This book was awful. Emotionless. Annoying.Look, I get it, it's quite difficult to write from the perspective of a 5-year old as a grown up. I can hardly remember what it was like being five, and I can't even begin to write from the POV of one. I do, however, know an enjoyable story when I see it, and I know when I'm annoyed. And I know that this book annoyed me greatly.The hallmark of any brilliant novel is the ability to make the reader empathize for the characters in the book. I want to be ab...

Such a gripping and emotional read! I'm glad I finally took the chance to pick this up and read it.

غرفة : عندما ترى العالم بعيون طفلفي كلِّ مكانٍ في العالم ستجد عيون طفلٍ متسعةتتلألأ فيها الرغبة في المعرفةوتشم فيه رائحة الخيال الجميل والمختلف في هذه الرواية ،هي أنّها يتم سردها عبر جاك الطفل الصغيروالسؤال هو كيف يمكن لبالغٍ أن يتحمل رواية كاملةبرؤية ،وبلغة طفل لم يرى ضوء الشمس لسنواته الخمس؟هنا تكمن براعة إيمااستطاعت أن تبقينا مشدودين مع هذا الطفل الظريف بلا مللبل ستندهش لرؤية العالم من خلال عيونه المندهشةفهي ليست عينا طفل عاديبل طفلٍ لم يعرف سوى شكل الغرفة التي عاش بهاولم يتصور عالماً غيرهايق...

Jesus Christ on a popsicle stick, i can't believe i have to read this! argh. my colleague Michael (hopefully not a GR member) loaned this to me; clearly he knows that i am a "reader". but just as clearly he does not get that i like my books to have at least an edge of un-reality to them. you know, fantasy. horror. science fiction. historical fiction. and if not that, then just something, anything that moves them away from mainstream depictions of the modern real world. now Room looks like a snap...

Healthy ambition is a laudable trait and I admire people willing to reach beyond their grasp in the attempt to achieve something special. I respect the author’s choice to write a dark-themed story narrated entirely from the perspective of a five year old boy. While the unreliable narrator is nothing new in literature, its deployment here felt fresh and so I give points for that. Unfortunately, that is about all I can give points for because the novel itself was a huge miss for me. Huge!! Obv...

I've read about a lot of different crimes, in far more detail than I'd care to remember. In all the tragedies that I've read about, manmade or otherwise, no act of violence has ever made my heart wrench more than the prolonged imprisonment of a human being for sexual purposes. It's also the crime I have the most difficulty in comprehending, as I cannot imagine the amount of inhumanity it would take to capture someone and look her in the eye, day after day for years, without mercy and without pit...

“Hey, there Nick.”“Uh, hello.”“Nice day for working in the yard, isn’t it?”“Uh, yeah. Real nice.”“Say, that is a helluva shed you’re building there.”“It's nothing special.”“Oh, don’t be modest, Nick. It’s a real corker. It’s even got a skylight for some natural light. What are you going to be doing in there? A little artwork?”“Just, you know, projects…. and stuff.”“You got a central AC unit for it? Plus, I see you put some furniture and a fridge in there. If you were married, I’d think you were ...

What makes up the world to five-year-old Jack, our window into life in Room? His mother for sure, a loving, very engaged 24/7 presence. Old Nick is an occasional visitor, although only glimpsed through the almost-closed doors of a wardrobe. A skylight allows Jack and Ma to see the sun, and sometimes the moon. A television offers a view on Outside, the world beyond Room. Jack and his 26-year-old mother get through their days with a strict schedule, a rich imaginative life and absolute love for ea...

Ever since its Booker nomination (it made the shortlist), Room by Irish writer Emma Donoghue has set the literary world on fire. Most people who review the book seem to love it. They talk about how riveting and suspenseful the book is and how they felt compelled to finish it in a single reading. I guess I’ll have to be one of the few dissenting voices. I really, really, really disliked Room and yes, I do have specific reasons why.I can’t imagine anyone not knowing the basic plot of Room, but for...

I was all ready to hate this book. Doesn't it sound obnoxious? An adult novel about harrowing things, but narrated by a 5-year-old? Mere gimmickry, right, a showy writing experiment, likely to win praise from the easily impressed.But I don't think I am that easily impressed, and damn, this book is kind of a stunner. Because yes, if not handled exactly right, a book narrated by a child probably would be obnoxious. I haven't read Extremely Loud & Incredibly Close yet, and I might or might not ...