Cannonball Read 12

Sticking It to Cancer One Book at a Time

Search This Site

> FAQ Home
> Tag: historical

That one could time travel within his own lifetime…..

Big Papa and the Time Machine by Daniel Bernstrom

by Leave a Comment

Big Papa and the Time Machine had an odd journey to my reading stack. Daniel Bernstrom’s story was not in play (yet) it was that cover by Shane W. Evans. It looked surreal, awkward, ironically a combination of extremely young and a lot of text. It actually did no look “fun” or that I would “like” it. Then, the other night, it found its way back on the stack. I still was unsure but decided to give it a shot. And as the old say […]

Terrible True Crime Book That Focuses on Everything but the Subject of the Book

The Wilderness of Ruin: A Tale of Madness, Fire, and the Hunt for America's Youngest Serial Killer by Roseanne Montillo

by Leave a Comment

Not too much to say except I echo the other readers who complained about this book being about everything except Jesse Pomeroy. Montillo seems to want to show her research into everything but him and we focus on the history of Boston, the Boston Great Fire, Herman freaking Melville, and honestly I think left a big question mark about whether Pomeroy was the person who murdered Katie Curran. “The Wilderness of Ruin” is a true crime book focusing on the United States youngest serial killer, […]

Four-Girl sees the other side of The Boxer Rebellion

Boxer & Saints V02 Saints by Gene Luen Yang

by Leave a Comment

A couple of spoilers are below. Saints is the second book in the two book graphic series, Boxer & Saints, by Gene Luen Yang. While it is shorter than Boxers, it still packs a lot of story. However, I would have liked to have seen more of back story of Four-Girl (or Vibiana as she will become known). We see how she is the unwanted fourth-girl of her family and how she defies the odds by living and having to deal with a strict, old-school […]

Little Bao’s Big Adventure takes some messy turns

Boxers & Saints #01 by Gene Luen Yang

by Leave a Comment

A few weeks ago, I was returning books to the library and was told a book I wanted was in stock. I went to the section but when there, realized I had remembered incorrectly where the book I wanted had been shelved. I had found myself in the graphic novel section instead. As I was getting ready to look for it in another section, I happened to see Boxers #01 of the Boxers & Saints two-book series. Without thinking, I grabbed it and checked it […]

In a dark, dark time

The Last Hours by Minette Walters

by Leave a Comment

Walters’ historical novel is a stunning look at how people reacted when the Black Death came to town. Or came to country and tried to come to town, but you burned down the bridge and kept away anyone who looked sick. There is historic precedent for a similar story – see the village of Eyam in Derbyshire. In terms of the fear of people living at the time, Walters does a very good job. The change in society – the rebellion of the serfs – […]



Help Our Mission

You can donate to CBR via:

  1. PayPal
  2. Venmo
  3. Google Pay