Cannonball Read 18

Sticking It to Cancer One Book at a Time


Just a family tradition

Cemetery Game by Alan Woo and Rachel Wada

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Cemetery Game by Alan Woo and illustrator Rachel Wada is due September 2026 and was read via an online reader.  And now comes the more fun part of the review, but also a bit tricky to write. I was not a huge fan of things. I liked the idea of culture, family and traditions, but it felt flat. I liked the presentation, but the illustrations felt off, like maybe a bit computerized or not fully human formed. Yet, this is a nice book. It introduces […]

Twelve months and Cornbread, the turkey friend of November

Meet May  by April Martin

Meet August by April Martin

Meet December by April Martin

Meet July by April Martin

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The Calendar Kids Meet January  Meet February Meet March  Meet April  Meet May  Meet June  Meet July Meet August:  Meet September  Meet October  Meet November Meet December When I first started to write a review for the The Calendar Kids series, I hadn’t read Meet November. (One would think finding 12 books by April Martin would be easy, but nope!) But right before I posted this review I read November. I think Cornbread is my favorite named friend, but I still lean towards that February […]

Cute Ghost Story

To Knit a Ghost by Z.B. Asterplume

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The cover of To Knit a Ghost (read via an online reader copy, due July 2026) is adorable. Now, I know not to judge a book by its cover, but when you have a cover that has this kind of brightness and color, odds are good you’ll be having some fun and it will be a cute story. Z.B. Asterplume and illustrator Heather Brockman Lee live up to that cover. They made a sweet story that has fun illustrations and makes both knitting and non-holiday […]

A soldier’s diary from the front lines of seasonal employment

Holidays on Ice by David Sedaris

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My costume is green. I wear green velvet knickers, a yellow turtleneck, a forest-green velvet smock, and a perky stocking cap decorated with spangles. This is my work uniform. ― David Sedaris, Holidays on Ice I’ve read this, listened to the public radio broadcast of David Sedaris’s reading, and I’ve seen a performance of The Santaland Diaries. It’s been a while, so this was a fun yet illuminating reread. David is a thirty-three-year-old man hired to be an elf at Santaland in at Macy’s in […]

When your Christmas is Halloween

Halloween Tree by Susan Montanari

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When I first saw the title Halloween Tree I thought the cover was not matching what I was thinking. What I was thinking about was Ray Bradbury’s novel of the same name. But then I wondered if it was possible to adapt it to a picture book format? Especially with such a cute cover? Yes, it is possible, but the real question is should it be adapted. Well, thankfully (I guess) it was not that Halloween Tree but its own unique story. Susan Montanari’s Halloween […]

Animals, and birds, and counting numbers; oh my!

Knight Owl's Little Christmas by Christopher Denise

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Sometimes sequels and companion books do not always hit as well as the first book of a series or collection by an author for me. The Knight Owl books are good and I like them, but the second book was not as good as the first. I am not jumping up and down and saying they are my favorite books, but I like recommending them and on occasion reading them again. Therefore, these are exceptions to that comment. And one day, while browsing potential online […]



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