Special thank you to Indigo River Publishing and NetGalley for allowing me to read and review this digital ARC of More than Words

As a feminist I was very intrigue to read a book that centered around the #meToo movement and am also very personally affected by this. TW this book touches on sexual harassment and does a good job at it too. Provides how to deal with its, how to be supportive to those effected by it and most importantly the encouragement to NOT stay quiet. It may be a hard book to connect to if you've not experience this - but really helps encourage empathy towards anyone going through this. True story and personally I think a must read

Firstly thank you for Netgalley and indigo river publishers for this ARC.

I wish this book had been a resource for me when I was younger as it’s a lot harder now to relearn how to respect yourself and know your value.
I have recently worked in a toxic workplace and it doesn’t leave you. I was lucky to have someone new join my workplace and see that the pattern of bullying language was not limited to me which showed me that it was not a problem with me but a problem with the wider work force/management and both me and my new colleague quickly left after raising the issue with HR

This book should be a resource for all workplaces , schools , to be honest this book is for all.

It bounces between facts/statistics and situation examples (so you can reflect on how to put what you have read into a real setting) to personal experiences and her own feelings.

I loved the discussion on respect and couldn’t agree more that respect to others is not valued as much as it should be in our social media world where instant personal gratification is much more widespread . The customer is not always right and everyone in every role should be valued with respect.

My only criticism is that I wish it had delved deaper into the authors own emotions and how the situation she found herself in had effected her at the time.
As I am from the UK I was unfamiliar with her story and of how the structure of us politics works so a bit more background context in her story would have really helped.

This book will make you feel smart, strong and valued . The message of hope and respect is palpable on every page .
I would highly recommend!

More Than Words is a nonfiction work by Kirsten Anderson [ Release2022]. The author tells the plight of workers in hostile workplaces. She suffered varying degrees of sexual harassment, most of it verbal. She tells of the devastating effect of being on the receiving end of such taunts. Furthermore, she expresses how her self-worth filtered through her fingers from every foul word she heard directed towards her. She even suffered more when she reported the uncomfortable events.

I liked the message the book is sending across the globe. Everyone deserves respect and dignity. I also like the courage displayed in the writing. Kirsten suffered like a sacrificial lamb in and out of the office, but she took it upon herself to protest against sexual harassment at the workplace. I also enjoyed the short stories involving fictional characters. The book is engaging by asking questions at the end of each chapter.

The work expresses a lot of pain, even at the time of writing. It shows that healing is a process and every target should focus on healing as soon as possible.

I rate this book 3 out of 5 stars. The book is educative and a proactive step. The work is a self-help that will enable targets to keep moving.

I recommend this book to everyone who has suffered sexual harassment and workplace abuse. The book will be a guide to getting back on their feet and facing the future. Relatives of the targets should also go over the book to understand the suffering targets undergo. The bullies should also read to see how the target feels and reflect on their actions.

This is the story of Kirsten Anderson who worked as a communications specialist for the State of Iowa, and legally fought the sexual harassment she faced at work.

Kirsten had a boss who frequently made lewd remarks, gestures & jokes – many of the examples she cites are definitely disturbing. She complained about it a few times and found that no action followed. As she points out, the powerful, especially those perceived to produce results are never acted against. This, of course, is a mirage as other than the purely unacceptable environment, the human costs are also extremely high. She came to be scrutinized and criticized for her work quality after her complaints. She found herself finding ways to cope by somehow adjusting to a toxic environment for 5 years. After another complaint, she was fired from her job almost immediately. She was lucky to find a considerate attorney to argue her case which she won and received an award.

There are takeaways and scenarios at the end of each chapter to prompt introspection on how abuse can be handled. The statistics she quotes are troubling – 81% of women and 41% of men have faced abuse at work, and moreover a vast majority do not report the abuse they face. Though the writing could have been better, this is a story of bravery and is inspiring.

My rating: 4.25 / 5.

More Than Words is a powerful account of sexual harassment in the workplace. It's an immense issue that needs to be talked about more, and I think this book is the perfect way to do so. I loved how educational it was. I learnt a lot, and I'm sure a lot of others will. I'm glad books like this exist.

Book review:
More than Words by Kirsten D. Anderson is a wonderful, inspiring read on the way of making a harassment free work enviornment.

Kirsten was working in a state legislature having more men and a few women. To survive in a manly enviornment one has to compromise a lot of things so do she. She lived in a toxic workplace for 5 long years where she suffered from sexual harassment. At heights of her suffering she thought of giving up but her all protests went in vain.

At last she was fired and that moment changed her life. Her husband supported her in all walks of life. She decided to file a courtcase which meant to suffer again all disgusting comments or allow anyone else to scrutinize your sexual harassment once again and publicly. She didn't give up and won the case after four years legal battle.

In this book Kirsten has shared her personal experiences of despair and then coming out of that trauma. She desires for a healthy work enviornment for all.

I loved reading this amazing book and recommend this book this book for all self help book lovers. It is an amazing and inspiring read for all. Happy reading!

I am really thankful to Netgalley and Indigo river Publishing for giving me this wonderful book to read in return of an honest review.

#netgalley #morethanwords #netgalleyreads #bookbloggers #bookstagram #bookreviewers #bookarcs #booknerd #booknerds #kirstenanderson #bookstagrammers #igreview #igreaders #readersofinstagram

Huge thanks to NetGalley for lending me an advanced reader's copy of the book in exchange of a honest review. All thoughts are on my own.

This was an amazing an necessary book towards sexual harassment, how to deal with it, how to support people that are suffering and mainly, to do something about it and don't stay quiet. I encourage everyone to read this book, it makes you think and it also helps you to have more empathy towards people in toxic environments. It's a very important book that tells a true life story, everyone should read it.

More Than Words by Kirsten Anderson is much more educational than I anticipated and offers a deep dive into the world of sexual harassment, toxic masculinity, and trial proceedings. In her guide to turning the #metoo movement into #isaidsomething, Anderson summarizes the main takeaways from her chapters into easy-to-digest tidbits and then provides real life scenarios for the reader to apply what they learned to assess the situation.

What I respected most about the author, besides her courage to fight back, was that even though she won her case, she recognized that many targets of sexual harassment receive nothing. She took her learnings from the trial process and decided to channel them into advocacy for the #metoo movement. The only part that did not sit well with me was when her husband found out about the extent of the harassment, he excused her short behavior and told her to do what she needed to not get fired. She repeatedly mentions how supportive he was during the process, and this could just be me reading into the exchange. If this book is included in future curriculums, I would love for the author to provide her own answers to the assessment questions at the end of each chapter. Overall, this is the first book I’ve read that provides a full guide to what to do and what to expect when faced with sexual harassment and the content is essential.

From this book, my most important takeaways are:
-Change vernacular from victim to target to help individuals suffering sexual harassment feel more empowered
-Adaptation to toxic environments fueled by harassment forces people to consequently change their characters
-Exploration of the unquantifiable effects of sexual harassment such as self worth, depression, and job prospects - this isn’t talked about enough.
-Women are not out to get men, we just want equal pay and treatment
-90% of sexual harassment incidents are not reported due to fear of speaking out and retaliation

Kirsten Anderson very smoothly goes through the story telling how she dealth with the situation that accoured at her workplace. Not hiding her own actions, like telling jokes that went too far, just to try to fit in. She tells about steps she took before going to the court, how this experience not only changed and affected her, but also her husband and everyone close to her.

My favourite part in the book followed after each chapter with a few simple questions, that made you stop for a while and think "What would I do?" "How would I react?" etc.

And if we think about it, men should be the one's reading this book, so no one would have to go through this.

This is a powerful and touching story of the struggles that are, sadly, far too common in today's world. I'm so proud of any woman who shares her story and for that, I absolutely applaud this author. I will say that parts of the book read a bit robotic, in terms of things like "I did this and then I said this and then I felt this" - as opposed to more of an immersive experience. I say that, however, knowing that it is incredibly difficult to toe that line with a subject as raw as this one. More than Words certainly lives up to its title, as it serves as a reminder that we all have more than words in our arsenal of ways to help, but words are certainly a great place to start. Speak up, speak out, and uplift those brave enough to come forward.

In More than Words, Kirsten dives deep into the Me to movement but with relatable stories and prompts to think on and really bring it to our today. It's time for change in the workplace and this book is leading the way.

I really appreciate the author for writing this book. To write about this topic and explain your own experience requires a brave heart. It's a heavy read. It's my first time to read a book on #metoo in which the real difficulties faced by women in today's world are well described. The way book is written is good.

I am always intrigued to read anything about the #metoo movement, and anything relating to how women are treated in today's society. I love when women take their trauma, and they use it for good. We need to know that we aren't alone and even if we all have a similar story, there is a difference in numbers. I really enjoyed this author's writing. I don't want to spoil too much of this book, but if the topic interests you, check this book out. I would have rated it higher, but I did find myself slightly bored in certain parts of the book. As a whole it was good though!

This book reads more like a dissertation; however, its a excellent insight to the experiences of sexual harassment. The process and mindset of a victim, first dismissing, then avoiding, finally succumbing to the escalation of mistreatment is the story of so many. If you question if your are, or have been, the victim of harrassment, this book with surely bring clarity, as well as prepare you for the struggles and challenges of speaking out.

I enjoyed this book because of it's writing style, unique topic, and the fact that it really provided a thought-provoking experience. Recommended for readers who want to read slowly so as to take time to process.

More Than Words by K. Anderson is a stand-alone, non-fiction. I read the blurb and was intrigued.
Blurb:
In More Than Words: Turn #MeToo into #ISaidSomething, Kirsten Anderson shares her remarkable journey from the debilitating despair of harassment to hope. After years of employment in a verbally abusive environment at the Iowa Statehouse, she lost her identity as an assertive, career-minded, confident, and empowered woman. Her relationship with her toxic employer ended when she was fired just hours after issuing a formal complaint. A legal and personal journey ensued.

Anderson won her case. Since then, she has made it her mission to educate others about the complexities of sexual harassment, bullying, and retaliation in the workplace. By sharing the realities targets of harassment face, she intends to educate readers, help targets move forward and initiate change in toxic work environments to eliminate harassment once and for all.
I was intrigued and had highj hopes but this book wasn't what I expected. I don't want to be unkind, lets just say, a me me me doesn't do it for yours truly. I couldn't connect with storyline or characters, I tried so hard, but it just didn't happen. So this one is one of my very, very few dnf busts.

Sexual Harassment is something that is sadly very common. I’ve been sexually harassed before so reading this was definitely an experience. I agreed with what the author was saying but most of the stuff that was said was obviously on privilege. This book can either help other victims or not, it all depends on the person.

Writing honest reviews are difficult when you dislike the book because you risk the publisher not sending you any more books to review. I'll take my chances.

First, an admission. I couldn't finish this book. Life is too short for bad books or books that don't grab my attention. I didn't finish this book because 𝘔𝘰𝘳𝘦 𝘛𝘩𝘢𝘯 𝘞𝘰𝘳𝘥𝘴 was a bad book. Parts of it did interest me so I can't say that was the reason I couldn't finish 𝘔𝘰𝘳𝘦 𝘛𝘩𝘢𝘯 𝘞𝘰𝘳𝘥𝘴. I couldn't finish because what Kirsten Anderson is trying to do wasn't working.

I try to lead with the positive when I'm giving feedback and that's what I'll do here. I enjoyed the biographical bits that make up the first half of each chapter. I was horrified that this happened to the author. I applaud her strength and courage for fighting back and taking her case to trial. I love that these biographical moments made me take another look at sexual harassment and forced me to have sometimes uncomfortable conversations with myself and my friends about how we change the narrative from boys will be boys and that's the way it's always been to a narrative that believes women and allows everyone regardless of gender to speak up when witness to harassment, racism, homophobia, etc and etc.

Now for the negative. I didn't like this book because I felt that 𝘔𝘰𝘳𝘦 𝘛𝘩𝘢𝘯 𝘞𝘰𝘳𝘥𝘴 was in conflict with itself. 𝘔𝘰𝘳𝘦 𝘛𝘩𝘢𝘯 𝘞𝘰𝘳𝘥𝘴 has all of these beautiful biographical bits. It tells a heartbreaking story. 𝘔𝘰𝘳𝘦 𝘛𝘩𝘢𝘯 𝘞𝘰𝘳𝘥𝘴 also wants to be a textbook and those are the parts that tuned me out.

I get what the author was trying to accomplish. I actually enjoyed the "think about it" segments. I wish that the thinking was expanded. It helped me understand what Kirsten Anderson was going through in the moment but I would have loved to seen more of her thought process. Instead we get these "put it to work" moments that reminded me of my gender/sexuality courses. Reading those segments made me question if this was an autobiography or a workbook. With everything on my plate and living through a global pandemic I'm willing to turn #MeToo into #ISaidSomething. I said something has I told my own queer #MeToo story. But I'm not at a point to read a book that makes me feel like I have to do homework after each chapter and participate in a dialogue.

In the book dedication Kirsten Anderson says that she dedicates the book for those looking for understanding and support and more (a paraphrase). She might have aimed for that in this book but I felt that the mark was missed. She comes close but the textbook parts didn't work. At least not for me.

As a survivor of sexual assault it is great to see another strong woman share her story.

This is a heavier read, with that said, it can resonate well with a survivor. If you are somebody who is not a survivor and are looking to learn more I would definitely recommend.

Overall, 5/5.

The author does a good job tackling an uncomfortable topic. She does this in a way that doesn't dwell on the same points but still is able to tell her story and help guide the conversation for change. It is easy to follow and read which makes it even more helpful when looking to use as a resource to guide change in your own employment environment or any other you are looking to change for the better.