Room

Room
By Emma Donoghue (321 pages)
Published by Back Bay Books
Bookish rating: 5

Am I getting too lenient in my book ratings? Or am I finally reading . .  . better books?

Yeah, I gave it a 5.

Room is narrated by 5-year-old Jack, who was born and lives in a small, 11'x11' room with his mother, where they are held captive.

And really, reading this right after all the Amanda Beery stuff? It's weird.

Jack's narration never breaks character, at least to my reading of Room. He always seems five years old, and his voice is believably naïve while also incredibly perceptive--which it has to be, if he's gonna tell this story.

Ma, his mother, makes Jack's life as full as it can possibly be, shielding him entirely from Old Nick, the sleazeball who kidnapped Ma in the first place, keeps them prisoners, and rapes her.

I thought Donoghue's contrast of the horror--the long, continual horror--of Jack and Ma's situation with the love a mom has for her child and happy life she was able to create for him out of bare nothingness was remarkable.

This book stuck with me for quite awhile after reading it, which is saying something. My attention span and memory aren't fantastic these days. Totally recommended.