Cannonball Read 18

Sticking It to Cancer One Book at a Time


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About faintingviolet

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A reader and caffeine addict who consumes all sorts of books, some just more frequently than others. Your CBR Book Club Maven with over a decade of Cannonballing experience I believe in the beauty that comes from a common goal of reading, reviewing, and discussing. Also, Fuck Cancer. (Learn more about this Cannonballer: faintingviolet's Quick Questions interview.)

faintingviolet's Reviews:

“That is, perhaps you can forgive yourself for being a person who doesn’t always rise above her human urges.”

The Potency of Ungovernable Impulses by Malka Older

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I’m a smidge perplexed by my relationship with Malka Older’s The Investigations of Mossa and Pleiti series. I think it boils down to loving them in concept but not in practice. The idea of a mystery a la Arthur Conan Doyle or Agatha Christie mixed with the cozy character-driven sci-fi of Becky Chambers sounds right up my alley – which means I’m looking forward to them each time, and then struggle to sink in. I’ve given myself some time and I think a big part of […]

“Grind culture is violence and violence creates trauma. We have been traumatized deeply.”

Rest is Resistance: a Manifesto by Tricia Hersey

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Back when I still participated in Twitter, I had been following Tricia Hersey’s The Nap Ministry for years and years. As I’ve unpacked my likely (but not official) autism diagnosis, masking, burnout, depression, burnout, disability, and generally not functioning at the speed that the white supremacist capitalistic hellscape we live in would like me to her rallying cry of rest has resonated greatly. I have pushed back on the demands for my time and energy and routinely schedule what I call sloth weekends where I […]

When in Doubt, Kate Beaton

Never Learn Anything from History by Kate Beaton

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Part of the reason I enjoy doing the read harder challenge and Cannonball Read’s Bingo is that it gives me reasons to go digging back into the reaches of my over 600 title long to read list. This year the CBR Bingo spaces have been boggling my brain a bit (in a good way!) and I had no idea how to fulfill a few of them based on what I’ve lined up already in my reading queue for the year. So, back to the to read list to see what I can […]

“And to that end, welcome comfort, for without it, you cannot stay strong.”

A Prayer for the Crown-Shy by Becky Chambers

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This time, I read the duology back-to-back (how I wish this series had continued, but I understand Chambers stopping here). Where Psalm for the Wild-Built was really just about Sibling Dex and Mosscap, A Prayer for the Crown-Shy is much more the story of community. Having made it to the monastery and back the pair now embark on the promised road trip for Mosscap to ask its question of humanity. To do that, they travel from town to town on their way to the city. Dex is convinced that if there is an answer to what humanity needs it […]

“You keep asking why your work is not enough, and I don’t know how to answer that, because it is enough to exist in the world and marvel at it.”

A Psalm for the Wild-Built by Becky Chambers

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Back in 2022 I read and loved A Psalm for the Wild-Built and its companion book Prayer for the Crown-Shy so when I came across the Read Harder task this year to read a novel where a character uses they/them pronouns I immediately took the excuse to add a re-read of these Becky Chambers books to my annual to do list. I normally don’t use re-reads for Read Harder challenges, but because my soul has been crying out for a good cathartic cry with Sibling Dex and Mosscap I decided that it was okay this time.   […]

“Being duped contaminates your entire sense of self.”

Duped: Double Lives, False Identities, and the Con Man I Almost Married by Abby Ellin

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For full disclosure (which feels extra important when discussing a book about deception) I did not finish this book. I made it to the halfway point and realized that the structure of the book wasn’t working for me, and I didn’t want to pick it back up. So, I didn’t.   Now, with that in mind, the reason I believe I felt that way was the way Abby Ellin blended the personal narrative of her lived experience being engaged to a con man with the research about deception through double lives and false identities was not landing for me. I would imagine that Ellin hoped by keeping her own […]



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