Roar by Cecelia Ahern
I am woman. Hear me roar.
Have you ever imagined a different life?
Have you ever stood at a crossroads, undecided?
Have you ever had a moment when you wanted to roar?
The women in these startlingly original stories are all of us: the women who befriend us, the women who encourage us, the women who make us brave.
From The Woman Who Slowly Disappeared to The Woman Who Was Kept on the Shelf and The Woman Who Returned and Exchanged her Husband, discover thirty touching, often hilarious, stories and meet thirty very different women. Each discovers her strength; each realizes she holds the power to make a change.
Witty, tender, surprising, these keenly observed tales speak to us all, and capture the moment when we all want to roar.
My Review
I am a huge Cecelia Ahern fan and was overjoyed to review this new set of thirty short stories all about the lives of women.
Each short story is incredibly different and I liked the concept of picking this book up whenever I had just a few minutes to spare. Before long I found myself rereading stories because they were so enjoyable and each time I discovered meanings that I had not realised before.
The book tackles some sensitive subjects in a witty, yet extremely profound way.
The stories are moving, witty and incredibly clever. The word empowering has been associated with this book, I wouldn’t go that far but there are certainly some extremely uplifting and highly relatable issues covered. I think it would be great to give as a gift to a teenage girl, to explain Feminism in a very unique way.
The great thing about the short stories is that they can be taken at face value as lighthearted, slightly bizarre tales or you can dive to the greatest depths imaginable and explore all the different meanings and layers.
A creative masterpiece, this would be fabulous as a book club discussion.
Thank you to NetGalley and the Publisher for a copy of the book which I have reviewed honestly.
‘These provocative and witty stories prove it’s time to recognise Cecelia Ahern as one of our finest writers’ John Boyne
‘These stories sing from the page … sharp, clever, witty: a joy to read’ Donal Ryan, author of The Spinning Heart
Acclaim for Cecelia Ahern:
‘Cleverly constructed, full of flavour and moving’ Daily Mail‘Beautiful and unexpected … both thought-provoking and life-affirming’ Sunday Express
‘Both moving and thought-provoking’ Irish Independent
Biography
After completing a degree in Journalism and Media Communications, Cecelia wrote her first novel at 21 years old. Her debut novel, PS I Love You was published in January 2004, and was followed by Where Rainbows End (aka Love, Rosie) in November 2004. Both novels were adapted to films; PS I Love You starred Hilary Swank and Gerard Butler, and Love, Rosie starred Lily Collins and Sam Claflin.
Cecelia has published a novel every year since then and to date has published 15 novels; If You Could See Me Now, A Place Called Here, Thanks for the Memories, The Gift, The Book of Tomorrow, The Time of My Life, One Hundred Names, How To Fall in Love, The Year I Met You, The Marble Collector, Flawed, Perfect and Lyrebird.
To date, Cecelia’s books have sold 25 million copies internationally, are published in over 40 countries, in 30 languages.
Along with writing novels, Cecelia has co-created the US ABC Comedy Samantha Who? and has created many other original TV projects.
Cecelia’s next book is a collection of 30 short stories about 30 women, titled ROAR. ROAR will be published in the UK and Ireland in Autumn 2018 by HarperCollins UK, and in Spring 2019 in the US by Grand Central Publishing.
“At the age of 19 I experienced a difficult time in my life, and as I have done since childhood and throughout my teenage years, I turned to writing to process my feelings. PS I Love You was born from my feelings of sadness, fear and loss of my identity. I poured my heart into the story of a woman suffering from grief after the loss of her husband, a woman who had hit the lowest point of her life and was struggling with both the desire and the ability to find her way out of the fog. Writing Holly’s journey helped me find my own path, writing PS I Love You brought both Holly and I to a more positive place in our lives and that is what I continue to do with my novels.
The thread that links my work is in capturing that transitional period in people’s lives. I’m drawn to writing about loss, to characters that have fallen and who feel powerless in their lives. I am fascinated and inspired by the human spirit, by the fact that no matter how hopeless we feel and how dark life can be, we do have the courage, strength and bravery to push through our challenging moments. We are the greatest warriors in our own stories. I like to catch my characters as they fall, and bring them from low to high. My characters push through and as a result evolve, become stronger and better equipped for the next challenge that life brings. I like to mix dark with light, sadness with humour, always keeping a balance, and always bringing the story to a place of hope.”
I have always loved Cecelia Ahern’s books and look forward to reading this soon.
It’s very different Brindy, but she is such a talented author. xx