Review of Kalayla
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Mukoan M
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Review of Kalayla
[Following is a volunteer review of "Kalayla" by Jeannie Nicholas.]
Every family is different, regardless of whether we are by blood or friendship. Family plays a role in shaping who we are and the decisions we make. In this book Kalayla, the author Jeannie Nicholas took us on a journey of an 11-year-old girl, Kalayla, trying her best to live with her single mom, Maureen, while at the same time also protecting her mom from lurking men. One day Kalayla meets an old lady who came into their lives as a savior for the family of two. Lena is a stranger who has faced many adversities and was attracted to Kalayla the minute she saw her and became part of their family. Maureen has been keeping a secret from her daughter about her family, as she believes telling her the truth will deeply hurt her. I connected with Lena as my late grandma as we all have that one old lady in our community who has a golden heart and manages to help everyone. Maureen is trying her best to raise her daughter alone as her husband passed away by working two jobs.
Meeting Kalayla was exciting as she has a great sense of humor and is too mature for her age. Other people might consider her disrespectful as she speaks her mind, I felt she was far from it. Kalayla and Lena got on well from the moment they spoke, Lena knew what to say to this strong girl. I laughed and cried with them throughout the book as they went through their lives, the beauty of this book was that Jeannie sketched their connection and understanding of each other emotionally. The book also portrayed the lives of six women from different perspectives who are all somehow connected to Kalayla, their characters, and how each woman is strong in their way. Each woman's journey showed us their grief, their happiness, and how above all each woman just needed a sense of belonging from a family.
In Maureen and Kalayla's life, we saw strangers became family while family became strangers. Even though her family disowned her because she fell in love with a black man and chose to be with him, she found a family in Lena and her family. I believe that everything happens for a reason as God will not come Himself to help you, however, send people in your life who will close gaps we have and help you ease the pain in the journey. It was true in this book. Jeannie also showed us the diversity of families through this book.
Jeannie has shown that it takes a big person to reach out and an even bigger person to forgive when Maureen's father reached out to her. Reading this book has again portrayed that we all need each other as we are all not perfect, every new day allows us to make fresh starts and try to correct our wrongdoings. I learned a thousand things on how not to be a mom and how to be a mom. There is no wrong or right in parenting and no superwoman as we are all trying to navigate this parenting journey the best we know how to.
I truly loved and enjoyed the book and would not mind a sequel. From the first few sentences, I was intrigued and liked how Jeannie connected every detail and the synergy of plots as there was no moment where I felt bored reading the book. I am rating it 4 out of 4 stars as I couldn’t find any reason not to.
I would recommend it for those who like reading about family stories and those interested in having a good laugh while enjoying a well-written book.
******
Kalayla
View: on Bookshelves | on Amazon
Every family is different, regardless of whether we are by blood or friendship. Family plays a role in shaping who we are and the decisions we make. In this book Kalayla, the author Jeannie Nicholas took us on a journey of an 11-year-old girl, Kalayla, trying her best to live with her single mom, Maureen, while at the same time also protecting her mom from lurking men. One day Kalayla meets an old lady who came into their lives as a savior for the family of two. Lena is a stranger who has faced many adversities and was attracted to Kalayla the minute she saw her and became part of their family. Maureen has been keeping a secret from her daughter about her family, as she believes telling her the truth will deeply hurt her. I connected with Lena as my late grandma as we all have that one old lady in our community who has a golden heart and manages to help everyone. Maureen is trying her best to raise her daughter alone as her husband passed away by working two jobs.
Meeting Kalayla was exciting as she has a great sense of humor and is too mature for her age. Other people might consider her disrespectful as she speaks her mind, I felt she was far from it. Kalayla and Lena got on well from the moment they spoke, Lena knew what to say to this strong girl. I laughed and cried with them throughout the book as they went through their lives, the beauty of this book was that Jeannie sketched their connection and understanding of each other emotionally. The book also portrayed the lives of six women from different perspectives who are all somehow connected to Kalayla, their characters, and how each woman is strong in their way. Each woman's journey showed us their grief, their happiness, and how above all each woman just needed a sense of belonging from a family.
In Maureen and Kalayla's life, we saw strangers became family while family became strangers. Even though her family disowned her because she fell in love with a black man and chose to be with him, she found a family in Lena and her family. I believe that everything happens for a reason as God will not come Himself to help you, however, send people in your life who will close gaps we have and help you ease the pain in the journey. It was true in this book. Jeannie also showed us the diversity of families through this book.
Jeannie has shown that it takes a big person to reach out and an even bigger person to forgive when Maureen's father reached out to her. Reading this book has again portrayed that we all need each other as we are all not perfect, every new day allows us to make fresh starts and try to correct our wrongdoings. I learned a thousand things on how not to be a mom and how to be a mom. There is no wrong or right in parenting and no superwoman as we are all trying to navigate this parenting journey the best we know how to.
I truly loved and enjoyed the book and would not mind a sequel. From the first few sentences, I was intrigued and liked how Jeannie connected every detail and the synergy of plots as there was no moment where I felt bored reading the book. I am rating it 4 out of 4 stars as I couldn’t find any reason not to.
I would recommend it for those who like reading about family stories and those interested in having a good laugh while enjoying a well-written book.
******
Kalayla
View: on Bookshelves | on Amazon
Latest Review: Adrift by Charlie Sheldon
