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Laela is a Treedle, small humanoid-like creatures that live in the tree tops of the Aerizon Forest. Treedles are, by their nature, sweet, caring beings, who try to live in harmony with their surroundings. Their entry into adulthood isn’t measured by age, but by their mental maturity – and Laela is the oldest in her friendship group to reach the required level. Although most Treedle females are expected to fade into the background and bring up the children, Laela doesn’t want that. She wants something more, even if she doesn’t know quite what that is.
Laela and the Moonline is a sweet book, with a slow pace. It took a long time for anything to really happen in it, with many of the first chapters dedicated to Laela contemplating her supposed bad behaviour in school. To be honest, her transgression was to scribble a cartoon of her teacher saying ‘blah, blah, blah’; something many of us have done in the past with little or no repercussions. Laela, however, was suspended – and only allowed to return to the school after she made a flowery, heartfelt apology.
A lot of Laela and the Moonline felt as though it were a lecture on behaviour and how to act in a pertinent, polite manner. Perskie repeated a lot of the acceptable behaviour for Treedles, which did become somewhat tiring when reading. It slowed the pace of the novel even more. There were also a lot of references to the Treedles religious beliefs, ‘The One’ being their deity. Some of the scriptures felt very much like the core Christian beliefs – ‘do as to others as you would have them do unto you’.
Although Laela and the Moonline is a beautiful book with a deep, heartfelt message about living in harmony with the world, caring for each other and not purposefully harming others; there’s another message in the book. Overcoming deep rooted prejudices, making new friends and overcoming societal obstacles and breaking the proverbial glass ceiling. It’s just a little slow, with perhaps too much rumination.
S. A
First published on Reedsy Discovery. You can read the original review here.
You can buy Leala and the Moonline by clicking on the books name.