Book Excerpt:
"A dazzling, unforgettable novel about a young black woman who walks the streets of Oakland and stumbles headlong into the failure of its justice system—a debut that announces a blazingly original voice.
Kiara and her brother, Marcus, are barely scraping by in a squalid East Oakland apartment complex optimistically called the Regal-Hi. Both have dropped out of high school, and their family fractured by death and prison. But while Marcus clings to his dream of rap stardom, Kiara hunts for work to pay their rent—which has more than doubled—and keeps the nine-year-old boy next door, abandoned by his mother, safe and fed.
One night, what begins as a drunken misunderstanding with a stranger turns into the job Kiara never imagined wanting but now desperately needs night crawling. And her world breaks open even further when her name surfaces in an investigation that exposes her as a critical witness in a massive scandal within the Oakland Police Department.
Nightcrawling marks the stunning arrival of a voice unlike any we have heard before."
Title: Nightcrawling
Author: Leila Mottley
Publisher: Knopf Doubleday Publishing Group, Knopf
Reviewed By: Arlena Dean
Rating: Four
Review:
"Nightcrawling" by Leila Mottley
My Assessment:
'Nightcrawling' was a pretty painful, depressing, and raw, heartbreaking read that will leave you upset as the story is delivered. However, this situation did happen in some form or another here in East Oakland, California. Yes, some of the happenings from this book have taken place in our world. This was just another way the justice system failed poor Kiara, who was left to raise herself by getting herself involved in prostitution...but with the abuse of power by OPD and other departments. Everyone around her had abandoned Kia, her mother, brother, uncle, and friend. But with Kia being so vulnerable, lost with no guidance, and young, what would one expect in this situation? While all of this was going on in Kia's life, she was 'taking care of Trevor who lived next door, a child whose own mother was on the verge of being evicted and had disappeared.' Be prepared for many raw emotions coming out all over the place from 'poverty, social problems, loss, violence, injustice, and even suicide.' who had been abused by men physically and emotionally.
At times, I felt like closing the read but decided to continue seeing how it would turn out, which didn't surprise me how the story ended for Kia. And yes, this seventeen-year-old author did an excellent job with this storyline.
Thank you to NetGalley and Knopf Doubleday Publishing Group, Knopf, for the opportunity to read this book in exchange for an honest review.
Author: Leila Mottley
Publisher: Knopf Doubleday Publishing Group, Knopf
Reviewed By: Arlena Dean
Rating: Four
Review:
"Nightcrawling" by Leila Mottley
My Assessment:
'Nightcrawling' was a pretty painful, depressing, and raw, heartbreaking read that will leave you upset as the story is delivered. However, this situation did happen in some form or another here in East Oakland, California. Yes, some of the happenings from this book have taken place in our world. This was just another way the justice system failed poor Kiara, who was left to raise herself by getting herself involved in prostitution...but with the abuse of power by OPD and other departments. Everyone around her had abandoned Kia, her mother, brother, uncle, and friend. But with Kia being so vulnerable, lost with no guidance, and young, what would one expect in this situation? While all of this was going on in Kia's life, she was 'taking care of Trevor who lived next door, a child whose own mother was on the verge of being evicted and had disappeared.' Be prepared for many raw emotions coming out all over the place from 'poverty, social problems, loss, violence, injustice, and even suicide.' who had been abused by men physically and emotionally.
At times, I felt like closing the read but decided to continue seeing how it would turn out, which didn't surprise me how the story ended for Kia. And yes, this seventeen-year-old author did an excellent job with this storyline.
Thank you to NetGalley and Knopf Doubleday Publishing Group, Knopf, for the opportunity to read this book in exchange for an honest review.
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