Top 5 Wednesday #1

Top 5 Wednesday was created by gingerreadslainey and is a weekly prompt that showcases a different topic each Wednesday. You can join the Goodreads group here.

This week's topic is the Top 5 Characters You Wish You Were More Like. Before even looking at my books for ideas, all I can think of are the characters who I love but are awkward and weird like me, and so maybe I should look for some confident, not-so-awkward characters? Do I even read books with people like that in it?!

Oh well.





1. Elizabeth Gilbert, herself, in Eat, Pray, Love by Elizabeth Gilbert. This woman is a beast. She's so unhappy with her life that instead of settling and ignoring her fears, she stands up and walks out of her old life into a completely new one. She's adventurous in her travels, her food, her spirituality, and she says "screw you" to what society says she should be.

2. Claire Waverley in Garden Spells by Sarah Addison Allen. She's a chef with a magical garden. She has her own business and is very independent. Her food is literally made with magic. I can't stress that enough. Food=Magic.

3. Katey Kontent in The Rules of Civility by Amor Towles. Personally, Katey was one of the best characters in any book to follow throughout the story. She has wit and "her own brand of cool nerve." She wasn't trying to be anything and just went with the flow. Even though she lived in a time when things were not simple, she made it seem simple. She was a solid narrator and if I can't be her then please can I be her bff? like for real. please?






4. Jacquetta in The Lady Of The Rivers by Philippa Gregory. The mother of Elizabeth, The White Queen, and the great-grandmother of Elizabeth I, Jacquetta chose her own life (for the most part) at a time when women had no say in their own lives whatsoever. She married the man she loved even though he was below her and was the most loyal friend. She also wasn't afraid to do what was best for her family and change sides which usually sounds sketchy, but for her, it made perfect sense. She had her own beliefs and thoughts and stuck to them as much as she could. I can barely do that now!





5. Marie-Laure LeBlanc in All The Light We Cannot See by Anthony Doerr. So, yes, she's blind and I don't necessarily want that, but her courageousness and bravery is inspiring. But don't call her brave, because, as she so plainly states: "But it is not bravery; I have no choice. I wake up and live my life."* It's hard to wake up and live life on some days for me and I'm not in the midst of World War II BLIND.  She's just fierce. And she doesn't even mean to be or want to be.
I talk a little bit more about her in my May Wrap-Up.




There you go! I do read about non-awkward characters! They are all weird in their own ways though, but that just makes them even cooler.

Who are the 5 characters you wish you were more like?

*This is a quote from an ARC copy of this book so it may be different in the published copy.