Cannonball Read 18

Sticking It to Cancer One Book at a Time


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You are a poet! And you are a poet! And I (try to be) a Poet!

You're a Poet: Ways to Start Writing Poems by Sean Taylor and Sam Usher

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When you judge a book by its cover, usually you are going to be mostly right, with of course, exceptions. You see a book that looks like You’re a Poet: Ways to Start Writing Poems by Sean Taylor and Sam Usher (illustrated by) and you assume it is going to be terribly cute, silly, maybe even overly saccharine. And in this case you are not wrong. But you are also not completely right.  Yes it is cute, and yes it is a little silly and honestly, […]

Ode to the Game

Queen of Day by Jacob Sager Weinstein and Victo Ngai

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Every so often I find a book that has a lot of great pieces to its puzzle, yet, I am not sure if I am the audience it is meant to be for. And Queen of Day by Jacob Sager Weinstein and illustrator Victo Ngai is one of those books. The illustrations are lovely, the story interesting, there is a positive flow that is thoughtful and clever. But something is missing. I would say it is adventurous, mysterious, reflective and medium-paced. The grandfather and granddaughter […]

Sure, I like my pick best, but that’s why it’s great to have choices, it might not be yours

All My Stripes by Shaina Rudolph, Danielle Royer and Jennifer Zivoin

My Brain Is Magic: A Sensory-Seeking Celebration by Prasha Sooful and Geeta Ladi

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One of my cousins works with special needs students, as well as her youngest son is autistic (who is a serious smarty pants! He must get it from his mother’s side of the family). And like many teachers today, she has to supply some items to her classroom. And long story short, she had a list of items she needed/wanted. Me being the book person, I looked for the books she wanted. I told her I’d give her a couple and add a few of […]

Now (or soon) in a board book edition

La La La: A Story of Hope by Kate DiCamillo and Jaime Kim

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The reason I want to write a review about La La La: A Story of Hope by Kate DiCamillo and illustrated by Jaime Kim is I am wondering how many words I can use to describe a book that has one word used multiple times, but still only adds up to a handful of words. That word?  It is La. Sometimes this word is La La, or more than two la (like three or more). Sometimes it is a statement, sometimes a question, but it […]

Though I’m not the audience for this, I think y’all need to read

Balloon by Bruce Handy and Julie Kwon

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Sorry Bruce Handy, but I am not digging the mostly wordless text to the story called Balloon. It is Julie Kwon’s illustrations that captured my attention and kept me moving along. However, I love the story that inspired your book. I really love that your son named his cat Balloon in honor of the lost balloon. And yes, the cat of your daughter has an equally cool name. I love unusual names for pets and I can only think of a few other names that […]

Whimsical

My Magic Dress by Kayako Nishimak and Lisa Wilcut

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With the review of My Magic Dress by Kayako Nishimaki and translated by Lisa Wilcut (due March 2027; read via an online reader copy) I have caught up with all the reads I want to review and have them typed up for posting. And it is nice that this last (for now) review is a sweet and cozy book, because I need that. This book, originally from Japan in the late 1960s, didn’t do so well with adults back then. A book for children, that […]



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