Roar - Hardcover

Ahern, Cecelia

Hardcover

ISBN 10: 1538730960 ISBN 13: 9781538730966

Publisher: Grand Central Publishing, 2019

Synopsis

From the bestselling author of P.S., I Love You, a fiercely feminist story collection that illuminates--sometimes in fantastical ways--how women of all kinds navigate the world today.

In this singular and imaginative story collection, Cecelia Ahern explores the endless ways in which women blaze through adversity with wit, resourcefulness, and compassion. Ahern takes the familiar aspects of women's lives--the routines, the embarrassments, the desires--and elevates these moments to the outlandish and hilarious with her astute blend of magical realism and social insight.

One woman is tortured by sinister bite marks that appear on her skin; another is swallowed up by the floor during a mortifying presentation; yet another resolves to return and exchange her boring husband at the store where she originally acquired him. The women at the center of this curious universe learn that their reality is shaped not only by how others perceive them, but also how they perceive the power within themselves.

By turns sly, whimsical, and affecting, these thirty short stories are a dynamic examination of what it means to be a woman in this very moment. Like women themselves, each story can stand alone; yet together, they have a combined power to shift consciousness, inspire others, and create a multi-voiced ROAR that will not be ignored.

About this title

About the Author

Cecelia Ahern is the author of the international bestsellers PS, I Love You; Love, Rosie; If You Could See Me Now; There's No Place Like Here; and The Gift. Her novels have been translated into thirty-five languages and have sold more than twenty-five million copies in over fifty countries. Two of her books have been adapted as major films and she has created several TV series in the US and Germany. She lives in Dublin with her family.

Review

"ROAR is a wild and daring collection. The stories are ingenious and surreal, brilliantly and hilariously articulating what it means to be a woman today. Cecelia Ahern has crafted something of a revolution within these pages. A powerful must-read."―Taylor Jenkins Reid, author of The Seven Husbands of Evelyn Hugo and Daisy Jones & The Six

"These provocative and witty stories prove it's time to recognize Cecelia Ahern as one of our finest writers."―John Boyne, New York Times bestselling author of The Boy in the Striped Pajamas

"An empowering book for women, Cecelia Ahern uses wildly inventive stories to reveal a simple truth - the power to create the life we want to live has been inside each of us all along. The world Ahern creates on these pages is fantastic yet authentic. Every woman will recognize herself in these stories and be inspired by them."―Jennifer Palmieri, #1 New York Times bestselling author of Dear Madam President

"Curiously delightful...each story resonate[s] as simultaneously personal and universal...A sharp, breathtaking collection."―Kirkus Reviews

"Fantastic...Ahern (P.S., I Love You) blends magical realism with keen observations about contemporary gender dynamics, offering readers a sharp selection of nuanced parables encouraging bravery, compassion, and self-reliance."―Publishers Weekly

"This collection includes 30 stories, ranging from four to seven pages. Each satirical selection varies in tone from whimsical to humorous to provocative...Some stories are surprisingly realistic; others are allegorical fables or surreal futuristic statements...Bold, imaginative, eclectic sketches feature women at the crossroads. Their resilience when faced with hardship and their methods of overcoming obstacles help to create a thoroughly challenging, pertinent, and ultimately uplifting read."―Library Journal

"Ahern's previous work, including PS, I Love You, There's No Place Like Here and The Gift are funny, light and often wise but didn't entirely presage "Roar," which is funny, wise and weighty - in a very good way. After all, when you write 30 stories about the dilemmas of people who hold up half the world's sky, things are bound to get heavy. The women in these fables cope with discrimination, loneliness and abandonment, among other things . . . It's best to read just one or two of Ahern's fables at a time. That way you can truly appreciate their wit, pathos and imagination. The author includes Helen Reddy's famous lyric 'I am woman, hear me roar' as an epigraph, but she might just as easily have used 'I'm every woman. It's all in me.'"
―The Washington Post

"This is insightful feminist fiction that is highly entertaining . . . Cecelia Ahern shows that women's reality is shaped not only by how others perceive them but also how they perceive the power to take control of their lives. We must hear these women who roar."―Washington Book Review

"Bedtime stories for feminists."―StarTribune

Edition details

• Publisher: Grand Central Publishing
• Publication date: 2019
• ISBN 10: 1538730960
• ISBN 13: 9781538730966
• Binding: Hardcover
• Language: English
• Number of pages: 288