Review of Kalayla: Unraveling Tangles
Posted: 06 Apr 2025, 13:30
[Following is an official OnlineBookClub.org review of "Kalayla: Unraveling Tangles" by Jeannie Nicholas.]
Some kids have no choice but to toughen up quite early. While this might produce good traits like resilience and maturity, it has its many disadvantages. In Kalayla: Unraveling Tangles by Jeannie Nicholas, we read about a young girl, Kalayla, whose life challenges made her toughen up. Her father died when she was young, and her mother had a breakdown because of it. On top of that, she's a mixed-race child and had to deal with the racism that came with it.
Lena Barzetti was a 72-year-old woman living on the fourth floor of her building. One day, while walking on the road, she noticed Kalayla. She was shocked to discover that the young girl and her mother lived across from her on the same floor. Of course, she also noticed Kalayla's brashness and feistiness. It was her way of dealing with the world she lived in. Their relationship deepened, and Lena got to learn their story. She discovered that Maureen, Kalayla's mother, had married a Black non-Catholic man, Jamal, against her Irish mother's wishes. They produced Kalayla, and before long, Jamal died in an accident. This broke Maureen down. However, there was one nagging issue with this story that Lena discovered. It was that Maureen did not tell her daughter that she was disowned by her parents.
Three females and three different lives: this story was told from their perspective, and we learn a lot from them. They each showed their strength in different ways, and they still had their flaws. There was one thing I noticed. It was that they did not stop working on themselves. Kalayla was a smart-mouthed kid. Lena was always warning her that her mouth would put her in trouble. As the story progressed, we saw how Lena and the rest of the people around her influenced Kalayla. She became more mature and watched what she said. Children indeed listen when we talk, and they watch when we behave.
I've read this book before. Although I didn't notice much difference, I still enjoyed reading the book again. There was not much to dislike. I didn't like it that some of the characters were vague figures in my imagination. They were not well-defined given that there were sparse details about what they looked like at different locations in the book. Also, young teenagers might not be able to read this book because of the profanity in it. Aside from that, this book was excellent. I enjoyed the stories, the lessons, and the humor.
I rate it 4 out of 5 stars. I removed a star because a crucial audience was limited from reading the book—young teenagers who might learn a good thing or two from Kalayla. I recommend this book to women who've made mistakes with childrearing and are looking for a way to correct them. They might learn something from Lena and Maureen's parents.
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Kalayla: Unraveling Tangles
View: on Bookshelves | on Amazon
Some kids have no choice but to toughen up quite early. While this might produce good traits like resilience and maturity, it has its many disadvantages. In Kalayla: Unraveling Tangles by Jeannie Nicholas, we read about a young girl, Kalayla, whose life challenges made her toughen up. Her father died when she was young, and her mother had a breakdown because of it. On top of that, she's a mixed-race child and had to deal with the racism that came with it.
Lena Barzetti was a 72-year-old woman living on the fourth floor of her building. One day, while walking on the road, she noticed Kalayla. She was shocked to discover that the young girl and her mother lived across from her on the same floor. Of course, she also noticed Kalayla's brashness and feistiness. It was her way of dealing with the world she lived in. Their relationship deepened, and Lena got to learn their story. She discovered that Maureen, Kalayla's mother, had married a Black non-Catholic man, Jamal, against her Irish mother's wishes. They produced Kalayla, and before long, Jamal died in an accident. This broke Maureen down. However, there was one nagging issue with this story that Lena discovered. It was that Maureen did not tell her daughter that she was disowned by her parents.
Three females and three different lives: this story was told from their perspective, and we learn a lot from them. They each showed their strength in different ways, and they still had their flaws. There was one thing I noticed. It was that they did not stop working on themselves. Kalayla was a smart-mouthed kid. Lena was always warning her that her mouth would put her in trouble. As the story progressed, we saw how Lena and the rest of the people around her influenced Kalayla. She became more mature and watched what she said. Children indeed listen when we talk, and they watch when we behave.
I've read this book before. Although I didn't notice much difference, I still enjoyed reading the book again. There was not much to dislike. I didn't like it that some of the characters were vague figures in my imagination. They were not well-defined given that there were sparse details about what they looked like at different locations in the book. Also, young teenagers might not be able to read this book because of the profanity in it. Aside from that, this book was excellent. I enjoyed the stories, the lessons, and the humor.
I rate it 4 out of 5 stars. I removed a star because a crucial audience was limited from reading the book—young teenagers who might learn a good thing or two from Kalayla. I recommend this book to women who've made mistakes with childrearing and are looking for a way to correct them. They might learn something from Lena and Maureen's parents.
******
Kalayla: Unraveling Tangles
View: on Bookshelves | on Amazon
