Title: Let’s Chat – Cuba Cerita: Do It…
Author: Mia Kalila
Publisher: PartridgeSingapore
ISBN: 978-1-5437-5913-6
Genre: Memoir / Self-Help
Pages: 162
Reviewed by: Allison Walker
Pacific Book Review
She was twelve years old when Mia Kalila left her mother and birthplace behind to live with her father in a Malaysian village. She took over many of the responsibilities of keeping the home, including cooking and cleaning. As Kalila grew up, she came to love her role as homemaker and devoted her life to raising a family of her own. These are many of her routines and responsibilities Kalila chronicles in her memoir, Let’s Chat – Cuba Cerita. After nearly a lifetime of practice, Kalila has plenty of practical advice to share with readers.
For American readers, Kalila’s childhood is both similar and novel. Her childhood, like most, was full of going to school and playing with friends. Yet, Kalila’s childhood diverges in important ways. Her perspective is unique from that of her American audience and it’s her differences which in many ways offer additional value to her story. As she matures and begins a family of her own, Kalila reveals her belief in the
traditional, nuclear family. Father and mother, and husband and wife, have integral and specific roles to play in the family dynamic. Father is typically the breadwinner; although Kalila concedes sometimes exceptions are made. She believes in home economics classes for girls and wood shop for boys. Although it can feel like a blast from the past, Kalila has many good ideas and readers can tell her intentions come from a place of goodness within her heart.
In Let’s Chat – Cuba Cerita, Mia Kalila has a friendly tone of voice. Kalila can be forgiven for the translation, however, when you finish the book and realize it is written over again in Malay, the national language of Malaysia. Writing her story bilingually is a show of character, for Kalila how important it is to her to help guide people who need direction. Let’s Chat – Cuba Cerita reaches the widest possible audience.
Besides a memoir, readers can describe Let’s Chat – Cuba Cerita as a guide for organizing your life, managing your family, and participating in your community. This book has a suitable title. It is a book of opinions, a chat shared between the author and her readers. This book is a good choice for the conservative woman who wants to direct her life more simply or needs advice to get started on the right path.
