Can you ever go home again? Binti Home by Nnedi Okorafor attempts to answer that question. Binti returns home after a year away on a spaceship at Oozma University. She brings her friend, Okwu, for support. However, the homecoming does not go as expected and the family...
Wisdom From Kammbia Book Review 35: Animals at the End of the World by Gloria Susana Esquivel
by MHill | Jan 16, 2020 | 2020 Book Reviews, Wisdom From Kammbia Column
I have a soft spot for coming-of-age stories. I don't have a good explanation for why those stories appeal to me as a reader. But, they do. When I found out about this first novel from Colombian author Gloria Susana Esquivel, I knew I had to read it. Animals at the...
Wisdom From Kammbia Book Review 34: Black Women in Science by Kimberly Brown Pellum
by MHill | Jan 10, 2020 | 2020 Book Reviews, Wisdom From Kammbia Column
Daddy, I'm ready to read another book with you at bedtime. I loved hearing that sentence from my 10-year-old daughter, Norah. We have read many books together over her young life. This time she wanted about women in science. I did a Google search a few weeks ago and...
Marion’s 2020 Reading List
by MHill | Jan 3, 2020 | 2020 Book Reviews, Wisdom From Kammbia Column
I love lists. I love putting together reading lists. I have created reading lists for several years now. Most of the time, I tend to follow my reading lists. However, in the reading lists of 2018 and 2019, I veered off course on what I plan to read. This year, I...
Marion’s 10 Favorite Reads of 2019
by MHill | Dec 28, 2019 | 2019 Book Reviews, Marion's Favorite Books, Wisdom From Kammbia Column
As we come to end of 2019, there will be a lot of lists for the best reads of the year. Well, I have compiled my favorite reads of the year. Here are ten books across all genres and a non-fiction selection. I believe in reading widely and have the readers credo,...
Wisdom From Kammbia Book Review 33: Jay-Z (Made In America) by Michael Eric Dyson
by MHill | Dec 27, 2019 | 2019 Book Reviews, Marion's Favorite Books, Wisdom From Kammbia Column
I love getting books as Christmas gifts especially from my 10-year-old daughter. This year's Christmas gift is Jay-Z (Made In America) by Michael Eric Dyson. I will confess upfront that Jay-Z is not my favorite rapper and I have not listened to a lot of his music. My...
Wisdom From Kammbia Book Review 32: A Time To Dance by Padma Venkatraman
by MHill | Dec 25, 2019 | 2019 Book Reviews, Marion's Favorite Books, Wisdom From Kammbia Column
One of the joys of reading is discovering a book (or author) you would have never come across in your normal reading experience. I will confess upfront that I'm not that much of a fan of YA novels. Reading about teenagers (or young adults) and their problems or issues...
Wisdom From Kammbia Book Review 31: Ascending by Meg Pechenick
by MHill | Dec 1, 2019 | 2019 Book Reviews, Marion's Favorite Books, Wisdom From Kammbia Column
What if you were the only person on a spaceship with an alien race? You were the person groomed to speak an alien language and take part in an intercultural exchange between planets? You would want to do it in the first place? If you did, how you feel about it?...
Wisdom From Kammbia Book Review 30: The Chef’s Secret by Crystal King
by MHill | Nov 13, 2019 | 2019 Book Reviews, Marion's Favorite Books, Wisdom From Kammbia Column
It is interesting how a certain sub-genre presents itself to you as a reader. I have not been a historical fiction reader throughout my reading life. However, I read several historical fiction novels over the past couple of years. Beginning with the novels of Guy...
Wisdom From Kammbia Book Review 29: The Gondola Maker by Laura Morelli
by MHill | Oct 27, 2019 | 2019 Book Reviews, Marion's Favorite Books, Wisdom From Kammbia Column
The Gondola Maker by Laura Morelli tells the story of Luca Vianello, heir to a gondola-making business. However, he is a participant to a tragedy that strikes the business and alters the course of his life. Luca begins to pick up the pieces of his life and becomes a...