Review of Kalayla

[Koch_Raymond]

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

---

3 out of 4 stars

---

Share This Review

---

Kalayla by Jeannie Nicholas is a well-written and engaging novel about three people, and the ways their lives intersect and change each other for the better. Maureen, nearly thirty and the single mother of a rambunctious eleven year old, moves into a small apartment in a new neighborhood. Working two jobs to support her small family, she can’t seem to find the time to keep tabs on her rebellious daughter. Kalayla just wants to wander the streets of this new neighborhood in peace and earn some money keeping an eye on laundry down at Clean Suds on the corner. She doesn’t have the patience for her mother’s clumsy attempts at getting her to talk about her emotions. Luckily for both of them, Lena, the old, Italian landlady who lives on the fourth floor in their building, takes an interest in Kalayla. But why doesn’t she ever wear a color other than black? Where are Maureen’s parents? The book answers all these questions through the eyes of the three women.

The first person narration of the book is pulled off incredibly well, and the story switches easily between perspectives. I really enjoyed how vibrant and thought-out the characters are, and the way their personalities interacted with each other throughout the course of the book is stunning. The exposition is staggered over the course of the story, and the reader is constantly learning new things about the characters, which keeps them dynamic and interesting. The plot is well-crafted; every arc is intrinsically connected to the previous one, and the progression of events is well-paced and realistic.

Maureen's aspect of the story deals very well with the difficulties of being estranged or on difficult terms with family, and how it's not easy to stop loving people, even after they’ve hurt you. Her story is built on the process of moving on with your life in situations where you don’t have the support of the people who should be there for you, and handling grief and loss without letting it overwhelm you. Kalayla’s tale talks about familial love and betrayal. Over the course of the book she learns about secrets people she trusts and cares about have been keeping from her, and has to cope with that alongside the knowledge that, as much as she loves her mother, Maureen is far from perfect. Lena’s narrative is about living in the present, and how it’s never too late to change. Over the course of the story she learns to process her grief and look at the world in a more positive light.

I do have a few issues with the book, however. There are places where the editing feels rough and unpolished, and others where the sentence structure and grammar could have been improved. The dialogue often feels somewhat blunt and stilted, and the speech patterns of the characters are often overexaggerated. Most of the time it wasn’t enough to pull me out of the story, but it’s something to be aware of going in. While Kalayla is a very well-written and developed character, she reads as a little older than she is, and it might have been better to have started off the book with her being a couple of years older than she is.

I’d rate this book a 3 out of 4, for the excellent storytelling and character development. I can’t give it four stars due to the editing and the dialogue, but those problems don’t hinder the positive aspects of the story, nor my enjoyment while reading it. I would recommend it to older teenagers and adults, due to the language and some of the content. There’s no explicit mature themes, but there are vague descriptions of marital abuse, along with short but graphic depictions of injuries, so I wouldn’t suggest it for middle-schoolers or younger.

******
Kalayla
View: on Bookshelves | on Amazon

[Soraya Bayah]

Thank you for the detailed review. You included all the pros and cons of this remarkable book. I was not disturbed by the dialogue but can understand how it might’ve annoyed someone else. I enjoyed your review thoroughly.