Cannonball Read 18

Sticking It to Cancer One Book at a Time


“But all’s well that ends well, and if your adventure is successful, all those little problems you had will soon become very funny to you indeed.”

Nell of Gumbling: My Extremely Tiny Forest Adventure by Emma Steinkellner

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This is the charming sequel to the first Nell of Gumbling book. The series takes place in a fairy tale based town, but it’s just normal life for everyone and the focus is more on the power of community and learning positive lessons versus the magical elements. I like this sort of everyday life within a fantasy world, so the setting really works for me, and Emma Steinkellner’s art is perfect. In this volume, Nell is going to do a summer camping course (the Wilderness […]

Magical life in an ordinary town

Nell of Gumbling: My Extremely Normal Fairy-Tale Life by Emma Steinkellner

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Nell of Gumbling: My Extremely Normal Fairy-Tale Life by Emma Steinkellner is a cute story about fitting in, our personal and town history, family, and friendships. The build up to the final showdown was a bit slow for this adult reader, but I think ages 10 and up crowd will be fine and even ages 8 and up will be fine, but there are a few “little things” that might be conceptually a bit “much” for the more sensitive reader (I admit, even at aged […]

Exhibit A of the Self-Fulfilling Title

The Okay Witch by Emma Steinkellner

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I could only praise this book is the way I would a bowl of Kraft dinner (or boxed mac and cheese for anyone that didn’t grow up with Canadians). If I really want cheesy noodles and Kraft is available, I’ll eat it. If the other options for a meal were meatloaf or fruitcake I would choose Kraft dinner, just like how I would definitely re-read The Okay Witch over other particular books. But here’s the deal: Do I actively crave or recommend Kraft dinner? NOPE. […]

More than I was expecting

The Okay Witch by Emma Steinkellner

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Wow.  This packed way more of a punch than I was expecting!  Moth is a 13 year-old girl growing up in a coastal town in Massachusetts.  She feels kind of out of place and doesn’t really have any friends, but she goes along with life anyway.  When learning about the witch hunts that took place in town in the late 1600’s, something strange happens to Moth.  Running home to tell her mother, she learns that she is from a family of witches! Moth wants to […]

The Witch is OK

The Okay Witch by Emma Steinkellner

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The cover of the advanced reader copy of The Okay Witch by Emma Steinkellner recalled some classic “witch books” and stories such as Sabrina the Teenage Witch, Kiki, and a few that I know I know but cannot come to the front of my brain. The only real difference is that our main characters are of color. And while that is mentioned in an almost casual manner in the book (not only are our heroes persecuted for being witches, there are “other reasons” people do […]



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