Cannonball Read 18

Sticking It to Cancer One Book at a Time

Love Letter to a Diaspora

Mooncakes and Milk Bread by Kristina Cho

by 2 Comments

Kristina Cho’s Mooncakes and Milk Bread is a spectacular cookbook. It has gorgeous photography, clearly explained recipes, and threads that tie her upbringing in Cleveland, Ohio to the greater Chinese diaspora. Cho grew up in her family’s Chinese restaurants. Initially, she wanted to be a chef, like her grandfather, but instead studied architecture, eventually creating a food blog as a release for her love of cooking. Mooncakes and Milk Bread works as an introduction to Chinese baking (and steaming and pan frying). She clearly explains […]

The bow is the final straw.

Hello Kitty Must Die by Angela S Choi

by Leave a Comment

Extremely black and so relatable. Not to me personally.  I am the whitest person who could ever white.  But my husband is Chinese-American, and oh yeah.  My sisters-in-law would totally understand.  (Although their family was nowhere near this, thank God.  Because in that case, I probably would not be married.) Fiona Yu, young lawyer in possession of a Yale degree and an amazing wardrobe, has put her foot down.  Not gonna get married, no matter how many dates her parents set up.  And also. she […]

“The tricky thing about giving opinions is that sometimes they cost you more than you wanted to spend.”

The Downstairs Girl by Stacey Lee

by Leave a Comment

Jo Kuan and her father figure Old Jin have gotten by pretty well, considering they are Chinese Americans in the deep South of 1890.  Old Jin works as a horse caretaker for a local wealthy family, and Jo has a talent for millinery, so she is hopeful for an apprenticeship at the shop she works.  However, she is abruptly fired one day due to her supposed overly-frank attitude with customers (“You make the customers uncomfortable”).  Old Jin is able to get her a position as […]

Exploring a Family Tragedy and How Things Left Unsaid Fester

Everything I Never Told You by Celeste Ng

by Leave a Comment

I’d meant to read this for a while, but somehow ended up reading Ng’s second novel, Little Fires Everywhere, first.  While this one didn’t have quite the same impact as her follow up, it was still a very good novel, and I really enjoyed the complexity she brought to all the characters, their motivations, and how she portrayed how even well meaning actions could have negative and long lasting impacts. As the novel begins, the Lee family is going through their normal morning routine in […]

Myth, history and culture collide

by Leave a Comment

Ho Lin’s short story anthology was an interesting read. Each tale aimed to shed light on random moments from varying points of view. He pulls in the reader with unexpected juxtapositions of settings and tone. The collection exudes emotion as if the stories were collective memories meshed together. He rarely delves deep into any specific narratives. The stories bounced between Asia and American even within the same story. We meet an American ex-Pat in China, then a host of characters in San Francisco, while another […]

Blend In or Stand Out?

by Leave a Comment

Everything I Never Told You is a novel about thwarted dreams, love, and parental expectations; about race in America in the 1970s, women’s rights, the desire to fit in and the desire to stand out. And the mysterious death of 16-year-old Lydia Lee. Was it suicide or foul play? The story begins with Lydia’s death. Her body has been found in the lake, and since it is known she couldn’t swim, foul play is assumed. Our initial image of Lydia is as a genius with […]



Help Our Mission

You can donate to CBR via:

  1. PayPal
  2. Venmo