Book Review: Room

Room by Emma Donoghue, Hardcover: 336 pages, Publisher: Little, Brown and Company; 1st Ed.: Sept. 2010 edition (September 13, 2010), ISBN-10: 0316098337


Source: Read about it in a magazine
Rating: 5 of 5 STARS

I'm sadly, sadly behind on book reviews for this year. But I just finished this one and wanted to get it reviewed before trying to go back and play catch-up.

This was my first book to read on a Kindle and it was a perfect choice. The story and writing kept me engaged the whole time. It's about a mother and child and their ordeal of living captive in an 11 x 11 cork-lined room. It's a story of two perspectives: "Ma" who knows she's a prisoner and knows what's the "Outside" really holds and Jack who was born in captivity and knows nothing other than this small life with his mother.

The whole book is narrated by five-year old Jack which is really what makes the whole book so brilliant. Donoghue had me with the first lines:

'Today I'm five. I was four last night going to sleep in Wardrobe, but when I wake up in Bed in the dark I'm changed to five, abracadabra. Before that I was three, then two, then one, then zero. "Was I minus numbers?"'

I was hesitant to read Room because I thought there might be some disturbing scenes that would stick in my head. I was completely wrong. While the whole idea of being trapped in this way and for this length of time is disturbing in itself, the author did a wonderful job of conveying the scenes and situations without being too graphic. It's really a story about a boy and his mother, about the power of a mother's love, and about the resilience of a child. It makes you appreciate your own children, reconsider the time you spend with them, and the words you say.

As far as the Kindle? It's awesome! I can't see reading non-fiction books on it, but for novels I think it's perfect. I devoured this book in four days which for me is really fast. I'm not sure if it's because the Kindle is so easy to read or if it was because the book was so good. I highly recommend this one and am looking at reading Donoghue's other best seller, Slammerkin.

One last thing - apparently this book was somewhat based on a much worse real-life situation in Austria. The days are truly evil.




P.S. I didn't think I would like the Kindle. I was wrong! BUT I still like all my AcTuAl books. Now I'm reading this one on the Kindle.