Ok, I know I had a whole blog post about my 2015 TBR list ( check it out here) https://justlovethemanyway.wordpress.com/2015/02/03/my-2015-to-be-read-list/however, I realized all the books on that list are all pretty heavy, intense reads, that in light of the previous weeks situations, i wasn’t in the mood for.

So forgive me.I’ve totally deviated from this list and have been reading a whole bunch of easier, quicker reads. I’d like to turn this into a weekly blog post. I shall call it “Wednesday Weekly Reads”. 🙂

So let’s start with what I’ve already read this week. I picked up “ I Was Here” by Gayle Forman. This is the author of the critically acclaimed and recent movie adapted ” If I Stay” . I really enjoyed the latter and was looking forward to picking this authors latest read. Well…. I must say I was disappointed. The story revolves around the protagonist, a girl named Cody, dealing with the suicide death of her beg friend Meg. This story basically takes you on Cody’s journey of discovery as she feels there is more to Meg’s story than meets the eye. Then you have the quintessential,coming of age, falling in love arc to this story. I was bored out of my mind.. I raced through it just to get through it. I wouldn’t recommend it. The story was flat, the characters were flat. This is a classic example of a great story line faulted by poor story construction. ( The character of Meg was loosely based on the story of a young woman named Suzy Gonzales who sadly took her own life.) I give this book a 3/5 and that’s being generous. Sorry to all my die-hard Gayle Forman fans out there!

This week I want to continue on this pace of light, quick easy reads. I did pick up a new book ( I know I said I wasn’t going to buy a lot of books but the library wait on this one was way TOO LONG! )

I did visit my local library and did pick up two novels that have been on my radar to read thanks to all the booktubers ( book reviewers on YouTube).  I picked up Dorothy Must Die by Danielle Paige. This story is a modern-day spin on the Wizard of Oz. It totally contorts the story we all know and love and takes it in a direction you would have never expected! ****spoiler alert*** Dorothy isn’t the nice, sweet, girl from Kansas we remember! I’m really excited to pick this one up.

I also picked up,“Black boy, White school” by Brian F. Walker. This is a quick young adult novel about a young black boy plucked out his neighborhood and placed into a white neighborhood  via a scholarship. Yes ,Yes I know It’s the tired old story of a underprivileged black child, being given an opportunity to “succeed” in a white neighborhood…. sigh… I’ll let you know how it fares when I finish.

So other than a couple of other magazines, that’s all I plan to read as secular reads this week. In addition to those, I have also started a new Bible Study Plan on YouVersion called “Lent for Everyone”.( a 53 day bible study) While I am not catholic and do not actually participate in the observance of lent, I do appreciate the symbolism of fasting from certain things during this season and spending an additional amount of time prayer and meditation. I have chosen this year to give up something that is probably the hardest thing for me to give up, as trivial as it may be.. pop ( soda) I hope this season of lent brings mental clarity, spiritual growth and emotional understanding. Pray for me y’all!! I’ll be meditating on this song this week!

Happy Reading

xoxo