Ultimately a tale about love and sacrifice, KAYLA is a beautifully rendered story that will capture the imagination of both adults and children.
Set in an enchanted corner of Asia, this is a tale of two sisters, Kayla, an aloof and dreamy girl of 12, and her considerate and righteous sister, Aisha. The sisters live with their mother in a small village, encircled by an old stonewall and in the shadow of snow-capped mountains. Years earlier, their father – a miner – had left for the mountains, never to return. On the eve of his departure he had given Aisha a beautifully carved wooden pencil box with a blue lacquered top adorned with a white unicorn. Aisha cherishes the box and when it is accidentally destroyed by Kayla in her attempt to rescue it from the village bullies, Aisha blames Kayla and becomes despondent.
A violent storm in the same evening brings on the sudden and inexplicable appearance of a gigantic tree. Kayla – now shunned by her sister – sets off to explore. What she finds is much more than a tree; she discovers a world of creatures and kingdoms within the tree itself: Unicorns, Acorn Trolls, Peebles, Yeemites, and others. Kayla also learns about the discord among the trees inhabitants, brought about by the Root Witch who has stolen the seedlings from the Leaf Kingdom. The real adventure begins when Kayla has to set out into the Black Root Forest to restore life to the tree.
Through this adventure, Kayla learns the secret of her father’s disappearance. The tree becomes the medium through which Kayla must wrestle with her emotions, longings and desire and eventually find her way back into her sister’s heart.
About the Author: Steve Stine has an M.A. in International Studies from the Johns Hopkins School of Advanced International Studies in Washington, D.C. and a B.A. in literature from Davidson College in Davidson, NC.
Steve has lived, worked and traveled extensively through Asia for the past 15 years, working early on as a journalist in Hong Kong with the Asia Wall Street Journal and Asia, Inc. Magazine, before joining the consulting firm, PriceWaterhouseCoopers in 1995. Steve went on to serve as a regional marketing manager with IBM and now owns and runs his own consulting and advisory company in partnership with his wife, Anne. He lives in Singapore with Anne and his two daughters, Maddie and Becca.
About the Illustrator: Jane Blundell is an Australian Artist who has lived and exhibited in the United States and Singapore for almost a decade. Her inspiration comes from the natural world and extensive travel in Europe, America and especially Asia. These illustrations were produced using her favourite materials, pen and ink, pencil and watercolour, on paper. She lives in Sydney with her husband Geoff and their two children Peta and Chris.
