Cannonball Read 18

Sticking It to Cancer One Book at a Time

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A Sweet Spin on Shakespeare

Midsummer's Mayhem by Rajani LaRocca

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I am a regular listener of the podcast The Worst Bestsellers. While the hosts often read and make gentle fun of some very popular books, they also recommend books to read instead of the bestseller. This book was recommended and I really enjoyed it. Midsummer’s Mayhem is a cute confection of a book for readers ages 8-12 and loosely follows the plot of a Midsummer Night’s Dream. Mimi Jackson is 11, living with her two older sisters and one older brother. One day, a new […]

Parent Trap meets Freaky Friday without the magic but lots of music

Mirror to Mirror by Rajani LaRocca

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Awhile back I found a reader copy by Rajani LaRocca called Mirror to Mirror. I was interested in it due to the diverse characters and the prose poetry format.  However, as I started reading (at lunch) it was going slowly, and I put it aside. I picked it up months later and was able to finish it finally. It was mostly worth the wait. I say mostly, as for me, there were a few bumps. I was not a fan of some characters, and a […]

We are family (Goodness help you)

Summer Is for Cousins by Rajani Larocca

Oh No, the Aunts Are Here by Adam Rex

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As a cousin, I compare myself to books about cousins. And while me and mine did play and have ice cream, we did not do it  the way this family does in Summer Is for Cousins.  But it does not matter how you spent your summers; you probably can relate to Ravi’s family. He is the almost youngest (there is a new seventh cousin to his sixth place), he admires his oldest cousin, and he likes sharing ice cream time with all the cousins. The […]

The book tells you why A Vaccine Is Like a Memory, but my review is just commentary

A Vaccine Is Like a Memory by Rajani Larocca

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CBR15Passport genre (science in a fictionalized format) If you are pro or anti-vaccine, that is not important as A Vaccine Is Like a Memory by Rajani Larocca is more the history of vaccines and the way they work is the secondary piece of information. Because you can agree or disagree all you want, but that does not change the fact that in the 1770’s “this happened” or in 2020 “that happened.” Sure, you then get how a vaccine is supposed to work, how it evolved […]

Immigrant Story Written in Verse

Red, White, and Whole by Rajani LaRocca

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“No matter where I go, America or India, I don’t quite fit.” Red, White, and Whole by Rajani LaRocca is a middle grade novel written in verse about a 1st generation Indian immigrant  Reha. Reha is a 13-year-old girl living in the Boston area in the 1980s. Reha feels like she is stuck between two worlds, school where she is the only Indian American and spends time with her friend Rachel, and the weekends where she has her family, holidays, traditions, and her friend Sunny. Reha […]



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