Review by Michele Harris -- Kalayla by Jeannie Nicholas

[Michele H]

[Following is a volunteer review of "Kalayla" by Jeannie Nicholas.]

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4 out of 4 stars

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Kalayla, by Jeannie Nicholas, is about family. The story centers around the effects of family secrets and how they can unravel a family and change the course of a person’s life forever. Kalayla is an eleven-year-old girl who is strong-willed, independent, has a smart mouth, and always speaks her truth. Her mother is recently widowed and has doubts about her ability to be a good mom. She can’t seem to get things right with Kalayla and has lost confidence in herself. When her new landlord, Lena, becomes a friend to her and Kalayla, things begin to change.

Kalayla is a loner by choice, but her mother is a loner because of life’s circumstances. It isn’t something she would have chosen for herself. They both have this in common with Lena. At 72, Lena has her health but can no longer do the things she did previously and is beginning to need some help. She has a family and a dear life-long friend but doesn’t seem to interact much with her family. As the three get to know each other and become friends, their family secrets begin to surface. Navigating these secrets becomes difficult and causes each of them to question the choices they’ve made.

The narrative of the story switches back and forth from the viewpoint of Kalayla, her mother, Maureen, and the landlord Lena. The author seamlessly connects each and differentiates the characters by format as well as unique dialog specific to each character. Events in the book are often detailed by each character’s perspective to show how one’s actions affect all involved, which helps the reader to connect fully with the complex situations in this book. This book effortlessly tackles some major issues like racism, rape, grief, sexuality, abuse, and more. Although these are difficult and dark issues, the book is not. The book’s theme is more about focusing on oneself internally and the importance of seeing things as they are, not what they are perceived to be on the surface. The book is also about forgiveness and lends itself to reminding the reader that we often need to not only forgive others but ourselves as well.

I enjoyed this author’s writing style and found the book to be an easy and entertaining read. I give Kalayla 4 out of 4 stars. The book was professionally edited. There wasn’t anything I disliked about the book or its characters. I especially enjoyed the twists and turns in the storylines of each character. This author has a talent for softly weaving in lessons learned with a perfect mixture of character development and plot.

Although part of the book is told from the view of an eleven-year-old girl, it is written for more mature audiences. I would recommend this book to any adult audience. This book brings home an important reminder to us of the importance of family. More importantly, it reminds us that racism exists and can have grave consequences on all those involved.

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Kalayla
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[Precious Naiti]

I loved how the book is narrated from the 3 perspectives of the women. It gives a lot more insight. Thank your for your review.

[Holly Fleming]

It's exciting to hear that the story had twists and turns! This sounds like a raw and engaging book that addresses complex social issues. Thank you for a great review!

[Bradley Shelvie]

I enjoyed the book too, and I'm glad you also found it entertaining. Thanks for your review.