A Room Called Earth

A Novel

By: Madeleine Ryan

Narrated by: Madeleine Ryan

“A resolute deep dive into an inner self, a transcendent character study, and a timely reminder that there’s an entire universe inside of everyone we meet. You will be moved.” —Matthew Quick, New York Times bestselling author of The Silver Linings Playbook

“[N]uanced and uplifting.” —Buzzfeed

An unforgettable story of a fiercely original young woman, whose radical perspective illuminates a new way of being in the world

As a full moon rises over Melbourne, Australia, a young woman gets ready for a party. And what appears to be an ordinary night out is—through the prism of her singular perspective—extraordinary. As the evening unfolds, each encounter she has reveals the vast discrepancies between what she is thinking and feeling, and what she is able to say. And there's so much she'd like to say. So when she meets a man and a genuine connection occurs, it's nothing short of a miracle. However, it isn't until she invites him home that we come to appreciate the humanity beneath the labels we cling to, and we can grasp the pleasure of what it means to be alive.

The debut novel from the inimitable Madeleine Ryan, A Room Called Earth is a humorous and heartwarming adventure inside the mind of a bright and dynamic woman. This hyper-saturated celebration of love and acceptance, from a neurodiverse writer, is a testament to moving through life without fear, and to opening ourselves up to a new way of relating to one another.

great observations

I'm not usually into stream of consciousness books. however, this book really did a good job of embodying the thoughts of the main character. The stream of consciousness reflected the actual life of the character. The entire story takes place in a 24-hour period, test is compelling and surprising.

A must listen.

This was a great book and the authors voice is fantastic. I loved every second of it. If pressed for a complaint, I’d say that in dialogues there was not much differentiation between characters so I did get a little mixed up a couple times. But this may be my favorite listen so far.

Boring

Just couldn’t get into the story- boring and slow. Didn’t finish listening, just couldn’t push through.

Take me away

I love books that take me to new places and this book did just that in so many ways. I cried at the end not because it made me sad but because it was so beautiful.

Product of a beautiful mind

I suspect this book will not resonate with everyone, but it certainly did with me as an autistic adult- the author sees what I see and gives a beautiful and vivid picture of one person’s interior world.