Cannonball Read 18

Sticking It to Cancer One Book at a Time


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Home Family

A Forest, A Family, A Harbor, A Home by Nikki McClure

The Things We Hold by Vanessa Lewis-Porter and Cornelius Van Wright 

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I honestly debated putting these two books together in one review. They are both about homes, but each with a radically different direction. One is about the closeness of home and family, while the other deals with homelessness and family.  The only similarty is that both are future publications and read via an online reader.  Yet, please find two books about home and what that means to the characters in these picture books. A Forest, A Family, A Harbor, A Home by Nikki McClure (due […]

So-So scary monster and the brave little girl

Mina and the Monster by Silvia Romeral Andrés

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No, Mina and the Monster by Silvia Romeral Andrés is not: OMG WOW BEST BOOK. No, but what I am saying is: That’s so cute. That is sweet.  And even though Mina is a bit precocious, I like her. She’s spunky.” (It’s funny how a little twist here and there can change that perspective of “bratty” precocious makes “spunky.”) But I don’t think anyone who reads about Mina trying to find the local monster will have any other perspective than that it is cozy like […]

A tangled fishing line catches friendship

Ege and Avra by Evgenia Mantikas and Elifgul Buyukoral

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The Autumn releases come at the busy time of the year as it is pre-holidays. And some years what you will find is good and other years not as much. But Fall of 2026 will be filled with new publications. And some really good ones too, like Ege and Avra.  Publisher description says it is a story about connecting Türkiye and Greece on the Aegean Sea. And that is how it ends, but the start is where the goodness happens. We follow two girls, Ege […]

I’d like to be friends with the characters of these books

Johnny Tunes and the Gandy Dancers by Pamela M Tuck, Joel S Tuck, and Jerry Jordan

The Northbound Train: A Story of the Great Migration by Leslie Johnson Piotrowski and Tonya Engel

Solar Mamas: The Story of Sanjit "Bunker" Roy and the Grandmothers Who Became Solar Engineers by Jyothi Nookula and Nabi H. Ali

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Three picture books, all read via online reader copies, that everyone should have in their collections (be you teacher, parent, child, student, or other) are the below. Johnny Tunes and the Gandy Dancers by Pamela M Tuck, Joel S Tuck, Jerry Jordan (Illustrator) (due September 2026).   The Northbound Train: A Story of the Great Migration (A Picture Book) by Leslie Johnson Piotrowski, Tonya Engel (Illustrated by) (due January 2027).  Solar Mamas: The Story of Sanjit “Bunker” Roy and the Grandmothers Who Became Solar Engineers by […]

A family story

The Fire Walker by Ainkaran Sivaaji and N. Dejeshwini

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The Fire Walker by Ainkaran Sivaaji and illustrated by N. Dejeshwini is due in mid-September 2026. I think I will read it at least once more before it comes out and at least once when I find a finished copy (I read via an online reader copy). There is a lot going on with the theme and illustrations. The idea is simple: a child worries about his father, wonders how people will react when they see the father is not well, and can the father […]

Wakeup call to the nation: thoughts and prayers alone aren’t enough

Soft Targets: Guns in America and the Kids Caught in the Crossfire by Camila Kerwin

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I will start my review of Soft Targets: Guns in America and the Kids Caught in the Crossfire by Camila Kerwin, with my usual explanation about my position on guns. I respect your choice of being pro or anti guns. However, I grew up in a home with guns. We had rules about them and consequences if we did not follow them. I grew up knowing my mother could out shoot my father when they met. Most of my family hunted. I am a fan […]



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