Cannonball Read 18

Sticking It to Cancer One Book at a Time

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The End of the World As We Know It and Happy New Years

The Little Book of Cosmic Catastrophes (That Could End the World) by Sara Webb

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Full disclosure: this review is not of the first book I finished in 2025. Part of the reason for that is because it didn’t grab me as much as I’d hoped. In theory I figured it might be kind of funny to start off the new year with popular science book on the beginning and the ending of our universe, The Little Book of Cosmic Catastrophes (That Could End the World). Basically, it’s astronomy with some physics in relatively common language. The first section covers […]

You’ll Be Examining More Than Just the Chicken and the Egg Here

From Darwin to Derrida: Selfish Genes, Social Selves and the Meanings of Life by David Haig

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David Haig’s From Darwin to Derrida: Selfish Genes, Social Selves and the Meanings of Life is probably not one of the most accessible books that I could close the year on—which is why I decided to make it my second last and not the last review of the year.  David Haig is an Australian biologist and current George Putnam Professor of Organismic and Evolutionary Biology at Harvard University. I first came across his work when reading up about genomic imprinting and maternal-fetal conflict. (These subjects are […]

My Name Is Brave

My Name Is Brave: LGBTQIA+ by William Anthony

My Name Is Brave: The Environment by William Anthony

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My Name Is Brave: LGBTQIA+  by William Anthony (due January 2025) is a nice book and a good introduction on LGBT+ issues, but it has been done before. You could find this information in almost any book on the subject. However, the addition of showing how the reader can partake in helping this or another cause they need to be brave for, is good.  The mixture of photographs and drawing bring to life a handful of advocates. In a few pages each we see a transgender […]

A stone is a journey across history

A Stone Is a Story by Leslie Barnard Booth

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A Stone Is a Story by Leslie Barnard Booth and Marc Martin is a picture book about how a “stone” is formed. But it is not done with dry facts, but with a more poetic nature. We follow from before time (almost) to today and “you” the reader finding a piece of that original item.  I did not find things WOW, but I did find them enjoyable. If you are looking for a factual book, this does have that at the end, but within the […]

Flamingos are now in the top ten of my favorite birds

Flamingos Are Pretty Funky: A (Not So) Serious Guide by Abi Cushman

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I do not think I have seen a book about flamingos that I have ever wanted to read before I found this one. But the cover of Flamingos Are Pretty Funky: A (Not So) Serious Guide by Abi Cushman, with the words Funky and Not So Serious on it, really grabbed my attention. Especially funky. How can flamingos be funky??? They stand there on one leg. They are on the pink and white color spectrum. They eat food that makes them that color. They have […]

More of a Reference Book Than I Expected

How Bad Are Bananas: The Carbon Footprint of Everything by Mike Berners-Lee

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Best for: Anyone interested in the overall topic of climate footprints; those who are looking for some ideas on how they can reduce their own. In a nutshell: Author Berners-Lee explores the literal carbon cost of pretty much everything. Worth quoting: “Cryptocurrencies have to be one of the most fundamentally pointless ways of using energy. … Blockchain…adds even more to the energy use and the carbon footprint.” Why I chose it: I was looking for a book to leave at work and read when I […]



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