Room, Emma Donoghue (1)
This book review was one of the hardest I’ve had to do thus far in the blog. I had seen numerous accolades for the book and it continues to get strong critiques. The problem is that the subject matter is so difficult to read, not only did I almost stop, I cannot think of a single person to whom I would recommend it. The writing is good, the author has done several unique things to make the subject a tad easier – but in the end of the day, it is still a book about a woman who is kidnapped, held hostage, raped repeatedly and has a child by her captor. The 5-year-old child, Jack, narrates the book. All he knows, his whole world, is ‘Room’, which is an 11x11 foot prison. Its contents are his only friends (Duvet, Rug, Wardrobe). The book is told in 3 main parts. The first part is frightening (as you begin to realize was actually has occurred, since Jack does not know), the second is very dramatic and the third is more about the psychology, which is very interesting. I would like Val to read this so we could discuss the third section, but I could never ask a mother to read this – it is just too horrific to imagine and the intimacy of Jack’s voice brings it all in too close. It somehow makes the book more disturbing than a traditional murder mystery. I believe the book deserves a ‘4’ for the quality of the writing and uniqueness of the story, but I have to give it a ‘1’ as a warning to any who may read it – it is very disturbing.
I had a different take on this book and have had interesting discussions with other mothers who felt similarly. I would give it more like a 3-1/2. The writing and short staccato sentences with names for all the inanimate objects became a little tedious and tended to lower my readability score. However, I felt different about the message. I agree that it was very disturbing on a human level, but not nearly as much as one would think on a maternal level. The bond that she had with Jack was powerful and touched my heart as a mother. The world she had created for him (out of nothing) was beyond commendable and earned my respect. The first quarter of the book had a hugely profound impact on me in that I almost felt guilty for how easy it is in our age of toys and technology and entertainment to not truly spend quality time with my kids - to not strive to create games and fun and learning out of mundane and everyday tasks and objects. It reminds you how much your children really just need YOU, above everything else. I almost found myself making mental notes for fun games and tasks to do together with my toddler. I'm not sure if I'm choosing my words correctly here or not; it's a very fine line to explain. I found the psychology of the second and third parts fascinating. And to reiterate, it was deeply disturbing on a human level, but "almost" inspirational (again, I struggle for the right word) on a maternal level. I found the third part, where the mother started to "check out" a little, more disturbing because it was the only time she started to fail her child and not be there when he needed her. I would caution anyone before reading it, just to make sure they knew what they were getting into, but I would still recommend it. I've found people whom I've told about the book to be more disturbed by the premise of the book than those who have actually read it. It has a certain redeeming quality to it that is hard to explain.
ReplyDeleteExcellent! Great to hear a mom's perspective. It makes a lot of sense. I felt bad that such a good book might be too toxic a subject, but you have made me realize what other value it has....k
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