I have read a lot more short stories in the past year. I have always considered short stories the stepchildren of contemporary fiction. Novels are the alpha and omega for most contemporary fiction (literary & genre) readers. Novellas (short novels between...
Wisdom From Kammbia Book Review 96: Black Titan by Carol Jenkins & Elizabeth Gardner Hines
by MHill | Feb 19, 2022 | 2022 Book Reviews, Black History Month, Marion's Favorite Books, Marion's Favorites, Marion's Reading Life Blog, Wisdom From Kammbia Column
"Athletes and musicians who have made millions in their industries deserve our respect, but it is critical that blacks understand that our history, and our (often neglected) successes, run deeper than that. All children need to be made familiar with images and...
Icon #14
by MHill | Feb 6, 2022 | Black History Month, Marion's Favorite Books, Marion's Favorites, Marion's Reading Life Blog
Rocket learns a valuable lesson with the responsibility she has as a superhero and being Icon's partner. She asks Icon to attend a community event, but he cannot attend because his day job as a lawyer demands his attention. Rocket is frustrated with his duties as a...
Best Book Ever Podcast: Episode 83
by MHill | Jan 25, 2022 | Best Book Ever Podcast, Marion's Favorite Books, Marion's Reading Life Blog, Octavia Butler, Wisdom From Kammbia Column
My second appearance on the Best Book Ever Podcast aired today. The host, Julie Strauss, and I discussed one of my all time favorite novels, Parable of the Sower by Octavia Butler. I have read this novel 3 times (when it first came in October 1993, then 10 years...
All the Seas of the World Cover by Guy Gavriel Kay
by MHill | Dec 10, 2021 | Guy Gavriel Kay, Marion's Favorite Books, Marion's Favorites, Marion's Reading Life Blog, Wisdom From Kammbia Column
One of my favorite novelists, @guygavrielkay posted on social media recently a cover release for his latest novel, All The Seas Of The World coming in May 2022. Kay’s brand of historical fantasy is thoughtful, intelligent, and unique to fantasy literature. All The...
Wisdom From Kammbia Book Review 92: Blacktop Wasteland by S.A. Cosby
by MHill | Nov 15, 2021 | 2021 Book Reviews, Black History Month, Book Reviews, Marion's Favorite Books, Marion's Reading Life Blog, Wisdom From Kammbia Column
Does a son have to repeat his father's transgressions and life choices? It seemed like S.A. Cosby was trying to answer that question in his thrilling third novel, Blacktop Wasteland. I have seen this novel posted on my Instagram feed recently and several Goodreads...
Wisdom From Kammbia Book Review 90: Furia by Yamile Saied Mendez
by MHill | Oct 14, 2021 | 2021 Book Reviews, Marion's Favorite Books, Marion's Favorites, Marion's Reading Life Blog, Wisdom From Kammbia Column
"Lies have short legs." That is the opening sentence of Furia by Yamile Saied Mendez. Camila Hassan says this proverb and opens a window into her double life as an Argentinian high school student by day and a Futbol player known as Furia after school. Camila has...
Wisdom From Kammbia Book Review 88: Crossing to Safety by Wallace Stegner
by MHill | Sep 11, 2021 | 2021 Book Reviews, Book Reviews, Marion's Favorite Books, Marion's Favorites, Wisdom From Kammbia Column
"And so, by circuitous and unpredictable routes, we converge toward midcontinent and meet in Madison, and are at once drawn together, braided and plaited into a friendship. It is a relationship that has no formal shape, there are no rules or obligations or bonds as in...
Icon #13
by MHill | Sep 4, 2021 | Wisdom From Kammbia Column
Buck Wild is on the scene! He is taking names and delivering punishment to anyone that stands in his way in the city of Dakota. However, he is under the spell of Lysistrata Jones and her magical whip. Buck Wild can not resist her control over him. As a result, she...
Icon #12
by MHill | Aug 27, 2021 | Marion's Favorites, Marion's Reading Life Blog, Wisdom From Kammbia Column
"Don't forget, you're a full-time student and a part-time superhero." Icon told Rocket the aforementioned sentence at the beginning of Issue 12 while they were saving someone from being robbed. Rocket has been trying to manage her life of high school student,...