Book Review: Anchored: Finding Hope in the Unexpected by Kayla Aimee

Anchored: Finding Hope in the Unexpected by Kayla Aimee
Release Date: July 1, 2015
Publisher: B&H Books
Genre: Christian, Memoir
ISBN: 978-1433686108
Source: Received From Publisher
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You count a pregnancy by weeks and Kayla Aimee had only ticked off 24 of the 40 when she unexpectedly went into labor. She thought her church upbringing had prepared her for every circumstance but when tragedy struck and threatened to take the life of her newborn daughter, it felt as though once solid ground had turned to glass beneath her feet, destined to shatter everything she held sacred.

When swept into a story of suffering, we all find ourselves vulnerable, questioning everything we thought we knew as we wonder, “Where is God in this?” With everything feeling as fragile as her one and a half pound daughter, Kayla finds herself asking that same question as she faces  her greatest fear: that she may have finally become a mother just to lose her only child.

Both poignant and humorous, Anchored recounts Kayla’s gripping story of learning to navigate her newfound motherhood in the most unexpected of ways, from holidays in the hospital and middle-of-the-night phone calls to the joy of coming home. With vulnerability and plenty of wit, Kayla lays bare her struggle to redefine her faith, her marriage, and herself within the context of a tragedy she never saw coming. For anyone who has felt their faith in God falter, Anchored extends a gentle invitation to join her as she uncovers a hope that holds.

***

Anchored: Finding Hope in the Unexpected is an incredibly captivating and emotionally gripping book about one of the most vulnerable moments in a mother’s life. When motherhood comes earlier than expected and the hospital becomes home much longer than the typical few days stay.

“Our broken hearts are acceptable in any form.”

We follow Kaylee on her journey as she and her husband find themselves delivering their first child many weeks before their due date. We follow Kaylee in the NICU, where her micro-preemie baby resides for six months, as Kaylee watches other families come in and leave in much shorter times. We follow Kaylee as the weight of hospital bills and distance from her husband, who copes differently than she, begins to build. We follow Kaylee as she heads to the supermarket with government assistance and ignorant women in line behind her make nasty comments about girls having babies they’re not ready to have. We follow Kaylee as she struggles to find the right balance between letting the doctors and nurses do their job and listening to her intuition when they don’t catch everything.

“That is the thing about film, the way it exposes. And if you want to see what it holds you have to unravel it in the darkness. The image exists captured in the blackness long before it can be seen, but the truth always makes itself known, coming clear as the light meets the dark.”

Anchored is a raw, fascinating and beautiful story about life and living, the control we have over ours and others and what to do when we don’t have any. It’s about surrendering and having confidence in God being in control, working all things together for good. It’s about stepping outside our comfort zone in our brokenness, breaking the rules, and doing what needs to be done to maintain our sanity when chaos surrounds us.

Anchored is a very telling tale about the trust we think we have in God and what happens when we truly birth hope in Him. Anchored is such a powerful testimony about baby Scarlette’s life just as much as it is a powerful message about the unconditional love, hope, grace, and gratitude we bestow upon ourselves, those close to us, and everyone around us… a transformed mind and heart through the most unexpected valleys.

Kaylee Aimee is a wonderful writer and her well crafted storytelling here will leave you in just as many fits of laughter as it will tears caused by a host of emotions. Anchored strikes a great balance of being informative and poignant and never preachy. Kaylee’s personality really shines through the pages and will have you seeking out more from her on her blog, if you’re not already a reader.

Kaylee’s story is one that I encourage all to read, whether or not you have or are planning to have children. At its core, this is a story about faith and hope in the moments when it’s most difficult to hold onto both, let alone one. This book will stay with me forever and I know that it will for you too. So get your copy of Anchored today and prepare yourself to be centered and anchored in a way like you never have been before.

Anchored: Finding Hope in the Unexpected by Kayla Aimee is available today.