Oliva Hill
Travel North Black Girl
Standing on the Cordova dock looking out at the ocean, I knew I was not in Kansas City anymore. As a black woman, I had rarely been past the invisible racial line of the Troost corridor in Kansas City. Going to a small, indigenous village in Alaska with my newly wedded Jewish husband was terrifying. Despite my fears, I decided to leave a past of abuse, racism, and poverty. But would my past make me stronger in this new land or silence me? Travel North Black Girl is an unlikely journey of finding one’s power. It addresses the complexity of race, gender, generational trauma, and the powerful healing that the wilds of Alaska provide. Through humor, adventure, and painful reckoning, this memoir speaks to us all.
Oliva Hill
Olivia Hill is an author, artist, and chef. Her recently released memoir, Travel North Black Girl, is about her journey as a young woman from Kansas City and traveling for the first time to a remote, native village in Alaska. Her memoir grapples with issues of race, culture, family, and the familiarity that can be found even in distant places.
Hill is a published short-story author and playwright. Four of her plays have been produced and performed in over five states, including New York and Washington, DC. She is the recipient of the Lorraine Hansberry award for her play, “Mother Spence”. As a visual artist, she has specialized in printmaking and watercolor and exhibited in multiple galleries.
Hill has spoken on mental health, literacy, and Black female representation throughout her career. Her experiences around these issues have molded her into a powerful speaker and advocate. Her drive to address social justice is expressed in her art and writing.
Olivia Hill holds a Bachelors of Arts in Theater and Visual Arts from the University of Alaska, Fairbanks.
Other Books by this Author
