Review of Kalayla
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Bianka Brankovic
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- Latest Review: Kalayla by Jeannie Nicholas
Review of Kalayla
[Following is a volunteer review of "Kalayla" by Jeannie Nicholas.]
I am often a bit hesitant to pick up a book written with young adults or children in mind. This was also true when I read the blurb for Kalayla by Jeannie Nicholas.
However, the topic of family and the interracial context interested me and I am glad I read this book.
Throughout the book you could feel how all the characters evolved into a better version of themselves while still remaining authentic and alive. I especially liked the portrayal of Lena, Kalayla’s and her mother’s landlady who finally found a way to face her own traumatic issues and started living again.
This book touches many issues, race, mental illness, abuse and even growing up gay in a traditional environment. However, it’s not one of those books that beat you up with their message, the characters just have to deal with the normal problems of life.
Reading Kalayla will make you laugh, because the dialogues between the characters are outright funny, especially when the 11 year old Kalyla appears on the scene.
Then it will make you think about how to live as a family in our times with all our differences and what to do when families have happened to grow apart.
It asks the question whether it is possible to define family in a much broader context and how we can all help to make our neighborhood a better place for all who live there.
By helping Kalayla and her mother Maureen, Lena inadvertently helps herself and opens the door for new possibilities.
This book shines the light of hope for a time full of families that don’t conform to traditional ideals and tells a story about the resiliency of people who are maybe strange on the outside but surely have a story to tell that is worth listening to. .
At first, I was a bit disappointed with the main characters because they all appeared set in their ways. But I soon realized that the author only gave us the character’s view at the time and we could really see changes throughout the book.
I really liked how the author showed us the changes rather than telling us about them.
The sections written from Kalayla’s viewpoint are using teenager style and contain a few vulgar words, I am not sure if this is an accurate portrayal of teenager speech in this region. I felt the speech was a bit simple and repetitive at times but it's been a long time since I was a teenager.
Also, the mother appeared a bit naive at times, but this is excusable as she was still quite young and she had a very sheltered life before she married right out of high school.
All in all I recommend this book to grown-ups and children who like to think while reading about interesting characters.
My rating is a definite 4 out of 4 stars and I am surely going to keep looking for other books by this author.
******
Kalayla
View: on Bookshelves | on Amazon
I am often a bit hesitant to pick up a book written with young adults or children in mind. This was also true when I read the blurb for Kalayla by Jeannie Nicholas.
However, the topic of family and the interracial context interested me and I am glad I read this book.
Throughout the book you could feel how all the characters evolved into a better version of themselves while still remaining authentic and alive. I especially liked the portrayal of Lena, Kalayla’s and her mother’s landlady who finally found a way to face her own traumatic issues and started living again.
This book touches many issues, race, mental illness, abuse and even growing up gay in a traditional environment. However, it’s not one of those books that beat you up with their message, the characters just have to deal with the normal problems of life.
Reading Kalayla will make you laugh, because the dialogues between the characters are outright funny, especially when the 11 year old Kalyla appears on the scene.
Then it will make you think about how to live as a family in our times with all our differences and what to do when families have happened to grow apart.
It asks the question whether it is possible to define family in a much broader context and how we can all help to make our neighborhood a better place for all who live there.
By helping Kalayla and her mother Maureen, Lena inadvertently helps herself and opens the door for new possibilities.
This book shines the light of hope for a time full of families that don’t conform to traditional ideals and tells a story about the resiliency of people who are maybe strange on the outside but surely have a story to tell that is worth listening to. .
At first, I was a bit disappointed with the main characters because they all appeared set in their ways. But I soon realized that the author only gave us the character’s view at the time and we could really see changes throughout the book.
I really liked how the author showed us the changes rather than telling us about them.
The sections written from Kalayla’s viewpoint are using teenager style and contain a few vulgar words, I am not sure if this is an accurate portrayal of teenager speech in this region. I felt the speech was a bit simple and repetitive at times but it's been a long time since I was a teenager.
Also, the mother appeared a bit naive at times, but this is excusable as she was still quite young and she had a very sheltered life before she married right out of high school.
All in all I recommend this book to grown-ups and children who like to think while reading about interesting characters.
My rating is a definite 4 out of 4 stars and I am surely going to keep looking for other books by this author.
******
Kalayla
View: on Bookshelves | on Amazon
Latest Review: Kalayla by Jeannie Nicholas
