Cannonball Read 18

Sticking It to Cancer One Book at a Time

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Headed to the Moon

Rocket Beams, Lunar Dreams by Chiara Colombi

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Rocket Beams, Lunar Dreams by Chiara Colombi and illustrated by Scott Magoon is due in February 2025. However, I am glad I had the opportunity to read via an online reader’s copy. The book’s theme is not new, but told in a way that even I learned a few things and I am terribly excited to put this on teacher and parent radars. The idea is about envy and jealousy. Rocket is ready to go to the moon. She can’t wait! Except at the last […]

Two school stories

Scare School Diaries V01 Welcome to Scare School by Jarrett Lerner

Bright Family: Too Cool For School by Gabe Soria

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I know school just got out and probably the last thing a kid wants to do is read about the first day of school. However, for the aged six to nine (and lower ten-year-old) readers, these books will make your child want to go to school. And maybe you can convince them that a snot monster and a (spoiler) glob custodian will be at their school. But even if you can’t, these books are worth taking a few moments to read to your child, with […]

“As a heartless killing machine, I was a terrible failure.”

All Systems Red (Murderbot Diaries #1) by Martha Wells

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In five(ish) words: Free will, space-faring, android, science fiction, charming. I see how “charming” might seem out of place for something called “The Murderbot Diaries” that revolves around our understanding of a security droid’s awakening to and wrestling with purpose, but here we are. This novella packs a lot of meaning and thought-provoking content (and even a little humor) into its pages. This book reads like a space episode of Doctor Who, the type where the Doctor and their companion is stuck on a space […]

A really long review about two books but I think worth the read

Ash’s Cabin by Jen Wang

Saving Sunshine by Saadia Faruqi

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The graphic novels below have little in common. Or so I thought at first. While I was reading Saving Sunshine by Saadia Faruqi I kept thinking that it would pair nicely with Ash’s Cabin by Jan Wang. I think that was because they both deal with identity, but nothing else. It was while writing this review I found more similarities.  Saving Sunshine is about twins who are punished for their behavior by being in forced proximity. Ash’s Cabin is about a nonbinary child coming of […]

A tour of the solar system in prose, poetry, and prosody (from Kirkus Reviews (03/01/2024))

A Planet Is a Poem by Amanda West Lewis

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I will start with, unfortunately I did not finish A Planet Is a Poem by Amanda West Lewis and illustrated by Oliver Averill. Not because it is a bad book, but because it is a fantastic book. It is just a difficult read via an online copy for me. Also, the subjects (planets and poetry) are not something everyone would be into. Plus it is really not in a format that one expects when talking about space, planets or poetry. It is not pure science […]

Unicorns and cats and other stuff

Unicorn Crush: Another Phoebe and Her Unicorn Adventure by Dana Simpson

The First Cat in Space and the Soup of Doom by Mac Barnett and Shawn Harris

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I like the series Phoebe and Her Unicorn by Dana Simpson. Now, I don’t like every book or even every “joke” but I like how Phoebe is a loveable (frankly) dork, that is way relatable, even as an adult. When I found an online reader copy for book 19, Unicorn Crush: Another Phoebe and Her Unicorn Adventure I was intrigued. It had been awhile since I had read one, so figured it was time. Now, there isn’t anything really “new” to talk about, Phoebe is […]



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