Cannonball Read 18

Sticking It to Cancer One Book at a Time


Join the CBR18 Book Bingo Reading Challenge—Now Underway!   

A witch is simply a woman who listens to her intuition

First Witches Club by Maisey Yates

by 1 Comment

If you’re looking for a cozy-ish read about women learning how to live for themselves and get revenge, this is it. We meet each of our three main characters fairly early in the book, but it’s basically Nora’s story. Her husband has just left her for a wellness retreat in Chile to “find himself”. Nora tries to convince herself for a lot of the book that her marriage is fine, and she’s just helping out her new friends with their failing marriages. She reconnects with […]

“We were teen girls. Look up the word “blasé” in Merriam-Webster’s and you’d find a picture of us, our eyes burning through your soul from the page.”

We Ride Upon Sticks by Quan Barry

by 1 Comment

My Cannonball Read holiday gift exchange buddy got me this book (thank you!!!) and if they picked it because they have read it and liked it or just took a crack at my taste from my Goodreads, I’m pretty sure we would be good pals. I don’t remember (or know) who that was, so if you see this and it’s you, find me on the ‘gram at @cheerbrarian. It’s 1989 and the Danvers High Varsity field hockey team hasn’t historically been award winning, but this […]

For the Girls who’ll be the Women

Bedtime Ballet by Kallie George

Stella Keeps the Sun Up by Clothilde Ewing

Pineapple Princess by Sabine Hahn

by Leave a Comment

When you have three picture books that are at best a “three each” you cannot say much about them beyond the usual what they are about, quick something about the illustrations, and if you liked it or not. But due to the fact March is Women’s History Month, these three are books you want to add to your Girl stories. Each one has delightful illustrations. They are cute, fun, and while familiar, there are modern touches to make them new and fresh. Bedtime Ballet by […]

“We’re not in Ghost Busters! This is real life!”

Ghost Squad by Claribel A. Ortega

by Leave a Comment

I did not read Ghost Squad when I was young, as it did not yet exist! This is a 2020 release, and I feel that I would have liked it very much when I in third/fourth grade. There’s magic, monsters, hijinks, and plenty of cat-content that would have kept me giddy throughout. I worried at first that this tale might be “heavy” for a middle-grade reader; it starts with some genuine adult anxieties and perils. We open with the financial woes of Lucely’s father- the bank is […]

the Sanderson sisters are still my favorite witchy siblings, but the Owens family are not messing around!

Practical Magic by Alice Hoffman

by 2 Comments

Lookout y’all, it’s re-read time! Alice Hoffman used to be a favorite author of mine; we slowly went our separate ways after The Museum of Extraordinary Things. There was no big breakup; we just grew apart. We wanted different things. The separation was so slow and gentle that I forgot that she was an author that I really liked, so I was pleasantly surprised to see that there was a new prequal to Practical Magic hitting the shelves, oh wait, there already was a prequal? This […]

CBR12 Book Bingo – Happy

Things You Save in a Fire by Katherine Center

by Leave a Comment

I will start this review by saying after I read this book, I expeditiously ordered every other book written by Katherine Center. I’ve said it before, and I will say it again – I love love. Give me a good romance, and I’m a happy girl. Not only was this book a beautifully written, heartfelt novel, it also featured some serious girl power, which I can always get behind! According to the National Fire Protection Association, there are 1.16 million firefighters in the United States, […]



Help Our Mission

You can donate to CBR via:

  1. PayPal
  2. Venmo