I was shipping these two so hard and it broke my heart again and again when obstacles tore them apart.

His refusal to do so has led to his boyfriend, James (described as dark-skinned) breaking up with him. Harun is gay and Muslim, struggling to come out to his parents. I adored the complexity of their relationship and discovering what happened between them. She is the product of an Ethiopian father and a white Jewish mother, and we soon see how her relationship with her father has affected her life, goals and, especially, the relationship between her and her sister, Sabrina. Three very interesting stories are woven together here.įreya is an 'almost famous' teen singer who - for reasons unknown - has lost her voice. Hope and uplifting sentiments battle it out with pain and loss, making for a bittersweet mix. It is a novel told in quiet intimate details, and in moments between characters. Each has, as the title suggests, lost their way, and the author explores how maybe, with the help of one another, they can get back on the right path. The story takes place over the course of one day, but is broken up with flashbacks that paint in the backgrounds of the three characters. Forman uses an extremely compelling build-up to frame the strange and fateful meeting between three very different teens - Freya, Harun and Nathaniel - in NYC's Central Park. You can tell instantly that the book is written by an experienced author who knows how to craft a perfect scene and convey emotions through showing rather than telling. But first I'd like to talk about all the emotions this intricate character study made me feel. There's one big thing I didn't like and I'll get to that in a second.

The blurb hadn't particularly grabbed my interest and I was thinking I could just put it aside if it didn't work for me. To be honest, I requested an arc of I Have Lost My Way only because I've liked some books by Gayle Forman in the past. I thought this was such a beautiful, sad, sweet book. I'm writing this review immediately after finishing because I am on such an emotional high right now. They may be complete strangers, with different lives and different problems, but there in that examination room they are measuring sadness the same way.

Books by gayle forman