You may not be ready for fierce. You may not feel fiery. But who doesn’t want to be free?

Free from feeling like you aren’t enough, even as others expect you to meet their needs. Free from feeling like you don’t belong. Free to speak up or speak out. Free to push back on expectations and free to ask for help. Free to be exactly who God created you to be.

In her new book, Fierce, Free, and Full of Fire: The Guide to Being Glorious You, Jen Hatmaker, explains how it is possible to belong and be you without apology. I read an advance copy supplied by the publisher, and there was hardly a page that didn’t open my eyes to the ways I have shrunk back, over-apologized, or sat on my hands for fear of rejection or disapproval.

Jen speaks to the loneliness that can accompany child-rearing and the ways women buy into other people’s judgment or kick ourselves when we are down. I particularly appreciated her insight into being an effective advocate and the way to stay in the moment and connect to others without all the drama.

Jen is not only a counselor and friend in Fierce, Free and Full of Fire, she also provides a rallying cry for women who feel defeated: We Absolutely Can!!