Book Review: What the Fireflies Knew by Kai Harris

📖 Quick Summary

Told through the eyes of 10-year-old Kenyatta Bernice (KB), What the Fireflies Knew is a tender and deeply emotional coming-of-age story about loss, discovery, and Black girlhood. After her father’s death and her mother’s emotional withdrawal, KB and her older sister are sent to live with their estranged grandfather in Lansing, Michigan. There, KB begins to confront everything she doesn’t yet understand: grief, womanhood, family secrets, and the complexities of growing up.

Kai Harris crafts KB’s voice with raw honesty and innocence—making you feel every heartbreak and small triumph alongside her. The novel is both lyrical and accessible, capturing the confusion of adolescence and the unspoken traumas that shape us.

📝 My Review

This book took a while to get through the plot, however, the writing is soft and poetic, but the emotions run deep. KB is curious, aching, and filled with moments of clarity that only come when you're standing on the edge of growing up too soon.

Harris captures the subtle heartbreaks of being a young Black girl in a world that expects you to be strong before you’re ready. I appreciated how the novel let KB just be—to ask questions, make mistakes, and hold space for her own wonder.

I gave this one 4 out of 5 stars. It’s a beautiful book that lingers, even if it doesn’t rush to resolve everything. It’s about becoming—not necessarily arriving—and that alone makes it worth the read.

🎨 My Scrapbook Spread

The color palette for this spread was inspired by dusk: soft purples, deep golds, and firefly glows. I layered the page with the two sisters deep in thought as they were both going thought their own struggles. The field of flowers represent the field KB would play in along with the image of Charlotte and Bobby. A jar of fireflies sits on the page—symbolizing both wonder and containment, just like the story itself.

🎥 Watch the Review

Want a closer look at the scrapbook layout and my full review? Watch the spread of "What the Fireflies Knew," and join the discussion in the comments!

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