Customer Reviews

The Velvet Room

5 star:		(75)
4 star:		(2)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

I recently tracked down a copy at the public library and re-read it. The VELVET ROOM is still magical, in spite of passive verbs 'was' and 'have been' commonly found in books from the 1960's, and it remains one of my favorites.

Author Zilpha Snyder writes about a girl named Robin, insecure after her father's struggle to remain employed and the family's subsequent traveling from place to place to find food and shelter. They end up at a new location near an abandoned old mansion, the Palmeras House, where Robin escapes for some quiet time away from her four noisy siblings. She discovers a tunnel that leads into the mansion, and inside she finds no furnishings except in one small room--a circular alcove in a tower. Here's an excerpt:

"From that first glimpse, from the first minute, it was more than a room--more even than the most beautiful room Robin had ever seen. Her hands shook on the doorknob, and the shaking didn't come from fear or cold. Her trembling hands were only an echo of something deeper that had been strangely shaken by that first sight of the Velvet Room....

"A thick pale rug cushioned her bare feet as she moved forward and turned very slowly in a circle. The walls of the room were paneled in dark wood. All along one wall the bright bindings of books contrasted with the wood. The books went on and on.... On the opposite side of the room were four tall narrow windows. Above the windows were arches of colored glass. Sunlight, streaming in through the arches made rainbows on the rug.

"...It was there in the alcove that she first began to call it the Velvet Room. There were heavy drapes of dark red velvet at the windows...when all the drapes were closed, there was a full circle of velvet. Robin pulled all the drapes shut, and then sat down and looked around.

"It was a wonderful, cozy place. A lot of people must have sat there to read in all the years since Palmeras House had been built. There must have been other children who had liked the wide window seats with their deep soft pillows. They probably took their books there and pulled the drapes shut, just as Robin had, and felt safe and comfortable and hidden. If they were a little younger, they probably pretended they were birds high in a nest, or maybe princesses in a magic tower.

"It wasn't until then that [Robin] began to wonder about the Velvet Room...she suddenly wanted an explanation very badly. Why would a room be left like this, beautifully furnished and full of valuable things? There must be a reason.... Why was it there at all--a Velvet Room in a silent empty old house?" (p.79-83)

Later there's a life-threatening scene, and the suspense and magic are all there. I read VELVET ROOM when I was a child, and the memory of it has lingered with me almost 30 years later. It's one of my all-time favorites. Track down this book if you can, and read it. And if the publisher is listening, please re-issue the VELVET ROOM.

~Kimn Swenson Gollnick...

I think all introverted, bookish youngsters like myself long for a secret place to get away from their family and others who do not understand them. In this book Robin, middle daughter in a large, poor family during the Depression, finds just such a place in the Velvet Room. This is Robin's name for the library in the old McCurdy mansion on Las Palmeras, the California rancho where her family is working picking apricots. Robin loves the library with its precious historical artifacts and wide window seats hidden behind thick velvet curtains. Robin hides from reality in the Velvet Room until she reaches a crossroads and realizes what is most important to her. This book was, and still is a favorite. Can't recommend it highly enough.

I read this book for the first time when I was in 5th grade. It made me want my own round tower library with window seats and velvet drapes! I am now married to an architect, and he wishes I had never read this book, because in planning our own house, my biggest requirement is a round library, with deep window seats, and (maybe) green velvet drapes to shut out the world. A totally awesome book about escaping into imaginary worlds with reading (something I am still prone to do)a wonderful book.

Beverly

When I was a young girl in an unhappy family with no escape and no hope, I stumbled on this book. It expressed so many of my thoughts and feelings at that period in my life. It also gave me hope that someday I too would write books that gave others the feeling that they were not alone in their misery. And gave me hope that someday I would find my velvet room. This book has stayed within my heart and my imagination for 30 years. I am currently searching for a copy of this splendid book of a young, unhappy girl searching for a place to call her own. A secret place that can't be lost even if only in her memories. That room becomes her salvation, as the book became mine. I desperately want my daughters to read this book. I have talked about it for years. It certainly warrants republication. Thank you for the opportunity to locate this book once again. I read my copy so often that it fell apart by the time I struck out on my own for my own "Velvet Room".

In 5th grade, the Scholastic Book Mobile came to my school where I read The Velvet Room. Although we couldn't afford many luxuries, my parents allowed me to buy this book so I could read it again (and again) which I did! I remember being so thrilled to find in Robin, a girl who could have been me and how I enjoyed finding the velvet room with her. Although I lost the book during a move in 7th grade, I always remembered it and wished to read it again. But, as 44 years have passed, I couldn't remember the name. Then, after searching for the Pink Room or the Pink Tower or other dead ends, the name of the book suddendly popped into my mind like a miracle! I can't wait to join Robin again. This is a great book for readers of all ages who remember being young and alone and needing to find a secret place.

This book was my very favorite, first read ages ago when I was 11 or 12. I related to the main character since I was a member of large family that struggled somewhat to make ends meet. This book validated the feelings I had, needs for privacy, comfort, and an outlet for the imagination. It also teaches a valuable lesson about the importance of family, and finding satisfaction within one's situation in life. I think of this book as a timeless classic, to provide enjoyment and inspiration to every generation.

I am so excited I have gotten a email from Zilpha Synder. She told me that there is talk that The Velvet Room may be put back into print this fall. This has been one of my favorite books I have ever owned even some 30 years later. Please email Craig Virden at Random cvirden@Randomhouse.com to voice your interest in having this wonderful book put back into reprint as soon a possible. Cvirden@Randomhouse.com

This was the first book I read as a child that transported me to another time and another place....I thrilled along with Robin when she received her key from the old woman and found the old well.....I agonized with her along the dank passage into the old mansion and I stood in amazement with her as she looked at the objects in the glass case and found her peace and solitude in that velvet window seat....how I wanted to be there. I still do.

I've been looking for The Velvet Room, which I read in fifth or sixth grade (I'm now 38) for my daughter. I want to pass on to her the "can't put it down" feeling you get from a good book. Secrets, mystery, magic... all of these elements are present in The Velvet Room. I want my daughter to be able to escape to a quiet corner and enjoy this experience (and me again, too!) But where can I get it?

I read this book as a teenager after having read Below the Root. I could relate to the girl and her need to escape to the velvet room to read. Zilpha makes this world come alive. As you read, you experience everything with the girl. I cannot recommend this book enough to readers of all ages. It is a favorite!