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,...
Wisdom From Kammbia Book Review 103: Queen of Angels by Greg Bear
by MHill | Apr 26, 2022 | 2022 Book Reviews, Book Reviews, Marion's Favorite Books, Marion's Favorites, Marion's Reading Life Blog, Rereading Series, Wisdom From Kammbia Column
Queen of Angels by Greg Bear has been a book I've wanted to read for years. I've seen it at used bookstores and bought it several times intending to read the book but never get around to it until recently. Queen of Angels is an ambitious, thought-provoking...
Wisdom From Kammbia Book Review 102: Fahrenheit 451 by Ray Bradbury
by MHill | Apr 26, 2022 | 2022 Book Reviews, Book Reviews, Marion's Favorite Books, Marion's Favorites, Marion's Reading Life Blog, Wisdom From Kammbia Column
When I heard that Ray Bradbury had passed in 2012, I realized that I had never read any of his books. Wow, that surprised me. Well, in honor of his passing, I decided to read his most popular and enduring work, Fahrenheit 451. “Do you know why books such as this are...
Wisdom From Kammbia Book Review 101: The Opposite of Art by Athol Dickson
by MHill | Apr 22, 2022 | 2022 Book Reviews, Book Reviews, Marion's Favorite Books, Marion's Favorites, Marion's Reading Life Blog, Wisdom From Kammbia Column
The Opposite of Art is the story of the genius artist, Sheridan Ridler, who is known for painting nudes without faces. Ridler gets quite a reputation in the art world as a cad to the ladies and an arrogant jerk to everyone else that comes in contact with him. Well, he...
Wisdom From Kammbia Book Review 100: Bag of Bones by Stephen King
by MHill | Apr 22, 2022 | 2022 Book Reviews, Book Reviews, Marion's Favorite Books, Marion's Favorites, Marion's Reading Life Blog, Wisdom From Kammbia Column
Bag of Bones is the story of Mike Noonan, a bestselling novelist with a great life until his wife dies in an accident near their Western Maine summer home. From that accident, Mike's life is turned upside down and inside out. Because of that event, Mike gets writers...
Wisdom From Kammbia Book Review 99: Buffalo Soldier by Maurice Broaddus
by MHill | Apr 12, 2022 | 2022 Book Reviews, Book Reviews, Wisdom From Kammbia Column
Buffalo Soldier by Maurice Broaddus tells the story of Jamaican agent Desmond Coke and his companion, Lij Tafari. They are on the run and Desmond wants the boy to have a normal life, but it seems unlikely because of those who want to capture Lij for nefarious reasons....
Wisdom From Kammbia Story Review 8: Recitatif by Toni Morrison
by MHill | Apr 3, 2022 | 2022 Book Reviews, Book Reviews, Marion's Favorites, Marion's Reading Life Blog, Short Story Review, Wisdom From Kammbia Column, Wisdom of Kammbia Story Review
Toni Morrison is one of those authors I have admired and respected but not loved her fiction. I have read Song of Solomon, Jazz, & Paradise of her work. Song of Solomon is my favorite but my feelings as a reader on a storytelling level have been lukewarm at best....
Wisdom From Kammbia Review 97: The Haunting of Tram Car 015 by P. Djeli Clark
by MHill | Mar 25, 2022 | 2022 Book Reviews, Book Reviews, Marion's Reading Life Blog, Wisdom From Kammbia Column
The Haunting of Tram Car 015 by P. Djeli Clark is a fantasy novella set in an alternate early 20th century Cairo, where the world of djinn and other supernatural beings has made Egypt a world super-power, and two Agents of the Ministry of Alchemy, Enchantments, and...