Cannonball Read 15

Sticking It to Cancer One Book at a Time

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> FAQ Home
> Tag: social history

A Wonderful Exploration of an Unlikely City

Boom Town by Sam Anderson

February 5, 2022 by GentleRain 7 Comments

This was another suggestion by Emmalita and I really loved it! I didn’t know much of anything about Oklahoma City beyond the basic facts and this was such a fascinating read. I like history that shows how important every little thing is, and how many interesting stories are everywhere. I also like the attempt to break through the East/West coast’s cultural hegemony and show what’s happening elsewhere and the ripple effects things have. Boom Town follows the histories of Oklahoma City from its founding, the […]

Filed Under: History, Non-Fiction, Sports Tagged With: basketball, city planning, narrative nonfiction, professional sports, Racism, sam anderson, social history

GentleRain's CBR14 Review No:32 · Genres: History, Non-Fiction, Sports · Tags: basketball, city planning, narrative nonfiction, professional sports, Racism, sam anderson, social history ·
Rating:
· 7 Comments
The cover of the book Out of Office: The Big Problem and Bigger Promise of Working from Home; the colorful, simple line drawing shows a person on their laptop, lying on a sofa that floats in a sea of sharks.

‘Out of Office’ is Not Far Enough Away

Out of Office: The Big Problem and Bigger Promise of Working from Home by Charlie Warzel and Anne Helen Petersen

February 4, 2022 by storiaallineare 4 Comments

Out of Office: The Big Problem and Bigger Promise of Working From Home is a weird, weird book. I picked it up because I’m a big fan of Anne Helen Petersen’s work, from her newsletter “Culture Study” to her writing at Buzzfeed and then even earlier at the Hairpin (RIP earlier internet generation). She’s a media studies scholar whose sweet spot seems to lie somewhere in the intersection of history and sociology, and her newsletter series on Peloton is fascinating and horrifying in just the right […]

Filed Under: History, Non-Fiction Tagged With: Charlie Warzel and Anne Helen Petersen, pandemic books, social history, workplace history

storiaallineare's CBR14 Review No:2 · Genres: History, Non-Fiction · Tags: Charlie Warzel and Anne Helen Petersen, pandemic books, social history, workplace history ·
Rating:
· 4 Comments

“At last we meet again for the first time, for the last time.”

Cultish: The Language of Fanaticism by Amanda Montell

January 11, 2022 by narfna 9 Comments

All I’ve got in my head right now is that line from Spaceballs (see title of this review). I say that because every year I read a handful of books that I am just absolutely at a loss for how to review. This is my first one of 2022! I just want to say la la la la la and maybe read it again, but I’m expected instead to verbalize my thoughts about a book that covered so much and was so good and so […]

Filed Under: Audiobooks, Non-Fiction Tagged With: Amanda Montell, Ann Marie Gideon, audiobooks, Cultish, cults, language, linguistics, narfna, non fiction, social history, the language of fanaticism

narfna's CBR14 Review No:6 · Genres: Audiobooks, Non-Fiction · Tags: Amanda Montell, Ann Marie Gideon, audiobooks, Cultish, cults, language, linguistics, narfna, non fiction, social history, the language of fanaticism ·
Rating:
· 9 Comments

“Caste is insidious and therefore powerful because it is not hatred, it is not necessarily personal. It is the worn grooves of comforting routines and unthinking expectations, patterns of a social order that have been in place for so long that it looks like the natural order of things.”

Caste: The Origin of Our Discontents by Isabel Wilkerson

January 18, 2021 by narfna 4 Comments

This was really interesting to read back to back with How to Be an Antiracist; they shed light on each other in weird ways. But they are also two very different books! My main takeaway from Caste is that Isabel Wilkerson is a great writer. I’m set to read her first book next month, and I’m now looking forward to it even more. She employs metaphor and other literary techniques in a way that you don’t normally see from non-fiction writers. It brings a depth […]

Filed Under: History, Non-Fiction Tagged With: #history, caste, isabel wilkerson, narfna, non fiction, Race, social history, sociology, the origins of our discontents

narfna's CBR13 Review No:4 · Genres: History, Non-Fiction · Tags: #history, caste, isabel wilkerson, narfna, non fiction, Race, social history, sociology, the origins of our discontents ·
Rating:
· 4 Comments

this woman’s work

If Walls Could Talk: An Intimate History of the Home by Lucy Worsley

April 20, 2020 by andtheIToldYouSos Leave a Comment

Bill Bryson’s delightful At Home: A Short History of Private Life came first, but Lucy Worsley’s If Walls Could Talk separates itself from the predecessor by being, well, more intimate! I promise this will be a review of If the Walls Could Talk, but if you are ever in need of a peaceful “sleep read” then I highly recommend plugging into the audio adaptation of Bryson’s book- it is seriously soothing. The biggest difference between At Home and If Walls Could Talk is the female perspective. Bryson’s book was framed around […]

Filed Under: Audiobooks, Cooking/Food, Health, History, Non-Fiction Tagged With: Bill Bryson, British history, domestic life, home history, housekeeping, housework, invention, Lucy worsley, social history, world history

andtheIToldYouSos's CBR12 Review No:35 · Genres: Audiobooks, Cooking/Food, Health, History, Non-Fiction · Tags: Bill Bryson, British history, domestic life, home history, housekeeping, housework, invention, Lucy worsley, social history, world history ·
Rating:
· 0 Comments

“The victims of Jack the Ripper were never ‘just prostitutes’; they were daughters, wives, mothers, sisters, and lovers. They were women. They were human beings, and surely that in itself is enough.”

The Five: The Untold Lives of the Women Killed by Jack the Ripper by Hallie Rubenhold

April 16, 2020 by faintingviolet 4 Comments

When I think back to my experiences as an undergrad history major I was often one of very few, if not the only, women in the room. Each course was the same; walk in, pick a position near the front of the room, but off to the side so as to not be considered aggressive but not be lost in the sea of testosterone, and hunker down to have to talk over those who would talk over you. I eventually got to a place of […]

Filed Under: Biography/Memoir, History, Non-Fiction Tagged With: #history, faintingviolet, Hallie Rubenhold, jack the ripper, London, social history, The Five, the victims not the murderer, Whitechapel

faintingviolet's CBR12 Review No:27 · Genres: Biography/Memoir, History, Non-Fiction · Tags: #history, faintingviolet, Hallie Rubenhold, jack the ripper, London, social history, The Five, the victims not the murderer, Whitechapel ·
Rating:
· 4 Comments


Recent Comments

  • Carriejay on A great time was had.Good choices! I feel like I don't see Emma Thompson in enough stuff these days.
  • narfna on A great time was had.My friend and I actually fancast it while we were reading! We decided on Viola Davis for Billie, Michelle Yeoh as Helen, Emma Thompson as...
  • Emmalita on “The way to stay married is simple – don’t get divorced.”Faintingviolet and ASKReviews did. I clearly need more Ada Calhoun in my life.
  • booktrovert on “The way to stay married is simple – don’t get divorced.”Thank you- I highly recommend this one! Did you review her book, Why We Can't Sleep? I remember seeing someone review that here on Cannonball...
  • Carriejay on A great time was had.Agree, a movie would be great. Who are we casting? :)
See More Recent Comments »

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