Cannonball Read 18

Sticking It to Cancer One Book at a Time
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Join the CBR18 Book Bingo Reading Challenge—Now Underway!   

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Just One Gift: A Thoughtful Classroom Story told through Poetry for Kids (Ages 8-12) by Linda Sue Park and Robert Sae-Heng

July 17, 2026 by BlackRaven Leave a Comment

Just One Gift: A Thoughtful Classroom Story told through Poetry for Kids (Ages 8-12) by Linda Sue Park and Robert Sae-Heng has a unique format to teach the children of the story, and the reader, acts of kindness and selflessness. Inspired by a form of Korean poetry, Park takes a middle school classroom and its students and gives them a task (well, their teacher does). They must pick a slip of paper from a hat. It will have Family, Friend, or ? (question mark) on […]

Filed Under: Children's Books, Fiction, Health, Poetry Tagged With: cbr18bingo, cbr18bingo Steal, emotions, Feelings, friendship, Linda Sue Park, Linda Sue Park and Robert Sae-Heng, Robert Sae-Heng, school, Social Themes, Stories in Verse

BlackRaven's CBR18 Review No:193 · Genres: Children's Books, Fiction, Health, Poetry · Tags: cbr18bingo, cbr18bingo Steal, emotions, Feelings, friendship, Linda Sue Park, Linda Sue Park and Robert Sae-Heng, Robert Sae-Heng, school, Social Themes, Stories in Verse ·
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Poems from new shoes and falling leaves to friendship to growing up

Poetry Comics by Grant Snider

October 7, 2025 by BlackRaven Leave a Comment

The only reason Poetry Comics is a four and not a five rating is there were two things I was not loving. The first is that sometimes a poem felt finished but kept on going and the second was that I was not sure why some of the poems were in that particular season. Such as many in the season of winter did not match with my idea of winter.  However, Grant Snider’s works are fun stories done in clever poetry. They made cute illustrations […]

Filed Under: Children's Books, Comedy/Humor, Cooking/Food, Fantasy, Fiction, Graphic Novels/Comic Books, History, Non-Fiction, Poetry, Young Adult Tagged With: Concepts, Grant Snider, imagination, Play, seasons, Stories in Verse

BlackRaven's CBR17 Review No:438 · Genres: Children's Books, Comedy/Humor, Cooking/Food, Fantasy, Fiction, Graphic Novels/Comic Books, History, Non-Fiction, Poetry, Young Adult · Tags: Concepts, Grant Snider, imagination, Play, seasons, Stories in Verse ·
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Welcome to my Two Books in One Review review 

Thank You, School by Louise Borden

Finding My Wave by Alexandra Katona

October 6, 2025 by BlackRaven Leave a Comment

I found two books (hence the title) that were nice, cozy and enjoyable but I did not want to weaken reviewing either solo as I didn’t want to add fluff to them. Therefore, please enjoy these shorter reviews that hopefully do not leave out the good stuff. Thank You, School by Louise Borden and illustrator Paige Keiser  due March 2026 Read via an online reader copy. Through a series of poems, children thank each person (from bus drivers to teachers) who help make their school […]

Filed Under: Children's Books, Fiction, Poetry Tagged With: Alexandra Katona, Education, family, grandmothers, Hispanic, Latino, Louise Borden, Multigenerational, Paige Keiser, Sara Palacios, school, Social Themes, Stories in Verse, surfing, Water Sports

BlackRaven's CBR17 Review No:435 · Genres: Children's Books, Fiction, Poetry · Tags: Alexandra Katona, Education, family, grandmothers, Hispanic, Latino, Louise Borden, Multigenerational, Paige Keiser, Sara Palacios, school, Social Themes, Stories in Verse, surfing, Water Sports ·
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You’re a poet and you don’t write about it that much

Dino Poet : A Graphic Novel by Tom Angleberger

March 14, 2025 by BlackRaven Leave a Comment

Education, CBR17 Pie Chart Challenge Learning poetry in a fun, simpler manner is a great way to introduce kids to the genre. And you can do that in Dino Poet : A Graphic Novel by Tom Angleberger. I would have liked to have seen more emphasis on poetry not needing to rhyme, but overall it is a clever book with enough humor to keep kids interested. Currently available, I read via an online reader copy. Now, I might not purchase a copy for myself as […]

Filed Under: Children's Books, Comedy/Humor, Fantasy, Fiction, Graphic Novels/Comic Books, History, Non-Fiction, Poetry Tagged With: CBR17 Pie Chart Challenge, dinosaurs, Education, prehistoric creatures, Stories in Verse, Tom Angleberger

BlackRaven's CBR17 Review No:148 · Genres: Children's Books, Comedy/Humor, Fantasy, Fiction, Graphic Novels/Comic Books, History, Non-Fiction, Poetry · Tags: CBR17 Pie Chart Challenge, dinosaurs, Education, prehistoric creatures, Stories in Verse, Tom Angleberger ·
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By the author who has a ginger girlfriend, an even more ginger dog and an undisclosed number of cats and a lot to say in this delightful book

The Lonely Book by Meg Grehan

August 12, 2024 by BlackRaven Leave a Comment

I know it is odd to start a review with a negative, but I want to get it out of the way. I did not like The Lonely Book as much as Meg Grehan’s other titles. This one felt younger than the ones I have read and I was expecting something more mature. With that said, I still enjoyed this addition to their collection of prose poetry novels. Most of Grehan’s books deal with LGBTQ+ issues as well as mental health. This time we are […]

Filed Under: Children's Books, Cooking/Food, Fantasy, Fiction, Health, Mystery, Poetry, Romance, Young Adult Tagged With: Anxiety, Books, Bookstores, family, gender, LGBTQ, Meg Grehan, parents, selective mutism, siblings, Social Themes, Stories in Verse

BlackRaven's CBR16 Review No:386 · Genres: Children's Books, Cooking/Food, Fantasy, Fiction, Health, Mystery, Poetry, Romance, Young Adult · Tags: Anxiety, Books, Bookstores, family, gender, LGBTQ, Meg Grehan, parents, selective mutism, siblings, Social Themes, Stories in Verse ·
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I wanted a title that represented the fact that, yes, there are religious themes, but not that would turn people off as they can just be “Nope!” to that theme, but they are really nice books, even if they aren’t your thing.

Lullaby for the King by Nikki Grimes

Home Is Right Where You Are: Inspired by Psalm 23 by Ruth Chou Simons

August 2, 2024 by BlackRaven Leave a Comment

One does not just say you should read Lullaby for the King by Nikki Grimes and illustrated by Michelle Carlos to just anyone. You do, however, say, “This was a lovely story that if you have a need for a Christian book that is about the Christ child’s birth, and you do not want a fluffy book, a Santa/Christmas book or has only people in it, you should give this a chance.”  This story starts off and finishes on a poetic note. Things flow and […]

Filed Under: Children's Books, Fiction, Poetry, Religion Tagged With: animals, Christmas & Advent, Emotions & Feelings, family, Holidays & Celebrations, Lullabies, Michelle Carlos, Nativity, Nikki Grimes, Ruth Chou Simons, Social Themes, Stories in Verse

BlackRaven's CBR16 Review No:367 · Genres: Children's Books, Fiction, Poetry, Religion · Tags: animals, Christmas & Advent, Emotions & Feelings, family, Holidays & Celebrations, Lullabies, Michelle Carlos, Nativity, Nikki Grimes, Ruth Chou Simons, Social Themes, Stories in Verse ·
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