Cannonball Read 12

Sticking It to Cancer One Book at a Time

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Dreamy but Derivative (also CANNONBALL!)

And I Do Not Forgive You: Stories & Other Revenges by Amber Sparks

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These stories have been told before. Most are fairly clever fairy tales retold, some are veiled retellings of myth and history, and a few are sparkling new. They have been told before in the sense that they are retellings, but they have also been told before in the sense that other authors have done these before, and done them better. It was difficult to find the author’s voice; reading the collection felt less like one author’s work and more like an anthology of the who’s […]

Looking for a story about a man in love with a cannon?

Magic for Beginners by Kelly Link

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…because have I got the book for you! Men loving cannons, zombies puking up pajamas, purses that can hold whole villages, horror writers that moonlight as upholsterers- this collection houses all of those freaks and geeks- and then some. The novella that gives this collection its title – Magic for Beginners– was the best of the bunch. It was difficult to single out one piece, as they are all delightful mix of suburban longing and creepy crawlies, but this piece reminded me of two of my […]

A Fantastical Little Take on the Concept of Family Secrets

Nothing to See Here by Kevin Wilson

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Funny enough, after finishing this book, my friend and I started watching I’m Not Okay With This together (see: video chatting while watching separately, hitting play at the same moment), and both that show and this novel involve young people who are unable to control innate abilities within themselves, that always seem to burst forth when the individual is angry or agitated in some way. But in both cases, this concept, while integral to the plot, is a vehicle for reaching into the deeper truths […]

“When you’re a kid, it’s hard to tell the innocuous secrets from the ones that will kill you if you keep them.”

St. Lucy's Home for Girls Raised by Wolves by Karen Russell

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Karen Russell was just 25 when this collection came out; a fact that is plastered all over the cover, festooned in blurbs throughout the opening pages, and the header on almost every piece of criticism that was launched at the same time as this collection. Her youth is/was impressive, and most certainly made me look back at my 25-year-old self with pity, but her youth is not the spark that sets this fire. She may have been young, but her ability to give voice to […]

Do You Have the Need? The Need to Read?

The Need by Helen Phillips

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Helen Phillips knows how to grab your attention. My pulse was already quickening on the very first page. I had to read as much of it as quickly as I could; the chapters are snappy and taught. I had to stop myself from skimming to the bottom of every page. I was desperate for relief; chapters whip back and forth between the present and several hours ago and I just had to know what nasty break was waiting for me in the present. My distress […]



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