Cannonball Read 16

Sticking It to Cancer One Book at a Time

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“Nobody grabs SecUnits. I hadn’t realized this was a perk until now.”

Rogue Protocol (The Murderbot Diaries #3) by Martha Wells

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When I read this book in January of 2019 it was my least favorite of the original four (spoiler, it still is), mostly because I didn’t connect with the non-Murderbot characters. To a degree that is still true, I feel less connected to them than I did to Mensah’s team in the first or the programmers in the second. But, on a second visit I think that’s probably by design, as Wells is clearly juxtaposing Don Amene and Miki against those other relationships. There is […]

“It took a tremendous effort for me not to rip his arm off, and I’d like that noted for the record, please.”

All Systems Red (The Murderbot Diaries #1) by Martha Wells

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Back in November of 2018 I joined the cult of Murderbot. After I had read and loved The Long Way to a Small, Angry Planet by Becky Chambers Emmalita and narfna had told me that Murderbot needed to be next up in my reading of contemplative, character driven space opera. I was immediately in love. I’ve kept up with the furthering adventures of Murderbot in the intervening years and had decided earlier this year that I wanted to do a full series re-read before I […]

“Our myths have not served us well.”

The 1619 Project by Nikole Hannah-Jones

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I don’t imagine this will be a long review, not because the work doesn’t deserve it, and not because there wasn’t plenty to discuss during our book club earlier this fall, but because after spending months with this work, I don’t know how much more brain space I can give it. In a not insignificant way, I need to be done with this work for now. This book is a discussion. Its various contributors are providing context, new or more in-depth analyses of how so […]

“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 […]

“Until one has loved an animal, a part of one’s soul remains unawakened.”

West with Giraffes by Lynda Rutledge

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West with Giraffes by Lynda Rutledge is a charming historical fiction. It is the coming of age story of “Woody Nickel”, a Dust Bowl orphan from the Texas Panhandle who travels cross country with a pair of giraffes. Rutledge, while researching a book on the San Diego Zoo, learned about two giraffes who arrived in NYC on a boat that barely survived the extremely destructive 1938 Long Island hurricane. The giraffes then traveled cross country to their new home at the San Diego Zoo. Using […]

Strangers on a Train with no murder involved!

Iona Iverson's Rules for Commuting by Clare Pooley

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It took almost a full six months, but I think I have what might become my favorite book of 2022. Iona Iverson’s Rules for Commuting by Clare Pooley was a wonderful surprise. I grabbed this book from a library display (to complete a summer bingo card entry “read a book from a library display”).  I had enjoyed Pooley’s previous book, The Authenticity Project, so I decided to take a chance on her latest. Iona Iverson was somebody back in her day.  She and her girlfriend […]



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