One of the great joys of reading fiction is when you get a novel that makes want to read on after you finished it. There are a lot of novels I have enjoyed reading, but once I close the book or eBook (these days) then I'm done with it. Well, Alburquerque by Rudolfo...
Wisdom From Kammbia Book Review 55: The Wind That Lays Waste by Selva Almada
by MHill | Sep 2, 2020 | 2020 Book Reviews, Wisdom From Kammbia Column
I finished Women in Translation Month 2020 with reading The Wind That Lays Waste by Argentinian author Selva Almada. The Wind That Lays Waste tells the story of Reverend Pearson and his daughter Leni traveling through the Argentinian countryside. Their car breaks...
Wisdom From Kammbia Book Review 53: The Housekeeper and The Professor by Yoko Ogawa
by MHill | Aug 9, 2020 | 2020 Book Reviews
The Housekeeper and The Professor by Yoko Ogawa is my first read for Women in Translation Month 2020. It is the story of a single parent housekeeper and her relationship with a former mathematics professor that can not take care of himself after a serious accident a...
Women In Translation Month
by MHill | Jul 31, 2020 | Wisdom From Kammbia Column
August is my favorite month of the year. It's a birthday month for me and my kids. I have always looked forward to August and usually the hottest month of the year especially here in South Texas. However, I want to celebrate my favorite month a little different in...
Wisdom From Kammbia Book Review 52: White Pages by Ran Walker
by MHill | Jul 24, 2020 | 2020 Book Reviews, Marion's Favorite Books, Wisdom From Kammbia Column
In a reading life, you will come across a novel that speaks directly to what you are going through. It is interesting that the power of a story can connect with a book that you read at the proper time. This is the case with White Pages by Ran Walker. Kamal Jackson is...
Wisdom From Kammbia Book Review 45: Eva Luna by Isabel Allende
by MHill | May 24, 2020 | 2020 Book Reviews, Marion's Favorite Books, Marion's Favorites, Marion's Reading Life Blog, Rereading Series, Wisdom From Kammbia Column
"Words are free, she used to say, and she appropriated them; they were all hers." That sentence from early in the novel, Eva Luna, by Isabel Allende captures the spirit of her protagonist. Eva Luna is a spinner of tales and the stories from growing up poor on the...
Wisdom From Kammbia Book Review 44: The Ancestor by Danielle Trussoni
by MHill | May 7, 2020 | 2020 Book Reviews, Wisdom From Kammbia Column
There is a popular meme where a guy is walking with his girlfriend and another woman walks past them. He turns to check out the woman's backside to the dismay of his girlfriend. We have used the meme for all kinds of things, including how readers have always...
Wisdom From Kammbia Book Review 42: Face of an Angel by Denise Chavez
by MHill | Apr 18, 2020 | 2020 Book Reviews, Book Reviews, Marion's Favorite Books, Marion's Favorites, Marion's Reading Life Blog, Rereading Series, Wisdom From Kammbia Column
Rereading a novel can bring different expectations from when you first read it over twenty-five years ago. This is the case with Face of An Angel by Denise Chavez. Face of an Angel tells the story of Soveida Dosamantes, a waitress at El Farol Restaurant in the...
Wisdom from Kammbia Book Review 41: The Spectator Bird by Wallace Stegner
by MHill | Apr 4, 2020 | 2020 Book Reviews, Marion's Favorite Books, Marion's Favorite Duologies
As a reader, there are some books (and authors) you have been meaning to read. But other books (and authors) would come before it. Unfortunately, Wallace Stegner fell into this category for me. I've been meaning to read his...
Wisdom From Kammbia Book Review 26: The Pearl by John Steinbeck
by MHill | Oct 6, 2019 | 2019 Book Reviews, Marion's Favorite Books, Marion's Favorites, Marion's Reading Life Blog, Rereading Series, Wisdom From Kammbia Column
One of the most often quoted verses of biblical scripture is from the New Testament book of 1 Timothy 6:10: "The love of money is a root of all kinds of evil." Even if you are a non-religious person, I'm pretty sure you have heard that verse of scripture in a secular...