Cannonball Read 18

Sticking It to Cancer One Book at a Time


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A fake oral history of a 1970s interracial rock duo.

The Final Revival of Opal & Nev by Dawnie Walton

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**30 Books in 30 Days** Book 25/30 First of all, I *need* someone to do a fanart of Opal in her punk rock tutu and her Mohawk wig and those shoes. I keep googling but nothing yet. Fan artists, please get on this! I have no skills in this area; somebody else has to do it! First, I’m getting the large pachyderm out of the way: I thought this wasn’t as good as Daisy Jones & The Six. This is obviously not going to be […]

More Than Sex, Drugs, and Rock & Roll

Daisy Jones & The Six by Taylor Jenkins Reid

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A fictional oral history-style story about a seventies rock group risks being gimmicky, on a number of levels. And indeed, aspects of Taylor Jenkins Reid’s Daisy Jones & The Six conform to conventions and tropes rather than challenging them, from the self-centered lead singer battling his demons to the manic-pixie dream girl who never wears shoes and never shows up on time. That said, this novel defies expectations and ultimately makes some surprisingly profound observations about love, art, and gender. (And it does not, thank […]

cbr12bingo – Nostalgia! sweet, silly, stupid nostalgia

Beastie Boys Book by Michael Diamond & Adam Horovitz, with Colson Whitehead, Jonathan Lethem, Ada Calhoun, Luc Sante, Roy Choi, Amy Poehler, Junit Tondora, Spike Jonze, Ian Rogers, Andre Leon Talley

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“Now here’s a little story I’ve got to tell About three bad brothers you know so well It started way back in history With Ad-Rock, MCA, (and me) Mike D” Beastie Boys Book, while a delightful name, is a bit of a misnomer. This isn’t a book- it’s an EXPERIENCE. Adam “Ad-Rock” (Ad-Rock) and Michael “Mike D” Diamond  got together with friends, collaborators, fans, contemporaries, rivals, pop-culture icons, and countless others to tell the story of the Beastie Boys: who they are, where they came from, […]

cbr12bingo – Music!

Meet Me in the Bathroom: Rebirth and Rock and Roll in New York City 2001-2011 by Lizzy Goodman

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The House of Jealous Lovers! Yes, it’s an excellent track by The Rapture. It could also be the title of this oral history (the actual title, Meet Me in the Bathroom, is a song by another prominently featured band, but we’ll get to that). This collection covers the movers, shakers, and hangers-on of NYC’s rock “revival” in the early hours of the 21st century- and man oh man are they a petty, catty, and jealous bunch! The “speakers” of this history are a collection of musicians, […]

Many of you read this years ago and I am only now catching up.

As You Wish: Inconceivable Tales from the Making of The Princess Bride by Cary Elwes

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Just a feel good read, talking all about one of my favorite movies. I did the audio version, and it was great fun not only having Cary Elwes read it himself, but for the parts that were “oral histories” from his fellow cast and crew members, many of them read as well (Billy Crystal, Carol Kane, Rob Reiner, Chris Sarandon, Christopher Guest). I already knew quite a bit of behind the scenes information because I went through a period about 10-15 years ago where I […]

Daisy Jones screams “Not Like Other Girls” from the bottom of Cliche Canyon

Daisy Jones and The Six by Taylor Jenkins Reid

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I have read this before. I have seen it. I have heard it. This book is like a transcription of a Behind the Music episode. Everyone waxing rhapsodic over the Sunset Strip in the 70s. Ugh. There is nothing unique or remarkable about this tale. No grand revelations, nothing that overcomes tropes, just archetypes smashing into archetypes while being saved-by-or-slaves-to tHe MuSic. I truly do not understand the rapturous reviews around Daisy Jones and The Six. There is nothing special about this story, nor is there anything special […]



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