Cannonball Read 9

Sticking it to Cancer One Book at a Time

It’s a pleasure to sit at this old lady’s knee.

Shadows of the Workhouse by Jennifer Worth

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It’s been years since I read the first Call the Midwife book, and I only vaguely remember it. When this finally made its way to the top of my Goodreads list, I was a little concerned that the gap would be a problem. Fortunately, Shadows of the Workhouse more or less functions as a standalone book. Knowing the basic workings of Nonnatus House is useful, but hardly required. Whereas Call the Midwife was a pretty straightforward memoir of Jennifer Worth’s time as a midwife working among nuns dedicated to providing obstetric care to poor women in postwar London, Shadows of […]

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6/19/2017 | 's CBR9 Review No:17 |

Wolves at the Door

The Wolves Chronicles by Joan Aiken

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There are actually 12 books in the Wolves Chronicles, but when I was a kid I only read six of them, and these were the six that I recently reread and am reviewing: The Wolves of Willoughby Chase, Black Hearts in Battersea, Nightbirds on Nantucket, The Stolen Lake, The Cuckoo Tree, and Dido and Pa. The series takes place in alternate timeline in 1800s England (in this timeline, James II was never deposed in the Glorious Revolution, and so throughout the books his descendants sit on the throne of England. The other main difference is the number of wolves in […]

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6/4/2017 | 's CBR9 Review No:25 |

War, what is it good for?

History of England, Vol III: Civil War by Peter Ackroyd

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I thoroughly enjoyed this, the third volume of Peter Ackroyd’s History of England, which covers a period of our history that I knew virtually nothing about (I don’t think I can really count Horrible Histories’ Charles II song as ‘knowledge’), from the succession of James I following the death of the childless Elizabeth I through to the flight of James II, taking in the civil war and the unprecedented execution of a king that happened in between. Here’s what I learned… James I of England, also James IV of Scotland, was the first Stuart king, uniting the English and Scottish […]

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5/4/2017 | 's CBR9 Review No:29 |

I’m late to the train.

The Girl on the Train by Paula Hawkins

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Another Cannonball favorite finally made its way up my TBR list, and I had mixed feelings. I honestly don’t know why any reviews anywhere ever would call this book fast-paced, because the pace was absolutely killing me for the first half. Nothing happened but cryptic allusions to secrets and Rachel’s alcoholism and depression. I hated it for a while. Every time I put it down I’d feel kind of sad and crappy about life for a few hours before I finally realized that Rachel’s miserable inner life was rubbing off on me. Ugh. The story finally picked up entirely too […]

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4/19/2017 | 's CBR9 Review No:9 |

Girl Detective and Cranky Cat for Hire

Murder Offstage and The Tomb of the Honey Bee (Posie Parker Mysteries 1 & 2) by L.B. Hathaway

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     Since this is books 1 & 2 of a series I may as well review them together. Posie Parker has just set out her shingle as a Private Investigator after coming home from the Ambulance Brigade in WWI. She grew up as the daughter of a country vicar and after losing both her brother and her fiance to the war has decided she has no desire to go back to the small town life. Setting up shop on Grape Street in London with her anti-social Siamese cat, and eventually a partner, Lem who has been an investigator with […]

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3/23/2017 | 's CBR9 Review No:5 |

A Nazi, a Fascist, a Communist, a novelist, a countrywoman, and a Duchess walk into a bar-and I don’t know what happened because I didn’t finish the book

The Six: The Lives of the Mitford Sisters by Laura Thompson

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I hate quitting on books. Hate. It. Because I’m a fast reader, I can usually convince myself to stick with my read. But I white-knuckled my way through about 100 pages of “The Six: The Lives of the Mitford Sisters” before I finally tossed it and moved on. Life’s too short. I’d never heard of the Mitford Sisters before but I guess they’re pretty famous. They were socialites who managed to deliver more drama than the Kardashians. Beautiful, witty, articulate and unpredictable, they were at the forefront of a changing Europe. There was Nancy (the writer), Pamela (the boring one), […]

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1/21/2017 | 's CBR9 Review No:3 |

We Are Family, I Got All My Sisters With Me

The Secret Lives of the Amir Sisters by Nadiya Hussain

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I love Nadiya Hussain. If you are a fan of The Great British Bake Off, you probably love her too. Nadiya was the winner in 2015, and she is, by all accounts the most popular winner in the history of the show. Charming, warm, funny, self-deprecating and gifted with a marvelously expressive face, she made all of us fall in love with her. Since winning TGBBO, Nadiya has published a cookbook (which I received as a surprise present last week from a lovely friend who lives in England), presented a TV show, baked a cake for the Queen, and appeared […]

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

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1/18/2017 | 's CBR9 Review No:2 |

Another Delight

The Sirens Sang of Murder by Sarah Caudwell

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Sarah Caudwell’s legal mysteries are just delightful. This is the third one I’ve reviewed this year, and I’ve been moving very slowly through the series because I wanted to savor it. Now I only have one left. The Sirens Sang of Murder, like the other two Professor Hilary Tamar mysteries before it, revolves around a group of young barristers in England who like to spend most of their free time either sitting around drinking, or going out on dates. In between they practice law and get caught up in ridiculous murder plots. In this one, young barrister Michael Cantrip is […]

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Purchase The Sirens Sang of Murder by Sarah Caudwell 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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12/5/2016 | 's CBR8 Review No:51 |

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