This author participates in the Readers' Favorite Book Review Exchange Program, which is open to all authors and is completely free. Simply put, you agree to provide an honest review an author's book in exchange for the author doing the same for you. What sites your reviews are posted on (B&N, Amazon, etc.) and whether you send digital (eBook, PDF, Word, etc.) or hard copies of your books to each other for review is up to you. To begin, click the purple email icon to send this author a private email, and be sure to describe your book or include a link to your Readers' Favorite review page or Amazon page.
As Lakysha navigated her professional and personal life, the hard work and determination didn’t come easy. Lakysha was born & raised in Brooklyn, NY in her neighborhood of Bed Stuy Do or Die! As people always say, “if you can make it in NY, you can make it anywhere.” Within the pages of this book you will read how her New York roots prepare her for the grit and perseverance needed to go about life with all of its ups and downs.
Lakysha is foster care alumna and adopted daughter of her amazing parents (now deceased) who instilled in her the importance of never giving up, helping those in need and being grateful for what you have. Read her story of that fateful day in 2018, when she was diagnosed with breast cancer and learn about her journey through chemo, radiation and a few health scares along the way.
Through it all, Lakysha lives a life full of positive energy, a hopeful outlook on life and unbelievable displays of vulnerability as she shares her story with others.
Reviewed by Manik Chaturmutha for Readers' Favorite
The Strength of Silk by Lakysha Laing is a non-fiction story filled with the author's struggles in her life. First, she had to go into foster care and deal with the grief of losing her twin sister. Then, she struggled as a black woman in a male-dominated workplace to make her career. There is a mention of her struggles with cancer as well. The author shows us how trauma and challenging situations can make one grow and become stronger. This book is about her struggle to not let the way her life started and what people said get in her way. This is a story of friendships and family and how the support from both can help you in your time of need.
Some of The Strength of Silk was hard to read as it contained raw suffering and the experience Lakysha Laing went through. However, to see how the trauma shaped her was so satisfying and awe-inspiring. How the author went through her life journey was emotional, shocking, and very well executed. What I liked the most was that the chapters ended with a heart-touching quote. I really liked how she never shied away from telling the hard parts. In the last few chapters, the author showed us that when she was getting chemotherapy and was so tired that she couldn't talk to anyone, she started writing a journal to inform her loved ones; it was so hard and emotional to read. There was an authentic depiction of tiredness and not wanting to get out of bed.
The Strength of Silk is for you if you are looking for a book that shows a person's story, no matter how hard or how happy the times are. This book will be an inspiration and a model of strength for many people going through the same things in their life. If you are a non-fiction reader and like to read autobiographies, this book is for you.
