Cannonball Read 17

Sticking It to Cancer One Book at a Time

A Kids Book About Israel & Palestine

A Kids Book About Israel & Palestine by Reza Aslan

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I bought this for the children’s room I work in. And then I read it, because I am very much an “explain it to me like I’m six years old” person. The book very simply lays out the facts that led to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. I have been fairly outspoken about Palestinian rights, and most of my Jewish friends have been too, but I have some who stand up for Israel and I am trying to understand why. I don’t know that the book sold […]

Jukebox TARDIS

Jukebox by Nidhi Chanani

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Shaheen is a tween whose father is super into old music, and boy does he love to talk about it. He never talks about anything else. Shaheen explodes at him one day in an innocent fight, but then her father goes missing. The last place he was seen was at his favorite old record store. Shaheen and her cousin Tannez go investigate, and discover a unique jukebox in the attic of the abandoned store. They put a record on to play, a Bessie Smith album. […]

Columbian Mythology and Family Trauma

The Enchanted Life of Valentina Mejía by Alexandra Alessandri

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Valentina, her brother Julian, and her father are hiking the Columbian jungle to track down a vampire. Well, that’s what her father’s doing. Valentina is along for the ride, trying not to be embarrassed about her father and brother’s belief in Columbian folk creatures, and taking the opportunity to practice her drawing. But during the trip, Valentina has a visceral premonition: “The earth is not happy.” She urges her family to leave, but they are caught in a violent earthquake. The kids and their dad […]

Blancaflor and all the sh*t wives have to do

Blancaflor, The Hero with Secret Powers: ​A Folktale from Latin America by Nadja Spiegelman and Sergio García Sánchez

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Blancaflor is a folktale with Spanish and Latin American roots from a category of folktales called “Girl helps the hero flee.”  High John the Conqueror is an African-American version you may have read in Virginia Hamilton’s The People Could Fly. In this type of folktale, a man ends up being captured by a devil or magician, and has to complete a series of impossible tasks. But the devil/magician’s daughter falls for the hero, and helps him complete the tasks and escape with his life. TOON […]

Chet’s jalopy is stolen! It must be a Hardy Boys mystery!

The Hardy Boys: The Tower Treasure by Franklin W. Dixon

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CBR15 BINGO: Nostalgia, because who didn’t read the Hardy Boys when they were a child? My husband has a sizable collection of Hardy Boys mysteries from when he was a child. His grandparents gave him this first mystery in the series in 1978 (per the inscription on the title page). He’s often spoken about how there were little notes from his grandmother at intervals throughout the books, indicating that when he reached that page he’d get a dime. Well I read this entire book, God […]

“We must, we must, we must increase our bust!”

Are you there God? It's me Margaret. by Judy Blume

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With the new film adaptation out, I thought it would be fun to reread my childhood favorite Are you there God? It’s me Margaret by Judy Blume. I was wondering if it would still hold up. I have been disappointed in the past. I did not enjoy Little Women and O Pioneers! when I read them as an adult. Well, this time was different. I enjoyed this book as an adult reader. I am also looking forward to seeing the new film. Are you there […]



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