Room

A Novel

By: Emma Donoghue

Narrated by: Michal Friedman, Ellen Archer, Robert Petkoff, Suzanne Toren

Length: 10 hrs and 45 mins

Publisher's summary

To five-year-old Jack, Room is the entire world. It is where he was born and grew up; it's where he lives with his Ma as they learn and read and eat and sleep and play. At night, his Ma shuts him safely in the wardrobe, where he is meant to be asleep when Old Nick visits.

Room is home to Jack, but to Ma, it is the prison where Old Nick has held her captive for seven years. Through determination, ingenuity, and fierce motherly love, Ma has created a life for Jack. But she knows it's not enough...not for her or for him. She devises a bold escape plan, one that relies on her young son's bravery and a lot of luck. What she does not realize is just how unprepared she is for the plan to actually work.

Told entirely in the language of the energetic, pragmatic five-year-old Jack, Room is a celebration of resilience and the limitless bond between parent and child, a brilliantly executed novel about what it means to journey from one world to another.

PLEASE NOTE: When you purchase this title, the accompanying reference material will be available in your My Library section along with the audio.

©2010 Emma Donoghue (P)2010 Hachette Audio

Critic reviews

"The award-winning best seller that became one of the most talked about and memorable novels of the decade, Room is "utterly gripping...a heart-stopping novel" (San Francisco Chronicle).

"Emma Donoghue's writing is superb alchemy, changing innocence into horror and horror into tenderness. Room is a book to read in one sitting. When it's over you look up: the world looks the same but you are somehow different and that feeling lingers for days." (Audrey Niffenegger, author of The Time Traveler's Wife and Her Fearful Symmetry)

"This is a truly memorable novel, one that can be read through myriad lenses - psychological, sociological, political. It presents an utterly unique way to talk about love, all the while giving us a fresh, expansive eye on the world in which we live." ( The New York Times Book Review)

Amazing characterization / Fabulous reading

This is a really good novel. It is highly plausible. Great detail. The little boy reader is totally awesome and the mother is read by my FAVORITE, Ellen Archer.

Incredible

This book gutted me. So powerful. An absolutely incredible read. highly recommend. Prepare to cry.

ROOM

Savor a fictional story that is as real as the sun. This audio book is an excellent narration that enriches the power of Emma Donogheu’s story.

The beginning of the book places a listener in the mind of a five-year old (Jack) and his mother (Ma), observing a world that seems off-center, almost surreal.

As early chapters unfold, a listener is drawn into a labyrinth of a mother’s fear and loathing. The mother’s fear and loathing is contrasted with the joy and wonder of her young son. The listener is puzzled by how and why that contrast exists. As the cause of the difference in perception becomes clear, the listener begins to admire the strength and wisdom of Ma and the naiveté and precociousness of Jack.

Returning to a normal life after experiencing trauma, whether it is the stress of imprisonment, accident, or war is as harrowing as the trauma itself. Donogheu captures the difficulty of that return. She writes about the fragility that adults like Ma or a war veteran must feel when returning to the work day world. Donogheu shines a bright light on the importance of professional help in recovery.

So so so good!

What made the experience of listening to Room the most enjoyable?

The voice of Jack was just wonderful .

Did you have an extreme reaction to this book? Did it make you laugh or cry?

I laughed and cried through the entire story.

Emma Donoghue is a Creative Genius

This book is so creative, yet so believeable, it doesn't let go of you for a minute. The details of Jack and Ma's situation are well researched and ring true, inside and outside. The narration is outstanding, especially by the reader of Jack's character. One of the best audiobooks I've listened to.

Powerful Story!

The story was very well-done - highly emotional, suspenseful, intriguing. Jack's narration was phenomenal, but at times Ma's tone was indifferent, and Grandma sounded constantly disapproving and rather harsh. Excellent read!

Compelling

Where does Room rank among all the audiobooks you’ve listened to so far?

The was a pretty good book. I'd give it 4 out of 5 stars

What did you like best about this story?

The end :-) which I wont give away here

Have you listened to any of the narrators’s other performances before? How does this one compare?

I dont think I have heard any of these narrators before

If you could rename Room, what would you call it?

The Norm (as it what each of us finds normal in their life no matter how weird others may fin it)

Great story!

I was on a work trip when I listened to this. Had me up till 2am every night. Couldn't put it down. Only annoying thing: the voice of the boy. The first 15-20mins made me want to pull my hair out. Also, the age of the boy didn't match his character's mature insight. Other than that, great book.

Excellent listen

I was debating over whether to listen to this one or just get the book to read, and I'm glad I chose to listen. Some other reviewers were annoyed by the narration from the little kid's perspective; I'm normally one to get annoyed by poor narration, but I thought the narrator did an excellent job. And the story was so good. I couldn't stop listening!

Difficult, but worth it

Sometimes the monotony seems endless - every detail of life in one room as a hostage - but it's very thought provoking. There were times when I wanted to fast forward and get to the point, but then I realized the monotony was the point, and it gave me a different perspective on life.