Cannonball Read 15

Sticking It to Cancer One Book at a Time

Search This Site


Join Us Oct. 6-7 for the Banned Graphic Novels Book Club! Get Details  
> FAQ Home
> Tag: Jonathan Safran Foer

Everything is Illuminated

Everything is Illuminated by Jonathan Safran Foer

by Leave a Comment

I read this book back when it first came out, and I’ve read a few more of Jonathan Safran Foer’s works. I am generally of mixed opinion for his novels. I think they tend to be a bit of a mess as a whole, with some very clever and up to powerful writing at times. This book sets that tone early on with the opening narration. In the 1970s and 80s, Philip Roth wrote a handful of novels that tried to make sense of American […]

Whether we are or not

We are the Weather by Jonathan Safran Foer

by Leave a Comment

I went into this book having no knowledge of its topic, only a fondness for the author’s other work. It turns out, this was the author’s plan. It’s a delightfully written account of the dying earth and how we, the human race, are the leading cause of its death.  It’s a good mix of fact-based research and anecdotal evidence; it’s difficult to talk about this book without revealing its seedy underbelly. So in the interest of full disclosure: SPOILER ALERT, SPOILER ALERT: this book is […]

Does my plate really affect the planet?

We are the Weather by Jonathan Safran Foer

by 1 Comment

I read Jonathan Safran Foer’s Eating Animals years ago and found its arguments about reducing meat intake to be convincing. I decided to try an experiment and go vegetarian. I’ve not eaten meat since 2014, and it was the right decision *for me.* In We are the Weather, he expands the argument by noting how our turn to a plant-based diet can have greater ecological impact than electric cars or other climate-change initiatives. The book takes on several parts, some of it more logical in […]

The last Jonathan Safran Foer book I will ever read. #CBRBingo – Nostalgia

Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close by Jonathan Safran Foer

by 5 Comments

I picked this book up because a) I’ve owned it forever and pandemic reading has meant trying hard to find books off my own shelves. I’ve owned this for oh, about thirteen years? Back when I still thought I had to read books other people thought were “good” and “important.” And b) because of CBR Bingo, in which the Nostalgia square meant finding a book set during the time in which I was in high school. I had a surprisingly hard time finding books to […]

If nothing is sacred, there is nothing to save.

Eating Animals by Jonathan Safran Foer

by 1 Comment

I don’t know that I can offer a traditional (or unbiased) review of this book, because it has become deeply personal for me, but I’ll try. I officially stopped “eating animals” because of Eating Animals. This is the only book I frequently re-read, because it means so much to me, and is a bolstering reminder of why I choose to live the way I do. It’s been a transformative and eye-opening book for me, and I highly recommend it for anyone who’s ever felt uneasy […]

Probably Not What You Had In Mind for the “Delicious!” BINGO Category (CBR10 BINGO)

by 2 Comments

CBR 10 BINGO Square: Delicious! Best for: Anyone looking for both a philosophical and a reality-based discussion about the decision to consume meat. In a nutshell: When he realizes he is going to be a father, Mr. Foer decides to examine the food he eats and the morality of it. Worth quoting: I underlined and starred so many lines that I could put here, but I think this one sums the entire question up for me: “Whether we’re talking about fish species, pigs, or some […]



Help Our Mission

You can donate to CBR via:

  1. PayPal
  2. Venmo