#55 The Cows

The Cows by Dawn O'Porter

The Cows follows the story of 3 middle aged women: Tara, Stella and Cam.

Tara is a 42 year old single mother to six year old Annie. Her life is turned upside down when after a date she masturbates on a late night tube when she thinks shes alone in the carriage. She is filmed in the throws of ecstasy and the footage is posted online and goes viral overnight. When the video has been viewed by 9 million people she is branded 'wank woman' and her life has instantly been altered forever.

Stella is a 29 year old with not much going for her. Both her mum and identical twin sister died of cancer at a young age and she feels like her destiny to go out the same way is written in the stars. She inherited her London flat from her mum and lives there with her boyfriend Phil. She works as a PA to a photographer who is in the middle of writing his first book. Her job is her life and she doesnt have many real friends due to living in her twin sisters shadow for the majority of her life.

Cam is a lifestyle 'say it like it is' blogger who found fame through her website howitis.com which is a global sensation. Women tune in to read her no nonsense attitude to life. Cam is in her early thirties with no desire to conform to getting married or having children. She writes blog posts about her choice to be childless and is hailed both a drama queen attention seeker by some and a goddess feminist by others. She is a constant disappointment to her mother and has 3 sisters who are all married with children. She also has slight agoraphobic tendencies and enjoys sleeping with much younger men.

There are so many unexpected twists to this story and the writing really is superb. I think the main theme is how much the internet can destroy your life. I am a massive fan girl of the internet, i use it for everything but this book was so thought provoking that it made me delve into the not so nice side that the internet has to offer how overnight it can strip you of your job, make the people closest to you very uncomfortable and also how it can open up a forum in which people can discuss what a terrible parent you are.

I adored this so much that i read it in one sitting which is fascinating considering i have a 16 month old toddler. I had no idea what it was about going in and that really worked for me as i wasnt expecting too much but 1 chapter in i was hooked. I am very keen to read more of Dawn O'Porters work as the writing was so intricate and her style made the story flow really well. I loved the feminist themes woven in and how all three women didnt conform to societal norms.

The ending shocked me as it was so sudden yet also very satisfying at the same time. Solid 4 stars from me.