The Cows

OMG I loved this book. Why can’t we have more books like this? It was so refreshing, witty and full on girl power!! For all my lovely readers, please let me know if you’ve read any books similar to this one.

The book flits between three women: Tara, Cam and Stella.

Tara is a 42 year old single mother, who makes TV documentaries exposing individuals who have done wrong in the world… except the tables have turned after one foolish event on a drunken night.

Cam is an opinionated blogger who writes about… well whatever takes her fancy!

Stella is a lady with a lot of issues; she’s never quite got over the death of her twin sister, and doesn’t really know what she wants from life.

All three live separate lives but that one night connects them together: Tara had been on an unexpected date with Stella’s boss and Cam becomes fascinated by Tara’s story and writes a post defending her.

This was such a powerful story it made me realise how strong women can be if we are united. Women can be so cruel to one another and become obsessed with comparing themselves, instead of appreciating each other’s strengths and relishing how unique we all are. The first page of this book starts with a definition of a cow and then goes on to drawing comparisons between women and cows; the last paragraph really resonated with me: There are many types of women and every effort is needed for a woman not to be seen just as a heifer or a cow. Women don’t have to fall into a stereotype. Cows don’t need to follow the herd. Such powerful words. Having gone to an all girls school when I was younger, these words touched me deep… a lot of girls in my school did follow a herd – being part of the ‘popular group’, wearing your ponytail in a certain way and comparing your exam grades became a major part of every day routine – it was HARD. Looking back I wish I’d just embraced how I looked, what I was good at and not caring if my hair sat right. We are unique and special in our own way – we all have our own set of skills – let’s stop comparing ourselves against each other and just admire what we’re good at and what they’re good at. Although easier said than done…

The way Tara managed to pick herself up after the event reminds readers that we are capable of finding a silver lining, even in a very rubbish situation.

With Cam being a blogger, there are a lot of chapters that have inserts of her latest posts, and I really enjoyed this. Her posts are extremely motivational, uplifting and truthful – I can see why (in this fictional world) she has become a very successful blogger!

The writing style is modern and flows well. Dawn manages to portray the feelings and emotions of each woman beautifully, and I loved the over dramatic reactions!

I’m not always a fan of endings but this one felt right…. a final ‘girl power’ moment to conclude with.

I’d recommend this book to all, although little disclaimer – there are a few explicit references/scenes so I wouldn’t recommend this to my younger readers….

Remember – Don’t follow the herd!!!!

Until next time, Chloé x