Thoughts on Being Lara by Lola Jaye

Being Lara by Lola Jaye tells the story of Lara Reid, a 30 year old woman who was adopted from Nigeria at age 3 by a British couple and raised in the UK.  At her birthday party, Lara comes face to face with the mother who gave her away 27 years prior.  Throughout the course of the novel we journey with Lara as she comes to grips with her past, tries to reconcile it with her present, and builds a solid foundation for her future.

What I love most about the book is that writer Lola Jaye's characterization of Lara is one that I found to be true to life.  Lara is a perfectly flawed, yet likeable character. As a reader, you root for her to find out what it means to be Lara and find a medium between Lara and Omolara (her birth name).  I was excited when she began to embrace her Nigerian roots but I completely understood her loyalty to the parents that raised her.

I also enjoyed the mother/daughter dynamics that were explored in the novel.  The relationship between Lara's mother Pat and her mother as well as the relationship between Lara's birth mother Yomi and her mother provide a rich and layered exploration of two very different mother /daughter relationships. The book shifts between Lara, Pat, and Yomi's stories so you get a well rounded view of the the story as well as the various perspectives of the interracial adoption storyline.

Lola also successfully paints a picture of both 1970/80s Nigeria and Great Britain.  As a southern girl who has not been to either place, I could easily visualize the setting. I also learned a lot about Nigerian culture and food.

Being Lara is a prime example of slow and steady wins the race.  Although it is an easy read, I stretched out my reading of the book over the course of a couple of weeks. I enjoyed the book and genuinely cared about the characters and what happened to them, but I would not call this a "page turner." But it is still a great read. The pace of the book is ideal for someone who doesn't have a lot of time to read each day.  You can pace yourself as you join Lara on her journey.

Overall, I thoroughly enjoyed the book and recommend that others read it.  Lola Jaye is one of the first contemporary black female British writers that I've had the opportunity to read.  I look forward to reading her other works and following her writing career.You can learn more about Lola on her website , blog , Facebook and/or Twitter page.