Well, it's definitely happening…I'm getting behind in my summer reading. But I'm very proud of myself anyway. I've gotten through three and a half books in the last month or so, and that's moving at a pretty darn good pace (if I do say so myself). But anyway, here is my review for Week 4's Christian Fiction: The Yada Yada Prayer Group by Neta Jackson. Why I Picked It I'm going to be honest, I picked this book because of the colors. The neon pink and green popped out of the shelves at the library, and then when I read the title, I wanted to know more. So in reading the summary on the back cover I learned it was going to be a book about acceptance and diversity and learning to be open-minded, I got very interested very quickly, and I added it to my TBR (to be read) list! Summary This book follows a woman named Jodi on a spiritual journey. But it isn't a typical one you read about in books normally. A lot of times, the books are about how people find their faith. In this case, Jodi has been a Christian for a majority of her life, growing up in a Christian household. However, Jodi is one of those kind of "holier-than-thou" Christians, thanking God for all of the ways she is more fortunate than others like "thank you that I'm not a smoker and didn't used to be a drug addict and have wonderful kids that go on missions trips…" She blows up at little things, like her husband buying and having the occasional (1 bottle of) beer, and she judges everyone she meets. Anyway, Jodi is a teacher, and she goes to the same church as the principal, Avis. Avis invites Jodi on a women's retreat for a weekend, and they go together. Jodi isn't sure about the whole thing, but she decides it would be a good way to get to know Avis more. At this retreat, she learns that you don't have to be quiet to praise the Lord. There are women all around her doing "odd" things throughout the worship, like walking around, praising Jesus aloud, and even dancing with the music! Jodi can't bring herself to do that. She just marvels at the confidence and feelings of joy all around her. This retreat also takes her out of her comfort zone because they set up Prayer Groups with a variety of women. She is put in a group with about 12 women or so all at different points in their lives. There's a (mean) middle-aged woman, a former drug addict, a couple of immigrants from places like Honduras and South Africa, and even a young ex-con who isn't even a Christian! Jodi finds it hard to connect with these women, and yet a crisis that happens over the weekend brings them closer together and they decide to keep the prayer group (now named the Yada Yada prayer group) going via email, and later in person as well. What I LikedI hated Jodi. (I know that should go in the next section, but you'll see where I'm going here…) She was the Christian that I'm not a fan of: judgemental, thinking her way is the only "right" way to be, and she kept putting off things like praying and "quiet time" with God. It took her until the end of the book to realize she was just as bad as some of her now very close friends, it's just that she had better circumstances that she lived with. That's when I realized how similar I was to Jodi (and that's probably why I hated her oh so much). I may not get mad at things like having some alcohol, and I may already at a younger age be stepping out of my comfort zone more when it comes to worship, but I also find myself judging others, way more than I should. I find myself wanting to be the hero for others and getting spiteful when someone else beats me to it. As much as I hated to admit it throughout the entire book, I'm a lot like Jodi. I'm glad I realized it though, and learning about the other characters made me think. What would I do if I was in the same position as Jodi was? Or any of the other women? This book really made me consider my circumstances and how I can help others (and help myself!). I loved that about it. I also loved the progression of characters throughout the book, some of which you weren't sure you knew much about them and then by the end they seemed like a friend too. What I Didn't Like Obviously the main character…but other than that, not much. I'd say it was a little weird for me to read because it was written in 2003 (is that really 15 years ago now??), so a lot of the references, though I understood them, were a little old. But overall the story was very relevant to anyone. You learn a ton about diversity, inclusion, and acceptance. Overall Impression 🌟🌟🌟🌟 I loved it. It was an easy and fairly quick read. I loved the characters, and I liked that the story wasn't a typical Christian book. I'm anxious to check out the rest of the series to see if we continue to follow Jodi, or if we are able to check out some of the other ladies in their journeys. I give this book a 4/5 stars because it really made me think, and I truly enjoyed it. I'll be looking more into the Yada Yada prayer group as well as Neta Jackson's writing for sure!
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AuthorJust sharing my passion of reading through my passion of writing. Archives
May 2020
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