Society in AlabamaPink's name.

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4/27/2017 | 's CBR9 Review No:24 |

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