Keri and Kalina

A Windflower Saga Chapter Book

Children - Fantasy/Sci-Fi
76 Pages
Reviewed on 05/03/2017
Buy on Amazon

Author Biography

Aleksandra Layland is a retired civil engineer and federal civil servant who worked primarily for the United States Air Force as a senior installation engineering manager responsible for buildings, airfields, infrastructure, fire protection, and emergency preparedness. She also served as a Peace Corps Volunteer in the Western Caroline Islands where she helped build school classrooms and cafeterias, low income housing, and simple village water distribution systems.

    Book Review

Reviewed by Mamta Madhavan for Readers' Favorite

Keri and Kalina: A Windflower Saga Chapter Book by Aleksandra Layland is set against the backdrop of Kimbria, an imaginary kingdom where readers get to meet seven-year-old Kalina who is lively, generous, and kind, and attends boarding school with Keri, her second cousin, who is talented and has a great love for animals. They both have lost one or both of their parents, making their grief somewhat similar, but they love visiting their grandparents and cousins. Both girls also share a secret of their homeland, Kimberlee. Kalina’s grandparents move to her homeland and now it up to her to decide if she wants to be at boarding school with Keri or stay with her grandparents and other members of the family. What will be Kalina’s decision? Will she move out to stay with her grandparents or will she prefer to be with Keri at boarding school?

The story highlights the importance of family power, sisterhood, and friendship through the characters of Keri and Kalina. The story is simple and the warm vibes of the story, family, and friendship run through the entire plot. The adventures and fun moments shared by Keri and Kalina are real, relatable, and palpable to readers. The pictures help readers connect well with the story and the moments shared between the two cousins. Parents and grandparents can use it for bedtime story-telling and the story is good for read aloud sessions in classrooms and school libraries because of the boarding school and friendship theme.

Trisha Dawn

Aleksandra Layland’s Keri and Kalina: A Windflower Saga Chapter Book is about the adventures of two lovely girls named Keri and Kalina. After losing her mother a year ago, Kalina has been staying in Whitehaven boarding school with her cousin Keri who is an orphan. After arriving at her new school, it did not take Kalina too long to adjust and be her cheerful self again, thanks to Keri and the nuns doing their best to take care of her and make her feel loved. These two inseparable cousins go everywhere together, especially when visiting their home at Kimberlee. On a planned trip home, Kalina’s father, who she hasn’t seen in a long time because of his work, decided to surprise them and be their travel companion on their way home to Kimberlee. During the trip home, Kalina’s father reveals that her grandparents have just moved back to their Homeland and they wanted Kalina to move in with them. Shocked by the sudden news, Kalina felt confused and didn’t know what to say. She was torn between staying in the boarding school with Keri, where it was always fun, or moving in with her grandparents and other cousins whom she always missed. Join these two adorable cousins in their fun adventures as they visit Kimberlee and find out what choice Kalina will make in the end.

Keri and Kalina is a well-written and fast-paced book filled with adventures you would not want to miss. Aleksandra Layland’s book is a perfect choice for children who love stories about adventure, family, and royalty. Children will surely relate to Keri and Kalina during their fun quests and playtime. I had fun reading this book and it made me remember the made-up stories that I imagined and acted out as a child. Being part of a royal family and having fun adventures on ponies are some of the many things I imagined myself doing when I was younger. The story is also filled with many valuable lessons such as the importance of friendship and the benefits of time management. Although Keri and Kalina were still young, they knew how to spend their time wisely. They had a lot of things they wanted to do before they went home and they were able to finish their to-do list because they managed their time wisely. Both girls also showed great generosity which sets a great example to young readers. They thought about their relatives at home and even bought everyone a gift. Overall, the story was quite adorable and sweet. Well done!