Announcements, new releases, book club meetings and publishing notices, posted directly by Makena Brandon.

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  New release · Narrative nonfiction · Laikipia, Kenya · 27 August 2026

  Juliana, The Queen of the Bees

  My encounter and life with the Queen of the Bees and the Yaaku people of Mukogodo Forest.

  A narrative nonfiction account of two days travelling with Juliana Loshiro — a young Yaaku leader, beekeeper and one of the last young speakers of Yaakunte — from a roadside stop on the way to Doldol to a fire-lit ceremony deep in Mukogodo Forest.

  Read the free preview
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  Latest · A personal dispatch from Marsabit County · 10 August 2026

  Save the Beauty

  The Rendille girls I found beautiful deserve the chance to grow, dream and choose.

  A personal dispatch from the Rendille Food and Cultural Festival in Marsabit County, where Makena Brandon found extraordinary beauty — and learned that early marriage is still taking the childhoods of Rendille girls today.

  Read the dispatch
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  Coming up · A new book by Makena Brandon

  Is God a Christian

  An upcoming work examining faith, identity and the questions that emerge when human labels are placed around the mystery of God.

  Now in development from Makena Brandon and Discussion Publishers PLC. Publication details, extracts and availability will be announced on this notice board.