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Emma Donoghue

Room Hardcover – January 1, 2010

by Emma Donoghue (Author)

4.3 31,292 ratings

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proof copy. yellow paper wraps

Print length

320 pages
Language

English
Publisher

Picador
Publication date

January 1, 2010
Dimensions

5.63 x 1.18 x 8.78 inches
ISBN-10

9780330519014
ISBN-13

978-0330519014
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Emma Donoghue
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Product details

ASIN ‏ : ‎ 0330519018
Publisher ‏ : ‎ Picador (January 1, 2010)
Language ‏ : ‎ English
Hardcover ‏ : ‎ 320 pages
ISBN-10 ‏ : ‎ 9780330519014
ISBN-13 ‏ : ‎ 978-0330519014
Item Weight ‏ : ‎ 1.03 pounds
Dimensions ‏ : ‎ 5.63 x 1.18 x 8.78 inches

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4.3 31,292 ratings

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Emma Donoghue

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Born in Dublin in 1969, Emma Donoghue is a writer of contemporary and historical fiction whose novels include the international bestseller "Room" (her screen adaptation was nominated for four Oscars), "Frog Music", "Slammerkin," "The Sealed Letter," "Landing," "Life Mask," "Hood," and "Stirfry." Her story collections are "Astray", "The Woman Who Gave Birth to Rabbits," "Kissing the Witch," and "Touchy Subjects." She also writes literary history, and plays for stage and radio. She lives in London, Ontario, with her partner and their two children.

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Waterside Lucy

Just different.

Reviewed in the United States 🇺🇸 on June 30, 2023

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I’ve never read a novel from the POV of a 5 year old. I wanted more depth. More explanations. More insight into the other characters . However, it was well worth reading. Well done. Just unfulfilling.

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Haunting, Unique, Compelling ... You Won't Forget This Book

Reviewed in the United States 🇺🇸 on November 29, 2010

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I'm sure that somewhere in your home you have a room that measures about 10×10 or 11×11.

I want you to imagine this room. Now take out all the windows (but you can have one little skylight). Put a locked door on it that cannot be open from the inside. Soundproof it. Strip it down to only the bare essentials: a bed, a hotplate, a wardrobe, a table, two chairs, a rug, a bath, a rocker. You can a TV, a few books, a few games. Get comfy. You're going to be spending quite a bit of time here. About seven years in fact.

The first few years you'll be alone except for some nightly visits from the person who has put you in this room. (Let's call him Old Nick.) Eventually these nightly visits will result in the birth of a child. Your child. Let's call him Jack. Let's call you Ma.

You now have a baby in a windowless locked room. You have to raise this child by yourself, while protecting him, as much as possible, from Old Nick.

How would you do it? How would you keep yourself from going insane? How would you provide Jack with as "normal" a life as possible, considering that the only world he has ever known is this room? And, what do you think would happen if someday, someday, you managed to get out of the room?

I believe Emma Donoghue must have went through a thought process like the one I posed to you above, and the results can be found in her brilliantly disturbing yet heartbreakingly beautiful novel ROOM. And, in a genius twist, Donoghue chose to write the novel from the point-of-view of Jack--and this makes all the difference.

By writing from 5-year-old Jack's point-of-view, we are spared the unbearable horror of Ma's experience. Instead of being a torture chamber, Room becomes not such a bad place after all. Oh sure, the things Outside that Jack sees on TV seem kind of cool, but they are just pretend. (After all, in Room Jack doesn't feel wind or see clouds or dogs or other children or animals or dirt.) But Room has plenty to keep Jack busy--from Egg Snake under the bed to Phys Ed time to a seemingly endless variation of word games that Ma has invented. And there is Sundaytreat, which might sometimes even result in chocolate!

And most of all, there is Ma. What child doesn't want a mother who is always present, attentive and creative? In Jack's view, Room is a cozy little world of two. Of course, Ma is Gone sometimes, but she always comes back eventually. And yes, Old Nick makes those nightly visits and all kinds of weird creaking sounds, but Jack just hides in the wardrobe. (Ma doesn't like Old Nick to see Jack.) Room is Jack's whole world. It is all he's ever known, and he doesn't really need anything else.

So when Ma suddenly starts "Unlying" and talking about Outside and how they might get there, you can imagine that Jack might not be all that excited. It is a lot for a 5-year-old to take in. It is like someone told you were going to go live on the moon, away from everyone who loves you. Could you go? What would happen if you made it? What would happen to your world?

I cannot even tell you how brilliant and engrossing this book is and how riveted I was by Jack's world and, behind it, the darker shadow world that Ma lived in. In some ways, ROOM reminded of Kazuo Ishiguro's Never Let Me Go--in that the protagonists live an almost dream-like existence in a nightmare world, protected and sheltered from the reality of their situation by their innocence and ignorance. Although we see Jack's story unfold in the book, within it and behind it we come to know Ma's story too, which is as horrific and nightmarish as anything I can imagine. Yet by not telling the story from Ma's point of view, Donoghue elevates ROOM to something magical and special and amazing. Yes, this book will disturb you, but it will also uplift you and show you how good can grow from evil, that love can save you, and that what is broken can be put back together again. Read it.

12 people found this helpful

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Josie Gannon

Great Read - Very Literary

Reviewed in the United States 🇺🇸 on November 28, 2010

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I have to say that this is truly an incredible read. I would honestly rank it among the types of books one would read as a college English Lit major. When I looked to see what the reviews were after reading it, I was so surprised to see that so many gave this 1's. I personally give it a 4 and here's why.

I think the author truly captured the perspective of a 5-year-old and how they would take in their world. Currently having a 5-year-old myself, I completely find the character believable.

The storyline is gripping being both heart warming and wrenching, along with bittersweet, traumatizing, beautiful, hopeful and cathartic.

Some people had difficulty with the language and I think one actually said "do five-year-olds really talk that way?" The answer: some do, especially if they have a mother who's been through an incredible emotional trauma as Jack's mother had. I think the language used was appropriate and added to the overall feel the book was trying to portray.

Another comment was that Jack went from being very simple to having deep, profound thoughts. Guess what? Kids have a tendency to be that way. I can remember a time when my nephew, all of 4-years-old, came right up to me and asked if I believed in God. I broke my answer down in very simple terms so that he could understand it, but the things he said back to me, which I could tell had not been spoon fed to him, were just amazing and I could not believe that we were having the conversation we had.

And yet another comment went on to say that the book didn't delve into the happenings enough (i.e. the abduction, Old Nick, etc.). How many 5-year-olds do you know that fully grasp the gravity of everything that goes on around them? That's part of the point. Jack doesn't realize everything. His world is Room and Ma and all the things they use to occupy their time. His mother is doing the best she can to establish a "normal" for him and explain the "good" even though they are in a truly bad - very bad - situation. The fact that Jack never really fully grasped that is amazing.

A very interesting thing I realized was that, halfway through the book, the only character's name I knew was Jack's. There are only a couple characters whose names we really learn, showing how a kid may think of the people around them (my 5-year-old just put two and two together that my first name really isn't "mom", but that's just what he calls me).

The mother in the book is an incredible character. The things she endures, the way she teaches her child to "handle" it, and the breakdowns she has along the way just make your heart hurt for her. What people have to remember is that this woman was really just a child when she was taken, and virtually a child when she had him. I think that considering the circumstances, she showed incredible strength and endurance.

I really loved the interaction Jack had with his grandmother and Steppa, especially Steppa since he's really the first positive male influence he's had. Bronwyn sounds like she needs a few more time outs, though, and Jack himself appears to need some socialization therapy. Again, mentioned in the book but not fully discussed, but who would discuss that with a child his age?

The one issue I had with the book was that the language was more in "British" English than "American" English even though the story took place in America. I understand that the author is Irish and this is probably a big reason why. I can't say I would do any better writing about something happening in Ireland. Not a huge deal - still beautifully written - just something that kind of kept me from giving it 5 stars. That, and the ending seemed a bit flat for me (however, not sure what I really expected). It definitely gave the reader closure, though, which I truly appreciate.

3 people found this helpful

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Dâmaris Leite Ferreira

Amazing!

Reviewed in Brazil 🇧🇷 on December 18, 2018

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Delightful!

irene

Moving

Reviewed in Italy 🇮🇹 on April 28, 2016

Verified Purchase

I was struck by this book, not so much for the plot or the point of view of the narrative, but for the attempt to make me reasoning about the fact that whether you have to save yourself or to save someone else it is sometimes necessary to make selfish choices.
There are things in the book that have not impressed me too much, little things, but if a book succeeds to question one or more of my principles and can make me think out of the box, then surely it is worth reading.

maria de lourdes

Imperdível

Reviewed in Brazil 🇧🇷 on May 16, 2016

Verified Purchase

Ótimo! Não conseguia parar de ler. Muito interessante a forma em que foi escrito, pelo ponto de vista da criança. Fantástico!

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Anna Moro

Room

Reviewed in Italy 🇮🇹 on April 3, 2016

Verified Purchase

Difficile definire questa interessantissima storia di un bambino e sua madre. Potrebbe essere considerato un thriller, ma è più un romanzo
psicologico di grande impatto emotivo. L'io narrante è Jack, il piccolo protagonista, e il linguaggio che la scrittrice usa è veramente particolare, poichè è il modo di parlare di un bambino con una forte vissuto interiore.
Da questo libro è stato tratto un film, molto fedele al testo.

One person found this helpful

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Stefania Freccieri

Un argomento attuale affrontato con lucidità che lascia un respiro di speranza

Reviewed in Italy 🇮🇹 on April 8, 2016

Verified Purchase

Delicata e agghiacciante nello stesso tempo.
Non ricordo l'ultima volta in cui mi sia dispiaciuto di aver finito un libro.

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Room Hardcover – January 1, 2010

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