Cannonball Read 18

Sticking It to Cancer One Book at a Time


Daisy, Dad and a Motorcycle

My Papi Has a Motorcycle by Isabel Quintero’

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My Papi Has a Motorcycle is a good father and daughter story that is based on Isabel Quintero’s own experiences as a child with her father and driving around the city they called home. Quintero brings together the past (the races they had on what is now the main street), present (the dog chasing them, and their favorite shaved ice place closed) and future (a cart that sells shaved ice). The sense of family and community is loudly presented. It is also boldly presented with […]

I am a Wolf, not a dog, even though I look like a dog, I am a WOLF!

I Am a Wolf by Kelly Leigh Miller

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I am a cat person. Well, actually more of a pet rock person, but that’s another story. It is not that I do not like dogs, I just know that they are a lot of work, need a lot of love and time. And I know I cannot give that to any pet. However, I know that, like in I Am a Wolf if I did decide to get a pet, there would be the perfect one for me. Kelly Leigh Miller has made a […]

To the one who provided womb and board all those months

My Two Moms and Me by Michael Joosten

Mom and Me, Me and Mom by Miguel Tanco

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Mother’s Day is around the corner. The following two books are a fun combination as gifts for the parent/mom but also something that can be read to the child with any parent. One is modern in its approach, while the other has a more stereotypical format. Both, however, are interesting additions to the world of “Mom Books” in the children’s section of your local store. One child’s voice is telling the story of them and their moms in My Two Moms and Me. However, you […]

Flinging Stardust Everywhere

The Stuff of Stars by Marion Dane Baue

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The Stuff of Stars is what I would call “a real WOW!” book. Marion Dane Bauer has created text that is poetic and traditional text simultaneously. Along with the illustrations of Ekua Holmes, Bauer’s text is extremely strong. A read-aloud time will be most joyous as you will be able to “James Earl Jones” it (i.e.: just have a booming good time saying the words). While The Stuff of Stars is about a scientific theory, there is a hint of spiritually as well. Both story […]

Being the Man of the House

Keeping the Night Watch by Hope Anita Smith

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Looking at Keeping the Night Watch I figured it was going to be like Nikki Grimes or Nikki Giovanni. However, what it is like is a mix of both Grimes, Giovanni and Jason Reynolds, Jewell Parker Rhodes, Jacqueline Woods and what I think Kwame Alexander sounds like. I was unfamiliar with Hope Anita Smith before getting this gem in my shiny green package (see Go Sports Ball! review). However, unlike the others, this was not a new book but from 2008 (paper 2014). I am […]

Bowie and Sylive say it best: Just Dance

Just Dance by Patricia MacLachlan

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Patricia MacLachlan is an “old school” author or what I call a “grandparent friendly author” as nothing “bad” happens in the story. Sure, Sylvie Bloom gets sick near the end of the book, but nobody is worried she will die. Nor are there any drawn-out weeks of worrying. Even the “excitement” of the dog locked in a car really is not all that worrisome as you know that Sheriff Bud will miraculously save the day. Even Sylvie’s name, Bloom, is happy and a shadowing to […]



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