The greatest pleasure I can have as a reader is getting lost in an author’s story. What I mean is, an author has pulled me into their imagined world and has a reality that connects with my imagination. P. Djeli Clark achieves this in his first full-length novel, A...
Wisdom From Kammbia Book Review 120: Mr. Breakfast by Jonathan Carroll
by MHill | Feb 4, 2023 | 2023 Book Reviews, Book Reviews, Jonathan Carroll, Marion's Favorite Books, Marion's Favorites, Wisdom From Kammbia Column
"People want life to be their friend. Some even expect or believe they deserve it. But I think of life only as a companion, and an unpredictable one at that. If it were my friend, life would be hurting or disappointing me all the time. But if it's only a companion,...
Wisdom From Kammbia Book Review 119: Serafina’s Stories by Rudolfo Anaya
by MHill | Dec 8, 2022 | 2022 Book Reviews, Book Reviews, Marion's Favorite Books, Marion's Favorites, Marion's Reading Life Blog, Short Story Review, Wisdom From Kammbia Column, Wisdom of Kammbia Story Review
"The spirit of story and the spirit of peace are naturally bound together. Storytellers are one of the standard bearers for the creation of peace. I am convinced that story, as an expression of life, constitutes one of the highest forms of value creation." I took...
Wisdom From Kammbia Book Review 118: Writing Into The Dark by Dean Wesley Smith
by MHill | Nov 30, 2022 | 2022 Book Reviews, Book Reviews, Marion's Favorite Books, Marion's Favorites, Marion's Reading Life Blog, Wisdom From Kammbia Column, Writing, Writing and Publishing Resources
There are very few articles and books on on how to just type in the first word and head off into the dark writing a novel with no plan, no character sketch, nothing but pure exploration. Smith provides an excellent argument for writing into the dark for fiction...
Wisdom From Kammbia Book Review 116: Someplace To Be Flying by Charles De Lint
by MHill | Nov 11, 2022 | 2022 Book Reviews, Book Reviews, Charles De Lint, Wisdom of Kammbia Story Review
That's an interesting cover. What is this book about? I have gotten that comment several times while reading Charles de Lint's Someplace to Be Flying recently. It is a reminder of the importance of book covers. The artist, John Jude Palencar, has produced some of...
Wisdom From Kammbia Book Review 113: Erasure by Percival Everett
by MHill | Aug 19, 2022 | 2022 Book Reviews, Book Reviews, Marion's Favorite Books, Marion's Favorites, Marion's Reading Life Blog, Percival Everett, Wisdom From Kammbia Column
Percival Everett is a writer I have wanted to read for some time. I have come across online articles and social media posts over the past year about his work. Well, I finally did a Goodreads search on his books and chose Erasure for my first Percival Everett...
Wisdom From Kammbia Book Review 111: Woman of Light by Kali Fajardo-Anstine
by MHill | Aug 5, 2022 | 2022 Book Reviews, Book Reviews, Wisdom From Kammbia Column
Last year, I read an outstanding short story collection titled Sabrina & Corina by Kali Fajardo-Anstine. I had never heard of the author before, but I was looking for some short stories to read and her collection kept coming up. I took a chance, and it was the...
Wisdom From Kammbia Book Review 107: Celia: Mi Vida by Celia Cruz & Ana Cristina Reymundo
by MHill | May 20, 2022 | 2022 Book Reviews, Book Reviews, Hispanic Heritage Month, Marion's Favorite Books, Marion's Favorites, Marion's Reading Life Blog, Music Reviews, Wisdom From Kammbia Column
As a music lover, there are some songs you hear and immediately make you want to dance. Even if you cannot dance, the song commands you to move your body to the beat. The Queen of Salsa (La Reina de la Salsa), Celia Cruz, has many songs that fit the prior...
Wisdom From Kammbia Book Review 105: The Sparrow by Mary Doria Russell
by MHill | May 1, 2022 | 2022 Book Reviews, Book Reviews, Marion's Favorite Books, Marion's Favorite Duologies, Marion's Favorites, Marion's Reading Life Blog, Wisdom From Kammbia Column
Have you ever read a book that you knew instantly you should have read years ago? I knew it after reading the first chapter of The Sparrow by Mary Doria Russell. I was working at a mom-and-pop bookstore in Santa Fe, NM in 1996 when this novel was published. I...
Wisdom From Kammbia Book Review 104: Angel On My Shoulder by Natalie Cole
by MHill | Apr 28, 2022 | 2022 Book Reviews, Black History Month, Book Reviews, Marion's Favorite Books, Marion's Favorites, Marion's Reading Life Blog
"As you walk your own journey, keep your eyes open, listen well, and if you look real hard, you just might find an angel on your shoulder." Those words are from the last paragraph of the late Natalie Cole's autobiography, Angel On My Shoulder published November 2000,...