Cannonball Read 18

Sticking It to Cancer One Book at a Time


Don’t have a grandfather? Go pick one out at your local senior home

Can You Whistle, Johanna? by Ulf Stark

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Can You Whistle, Johanna? by  Ulf Stark, translated by Julia Marshall and illustrated by Anna Hoglund was not what I expected of this English translation of a Swedish story. I thought at first it was going to be a book about a friend teaching another to friend (a female) to whistle. Or maybe a younger sibling some whistling techniques. Perhaps even, it was going to be some way to show that boys and girls are equal (everyone can whistle). Instead, it is about a young […]

Cute in a not eat your face way

Fly by Night by Tara O’Connor.

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Thanks to my holiday book exchange, I had a chance to pick up Fly by Night by Tara O’Connor.  I had started a sampler awhile back and thought it would be slightly on the slower side, but still it was a fascinating concept. Twin sisters, one who has gone missing, and spooky felt right.  And yes, it was not super-fast pace, but kept things moving. The idea of true supernature never came into play for those few pages, but it quickly does once you get […]

I can see a better time When all our dreams come true

The Stonekeeper's Curse by Kazu Kibuishi

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Amazingly, I only discovered that I could download graphic novels to my library app a few weeks ago, and my son and I have been tearing through some pretty good ones since then. He mentioned that they read the first book in the Amulet series by Kazu Kibuishi, The Stonekeeper, at school, so we sought the second one. Thus, I went into reading this book with an 8 year old’s synopsis of the first book. Briefly, Emily has inherited a stone amulet that confers power, […]

Need to feel good? Grab a book or four

Chirp!: Chipmunk Sings for a Friend by Jamie A. Swenson

Sunny-Side Up by Jacky Davis

We Are Better Together by Bill McKibben

Let’s Do Everything and Nothing by Julia Kuo

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Do you need some feel good stories? These books are positive, hopeful, and have a modern take on subjects. Each one ranges in the best age for it, but most ages five and up will be fine. Chirp!: Chipmunk Sings for a Friend by Jamie A. Swenson  This book is a simple story: a little chipmunk is alone and keeps singing for a friend. Scott Magoon illustrates the clever gem of finding the perfect note of friendship. The colors are simple, light without being muted. […]

Little book, big story

The Golden Hour by Niki Smith

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Triggers with experiencing violence event are explored in The Golden Hour. This is a sweet look at the difficulties one boy faces with anxiety, depression, and his PTSD after witnessing gun violence involving a teacher at school. Through therapy, grounding techniques and new friends Manuel starts healing. I know it seems odd that it is sweet, but Niki Smith tastefully shows you the journey Manuel takes. Smith brings in elements of Manuel coming from a single parent home. They show you a bit of his […]

Find your way to this book come April 2022

Mapmakers and the Lost Magic (A Graphic Novel) by Cameron Chittock

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Mapmakers and the Lost Magic (A Graphic Novel) is an odd little story. At first it seemed like Cameron Chittock was creating it to be straightforward: Alidade, a young girl of the village, wants to leave. You assume that she will learn “there is no place like home” but it quickly takes a turn for the slightly darker. There are the guards that stop anyone from leaving the village, they curb individuality, and are controlled by a woman who (due to illustrations placing her in […]



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