Roar

Loved this book flew through it in a day! Everyone can relate to certain characters in this book. Uplifting & makes you appreciate what you have. Not the usual type of book I go for but loved it! Well done to Cecelia ahern she got it spot on as always.

ROAR is the latest book from Cecelia Ahern and is compiled of short stories that focus on women; some are funny, some thought provoking or enlightening but they are all engaging. The release of this book is perfect in its timing of following the #me too and times up movements, in its premise being about the empowering of women and the promotion of equalitarianism - but not in a preachy way. I'm sure there's at least one story in the book that every woman can relate to.

This book is perfect for people with busy lifestyles, in approx just five minutes you can have finished one of the stories. For those of us with not completely hectic full on lives, the entire book can be devoured in a long and lazy afternoon - with plenty of time for a few tea or (and!) coffee breaks.

Although I did thoroughly enjoy ROAR, I have to admit to looking forward to Cecelia's next "normal" style of book - sorry, I have no idea what you would call a regular/non novella book... That's not to say this is lacking any of Cecelia's distinctive quirky style, and her short stories are spot on, I just personally prefer becoming fully immersed in regular length books that have a bit more substance.

With thanks to NetGalley and HarperCollins UK, HarperFiction for the opportunity to read this arc in return for an honest and unbiased review.

I love Cecelia Ahern, and although I'm not usually a fan of shirt stories I enjoyed this collection! Easy to pick up and put down - I read it before bed over a few nights!

The ideal book to grab and short story while the kettle boils or dinner cooks. Quite odd little moralistic stories to shake up your thoughts, nod in agreement, laugh and even cry.

It’s not the best book I read this month but different, quirky and would make a great present for a female friend.

I would like to thank Netgalley for the free book and the opportunity to post an honest review.
Roar by Cecelia Ahern, is made up of thirty short stories all celebrating the strength of women through a very clever take on different sayings and idioms. Each story has different character, situations and a strong message.
It is well written and the author reveals a wisdom on many topics and a deep understanding of how a woman can feel or perceive herself. The author has taken ideas literally and placed a woman at the centre. The woman then struggles to come to terms with her predicament but eventually rises above it or understands what she needs to do to rectify it.
Roar, in my opinion, is about looking at yourself honestly in a mirror and having the strength to make changes or hold your head up high. It is like a self-help book for women which amusingly uses proverbs and expands into fantasy.
As an example, chapter 5 is called ‘The woman who found bite marks on her skin’. This story is about guilt. A mother, returning to work is eaten away by the guilt of leaving her children, not having time to do everything she used to, not being able to put 100% into everything she does. It is not until she realizes what is causing the bite marks and is then able to understand she should not be feeling guilty, that she is a capable person, consequently her condition improve.
A good and interesting read for those who enjoy literary fiction with a paranormal/fantasy lilt.
Although I enjoyed reading the stories it did make me feel a little sad that women need to have a book such as this to encourage them to challenge the rhetoric and idealism of modern life.

I really enjoyed this book and it’s one that will definitely stay with me for a long time.
The collection of stories are insightful, touching, modern and relevant.
Cecelia Ahern is one of those authors where I love one book and then detest the next one, however this is definitely one of my favourites. The writing is beautiful and very clever.

This book was a joy to read from start to finish. Each story with a woman as the central character, was unique and fascinating, I just don't know where she gets her ideas from but they are truly brilliant. It's the sort of book I'd love to read again at some time in the future. Truly excellent, I can't rate it highly enough, one of the best this year.

Each chapter is a short story (of varying length) that often takes a whimsical or even absurd twist, very cleverly done, to convey allegories of common phrases and realities of women throughout their lives (such as being "eaten up" by Mum guilt, gender policing, access to birth control, or "wanting the ground to swallow you up" after humiliation).

These stories are modern day parables for women. All women. Older women, trans women, Mums, married women, refugee women, grieving women, daughters, successful women, women who make unpopular decisions, etc.

I think the interesting thing about these stories are that they will resonate differently with you depending on your life experiences and what stage in life you are, but there will, I guarantee, be at least one story that hits you hard.

There were several favourite chapters of mine: The Woman Who Wore Pink, The Woman Who Spoke Woman, The Woman Who Found The World In Her Oyster, The Woman Who Was Pigeonholed, and The Woman Who Ate Photographs. This final one I recommend to any parents watching their kids grow and feeling that tug between holding them tightly and letting them go (welled up just writing that let alone reading the chapter!). The writing and the way significant, current issues are interwoven through the stories, presented from a woman's perspective, was both emotive and powerful. As with most feminist literature, this isn't packed full of ways that men are horrid (quite the opposite in many of the stories), it simply presents the reality of situations from alternative perspectives and with wit, satire and intuition.

This is definitely a book both women and men need to read. I truly adored it.

Also, a TV series focusing on the stories within this book is in production so it's my top tip to be the next "Big Little Lies" particularly as Nicole Kidman is one of the producers.

A woman goes invisible – because post an early menopause, to all intents and purposes she might as well be. A woman finds herself attacked by some vampiric force when she dumps her children with carers and gets back to work. A woman is shoved on a shelf by a man as a trophy, only to find the winning of her getting less and less important as the years pass. Yes, here, thirty times over, women see what it's like when their life bears out a cliched saying. Here is the woman for whom the ground really does swallow her up, the woman with a ticking biological clock, the woman who let a camera seize the day for her – until she decides she wants her days back; and all in perfect little parcels of prose. What's intelligent about this book is that, while it says so much about the modern woman's life, it doesn't come down against mankind at any time, and turn into a harangue. What's marvellous about these stories is their scope for adding a sort of Twilight Zone tinge of sci-fi to the everyday. What's miraculous here is that it would at first appear to be one simple shtick, but it's done with ever-varying approach and a lot more nuance than that. The authorial voice and tense is consistent, but not repetitive to the book's detriment.

I do think the decision to not name or define any of the thirty-plus title characters beyond "woman" robs them of a little personality and status, however – yes it allows each to become an 'everywoman' that all readers can relate to, but it also suggests to me that not even Ms Ahern can completely accept and individualise all these females. But still, this is such a clever and witty read it really does stand out as a remarkable collection. I'd defy anyone to pretend one was much better than any of the other 29 – even easy targets like post-new-gender gender politics (one of two adverts for transgenderism), and airheaded 'influencers', give us deliriously arch results.

What a very, very clever book!!

All situations that women think, but actually happens in these clever short stories!!

I found myself in some of these stories, and it helped me to put them into perspective!!

I loved it, and couldn't wait for the next story!!

Very easy to read, and very enjoyable!!

Wonderful!!

Any book that highlights the difficulties and prejudices women experience and has the reach of an author like Cecilia Ahern is a good thing. Makes you think though when she can write 30 different short stories about the subject.

Absolutely loved it. I was able to see myself in lots of the 'women' and where I couldn't see me I was able to see a member of my family or friends. I need a little room where I can go and ROAR.

I have never read any Ahern, but this is not what I expected; this collection of stories about feminism and empowerment bought me so much joy.
The woman who disappeared was particularly memorable as well as The Woman left on the shelf.
The stories explore what it is to be a woman today, in bite size, funny instalments.
I recommend this for all your female and male friends !