Cannonball Read 18

Sticking It to Cancer One Book at a Time


Join the CBR18 Book Bingo Reading Challenge—Now Underway!   

Some novellas as a little treat

Automatic Noodle by Annalee Newitz

Nine Goblins by T. Kingfisher

by 1 Comment

CBR Bingo: Repair – In Automatic Noodle, the characters not only literally work to repair themselves and each other because they are robots who need repair after a few months of being shut down, but they also work to repair the reputation of their restaurant so they can grow it into a thriving establishment. CBR Bingo: Refuge – In Nine Goblins, Sings-To-Trees has created a refuge where magical and non-magical creatures alike can come for help. Automatic Noodle Automatic Noodle takes places in the not-too-distant […]

“Travelling Through Thick Woods With a Troop of Goblins Is Not Unlike a Nature Hike With a Group of Grumpy Toddlers With Weapons”

Nine Goblins by T Kingfisher

by Leave a Comment

I’ve been reading some pretty heavy books recently, and have been writing some rather hefty reviews to match. So I’ve decided to tackle something a little bit lighter this time, and T Kingfisher has provided.  Nine Goblins is basically the story of two people trying to do their very best: Sergeant Nessilka, leader to her goblin cohort, and Sings-to-Trees the elven veterinarian. The goblins have been at war with the humans for quite awhile; pushed out of their own lands with nowhere else to go, […]

Fairy tale villains and loving sisters

Into the Goblin Market by Vikki VanSickle

by Leave a Comment

Recently I located a list of books that were recommended by other booksellers across the country. I found the picture book section and said, “Online reading here I come.” And I was able to read most of them (I have one in physical form so I passed and I have two more to read), but one that really stuck out to me was Into the Goblin Market by Vikki VanSickle and Jensine Eckwall as the illustrator.  It is a contemporary folktale or fairy tale that […]

Which Witch is the worst Witch?

Courtney Crumrin and the Night Things (Courtney Crumrin, #1) by Ted Naifeh

by Leave a Comment

Can you like and dislike a book at the same time? I say yes, as the graphic novel Courtney Crumrin and the Night Things (Courtney Crumrin, #1) by Ted Naifeh is exactly that.  And due to that, I am not really sure I want to explore the rest of the books in the various Courtney Crumrin series. Unless, there is a collection of everything…. Well a girl can dream right? There is really nothing likable about any of the characters, even Courtney who we follow through […]

Who needs a yeti?

Yetis Are the Worst! by Alex Willan

by Leave a Comment

Gilbert the Goblin is convinced yetis are not nearly as mysterious as they seem, and sets off to find one to prove once and for all that Goblins are just as cool and mysterious as the elusive yeti. (Directly stolen, I mean borrowed, from the publisher description). And you get a funny journey when Gilbert tries to do this in Yetis Are the Worst! by Alex Willan. In the same pattern as their Unicorns Are the Worst and Dragons Are the Worst, your child will […]

Middle-Grade Fantasy That Disappoints

The Goblin Wood by Hilari Bell

by Leave a Comment

I think if I’d read this when I was 10, I would have enjoyed it more. I felt that the characters suddenly changed their motivations so quickly near the end of this book that it was clear she was trying to wrap the book up and get them all out the door. I enjoyed the nuanced look the author was trying to take at right and wrong, and the issue with flattening complex issues, but the ending pages made it all fall apart for me. […]



Help Our Mission

You can donate to CBR via:

  1. PayPal
  2. Venmo