Cannonball Read 17

Sticking It to Cancer One Book at a Time

A semi-autobiographical debut novel that opens up a world

Like Vanessa by Tami Charles

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Like Vanessa is a sweet and realistic story of liking yourself, while finding your home, family and who you truly are. Tami Charles bases her character Vanessa on some of her own experiences making this an interesting combination of fact, fiction, history and contemporary issues. In 1983 Vanessa is a dark-skinned girl living in the inner city. Vanessa, her cousin, her beloved grandfather Pop-Pop and her father live in a small apartment. But they could not be farther apart if they live in a mansion. […]

On racial, ethnic, and cultural identity development

Why Are All the Black Kids Sitting Together in the Cafeteria? by Beverly Daniel Tatum, Ph.D.

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First, I am white. It is important to mention that so that I can also identify all the privilege that I brought with me to reading this book. In the twentieth anniversary edition of Why Are All the Black Kids Sitting Together in the Cafeteria? Tatum starts with a 72 page prologue detailing all the ways that race, racial identity development, and race relations have played a part in modern history since the original writing of the book. It is extensively research and meticulously organized. […]

“One had followed the rules, and one had not. But the problem with rules… was that they implied a right way and a wrong way to do things.”

Little Fires Everywhere by Celeste Ng

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Celeste Ng seems to like to write books where it seems like they start with a mystery or crime scene, but the book isn’t really about the mystery. Things don’t get solved. People don’t get closure or absolution. You’re led to the end as a reader, but you feel just as lost as the characters surely do. Here’s the summary bit from Goodreads: In Shaker Heights, a placid, progressive suburb of Cleveland, everything is meticulously planned – from the layout of the winding roads, to […]



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