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A review by byronic_reader
Nightcrawling by Leila Mottley
4.0
Reading this book is such a visceral experience. Every feeling, word and action felt so close to home. We follow Kiara Johnson who was a child thrown into the night world and left to fend for herself. Kiara was failed not only by the system but also by her family.
To support her family but also a 10-year-old, she resorts to sex work. I don't want to go into details about how she was rejected for any other jobs with her being black and underage. She thought of sex work as only a means to get by until she was caught by some police officers. You can already guess how that turned out.
One thing that strikes me while reading this book is how this is a world of men in power. How we are just following through the motions of life when those in power manipulate the law to their favour whenever they need it. We see plenty of news on how women and people from marginalized communities are exploited by those in uniforms who wield the power.
When all these kids want to just live their life, they are sexualized for their bodies. They are victimized for wanting to eat and the biggest joke is they are backed into the corner and told that they have a choice. While Kia did what she had to do, I keep asking myself what difference it makes to seek justice and hang on to morality as if she and people like her are what is wrong in this society.
I didn't like anyone in this book apart from Kiara, Trevor and Alé. Their bond is what kept the book wholesome. But then again, I read the author's note where Mottley ruminates about how black and brown girls are adultified soon in their lives to cater for men. If this is the case with girls, I don't even want to imagine what it is to be a queer person in a marginalized community.
Another thing I didn't like is while reading some reviews, people use the words 'powerful', 'resilient' and 'strong' to describe this book and Kiara. Nothing's wrong with those words but when you are reading a book that is as trauma heavy as Nightcrawling, I hesitate to use them. It feels as if glorifying the trauma she faced and I don't know, it doesn't feel right.
However, I do realize that I am speaking from a privileged place and I have no right to judge how people deal with their trauma. Reading this book just cemented the fact that this world is for men in power. You can ask what about women in power. Women are in power when they cater to the needs of what men decides her to do. She is offered an illusion of power that makes her think that she has a choice and power to execute that choice but that power will be ripped off from her the second she starts exercising her own values and defies men.
There are two things I sort of expected more from this book. One, I don't particularly like how Kiara's mom was dealt with. It felt incomplete and second, I expected a bit more trial situations and court proceedings but I do understand why the author chose the way she did to write that. With that all said, Mottley, has a great talent for words and how to use them. I will definitely not miss another book from her.
Thank you for the author and publisher for providing me a free copy in exchange for honest review.
To support her family but also a 10-year-old, she resorts to sex work. I don't want to go into details about how she was rejected for any other jobs with her being black and underage. She thought of sex work as only a means to get by until she was caught by some police officers. You can already guess how that turned out.
One thing that strikes me while reading this book is how this is a world of men in power. How we are just following through the motions of life when those in power manipulate the law to their favour whenever they need it. We see plenty of news on how women and people from marginalized communities are exploited by those in uniforms who wield the power.
When all these kids want to just live their life, they are sexualized for their bodies. They are victimized for wanting to eat and the biggest joke is they are backed into the corner and told that they have a choice. While Kia did what she had to do, I keep asking myself what difference it makes to seek justice and hang on to morality as if she and people like her are what is wrong in this society.
I didn't like anyone in this book apart from Kiara, Trevor and Alé. Their bond is what kept the book wholesome. But then again, I read the author's note where Mottley ruminates about how black and brown girls are adultified soon in their lives to cater for men. If this is the case with girls, I don't even want to imagine what it is to be a queer person in a marginalized community.
Another thing I didn't like is while reading some reviews, people use the words 'powerful', 'resilient' and 'strong' to describe this book and Kiara. Nothing's wrong with those words but when you are reading a book that is as trauma heavy as Nightcrawling, I hesitate to use them. It feels as if glorifying the trauma she faced and I don't know, it doesn't feel right.
However, I do realize that I am speaking from a privileged place and I have no right to judge how people deal with their trauma. Reading this book just cemented the fact that this world is for men in power. You can ask what about women in power. Women are in power when they cater to the needs of what men decides her to do. She is offered an illusion of power that makes her think that she has a choice and power to execute that choice but that power will be ripped off from her the second she starts exercising her own values and defies men.
There are two things I sort of expected more from this book. One, I don't particularly like how Kiara's mom was dealt with. It felt incomplete and second, I expected a bit more trial situations and court proceedings but I do understand why the author chose the way she did to write that. With that all said, Mottley, has a great talent for words and how to use them. I will definitely not miss another book from her.
Thank you for the author and publisher for providing me a free copy in exchange for honest review.