Start reading Room on your Kindle in under a minute. Don't have a Kindle? Get your Kindle here or start reading now with a free Kindle Reading App.

Deliver to your Kindle or other device

 
 
 

Try it free

Sample the beginning of this book for free

Deliver to your Kindle or other device

Anybody can read Kindle books – even without a Kindle device-with the FREE Kindle app for smartphones and tablets.
Room
 
 

Room [Kindle Edition]

Emma Donoghue
4.2 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (1,255 customer reviews)

Print List Price: £7.99
Kindle Price: £1.19 includes VAT* & free wireless delivery via Amazon Whispernet
You Save: £6.80 (85%)
* Unlike print books, digital books are subject to VAT.

Amazon.co.uk Trade-In Store
Did you know you can use your mobile to trade in your unwanted books for an Amazon.co.uk Gift Card to spend on the things you want? Visit the Books Trade-In Store for more details or check out the Trade-In Amazon Mobile App Guidelines on how to trade in using a smartphone. Learn more.

Customers Who Bought This Item Also Bought


Product Description

Review

"'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 'One of the most profoundly affecting books I've read in a long time' John Boyne 'Such incredible imagination, and dazzling use of language... Room is unlike anything I've ever read before' Anita Shreve 'Room is that rarest of entities, an entirely original work of art. I mean it as the highest possible praise when I tell you that I can't compare it to any other book. Suffice to say that it's potent, darkly beautiful, and revelatory' Michael Cunningham"

Review

"Only a handful of authors have ever known how to get inside the mind of a child and then get what they know on paper. Henry James, Mark Twain, William Faulkner, and, more recently, Jean Stafford and Eric Kraft come to mind, and after that one gropes for names. But now they have company. Emma Donoghue's latest novel, "Room", is narrated by a 5-year-old boy so real you could swear he was sitting right beside you.... Room is so beautifully contrived that it never once seems contrived. But be warned: once you enter, you'll be Donoghue's willing prisoner right down to the last page."-- "Newsweek" "Malcolm Jones "

Product details

  • Format: Kindle Edition
  • File Size: 476 KB
  • Print Length: 417 pages
  • Page Numbers Source ISBN: 0330519026
  • Publisher: Picador (1 Aug 2010)
  • Sold by: Amazon Media EU S.à r.l.
  • Language: English
  • ASIN: B003X27L9U
  • Text-to-Speech: Enabled
  • X-Ray:
  • Average Customer Review: 4.2 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (1,255 customer reviews)
  • Amazon Bestsellers Rank: #542 Paid in Kindle Store (See Top 100 Paid in Kindle Store)
  •  Would you like to give feedback on images?


More About the Author

Discover books, learn about writers, and more.

What Other Items Do Customers Buy After Viewing This Item?


Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews
90 of 94 people found the following review helpful
4.0 out of 5 stars Room Conversion 4 April 2011
By Quicksilver TOP 500 REVIEWER VINE VOICE
Format:Paperback
Being aware of the rather unappealing premise of 'Room', it wasn't a book I wanted to read. Despite the praise heaped upon it, I had expected it to be the sort of voyeuristic account of great suffering that passes as entertainment these days. My book group however, were keen to read it, and so I acquiesced agreeing to give it a try. I have to say my original assumption was well wide of the mark. Right from the beginning it is obvious that this novel is something special.

The story (as you probably already know) is narrated by 'Jack', a five year old, who has only ever lived in 'Room'. Jack's mother has been kidnapped and held for seven years. Jack is the product of her kidnapper's unwanted attentions. Knowing the book had a child narrator had also put me off reading it. I tend to find that books written with a child's voice are normally pretentious and hard to read. Room's Booker prize nomination had done nothing to allay these fears.

Although Jack's voice is not entirely consistent with how I imagine a five-year-olds might be, it is the making of the novel. For a start, that something so pure and innocent can come from such bleak circumstances, makes the novel bearable. Secondly, Emma Donaghue uses Jack's over-simplified understanding of the world almost without fault. She uses the space between reality and Jack's view of reality to convey events in a much more powerful way than writing about them directly. The whole novel is the ultimate example of 'showing' rather than 'telling'.

It is curious that the most exciting point of the novel is about halfway through. Though I feel novel's the gradual relaxation of tension is entirely justified (mirroring, Jack's return to something like a normal life), it does make the last half of the novel feel over long.
Read more ›
Comment | 
Was this review helpful to you?
262 of 279 people found the following review helpful
By Nicola F (Nic) TOP 500 REVIEWER
Format:Paperback
This is a book I hadn't heard much about prior to picking it up (I try to avoid too overly-hyped novels), but I'm so glad that I gave this a chance. There's not a lot I can add to all the previous reviews and comments that hasn't already been said, other than to afirm that this is a bloody good read.

Told from the point of view of five year old Jack, the novel sees him and his mother living in `Room,' a place the child has never left in his whole life. Unbeknownst to him however, that is because he and his mother are both prisoners and this little boy's world is about to be turned entirely upside down...

I am in awe at the authors ability to consistently maintain the voice of a child in telling this story; granted an incredibly *smart* child, but a child nonetheless. This is what for me made this book so fascinating, because Jack is such a memorable narrator. Also, the relationship between a mother and child who ultimately only have each other was told such in a moving way that for me that was the essence of the novel, despite the sinister plot twists, which were granted, a bit predictable but still very well portrayed.

I adored this book and couldn't put it down. The storyline is compelling, despite the sad turns of events, and characters are incredibly skilfully developed and believable. I would urge everyone to read this book- you won't be sorry you did.
Was this review helpful to you?
17 of 18 people found the following review helpful
5.0 out of 5 stars Beautifully written - couldn't put it down 4 Sep 2011
Format:Kindle Edition
I loved this book. Even a month after finishing it I am thinking about the characters and thinking about how good it was and how beautifully written. Seeing things from the child's point of view and hearing his thoughts reminded me a little of The Curious Case of the Dog in the Night Time, although this book felt emotionally deeper that the Dog in the Night, probably because of the theme of captivity.
Despite that being the theme, it's not gruelling to read at all. At no point did I feel disgusted or disturbed, which I was worried about before I started it and was told it was inspired by the Josef Fritzel case. It IS about a mother and son being held captive, but the captor is given very little description and limited attention is given to him. Apparently Donaghue did that on purpose as she didn't want the book to be about him. She has said the main thing that gave her inspiration from the Fritzel case wasn't the torture or the assault or Fritzel himself; the thing she found fascinating was the idea of a child being born in that room and only knowing that for their whole life, then emerging into a world they've never seen before like an alien landing on earth. That's what comes through in the book and it's really eye-opening. The other overwhelming theme is the bond between a mother and child. That's what I found anyway. It's great - read it.
Was this review helpful to you?
6 of 6 people found the following review helpful
2.0 out of 5 stars Room without a view 15 Aug 2011
Format:Paperback
I found this book more than a little tedious. Given the situation and the awfulness of circumstance, the book felt rushed as to detail and slow as to pace. I had to read it for my book club and I would not have bothered past the first chapter otherwise.
Comment | 
Was this review helpful to you?
239 of 265 people found the following review helpful
5.0 out of 5 stars Ambitious, intelligent and utterly gripping 18 July 2010
By Roman Clodia TOP 100 REVIEWER
Format:Hardcover|Amazon Vine Review (What's this?)
This is a genuinely original, imaginative and ambitious novel which Donoghue pulls off brilliantly. Written through the voice and perspective of 5 year old Jack, we witness his happy and secure solitary life with his mother in Room. Playing on the tradition of other naive child-narrators (e.g. Pip in Great Expectations, Maisie in What Maisie Knew) we experience his exuberant take on what he naturally assumes is normal, only the sinister implications of their life seep through the edges to unsettle us as readers, revealing a far more menacing reality that he doesn't see.

This isn't a plot driven novel full of twists and turns, instead it is an intelligent and detailed exploration of the way the human mind constructs its own reality. Full of tenderness as well as pain, this celebrates the relationship created by this young mother with her son, and reveals the enormous potential for resilience in the human spirit.

The second half of the book where Jack experiences Outside for the first time is fresh and imaginative, sometimes funny but also agonising as this solemn 5 year old understands for the first time that the world doesn't consist of just him and his mother, and that the rules which they lived by can, and should, be broken.

There are a few small points where Donoghue stumbles (the first TV interview felt very false and forced; some of Jack's naivety towards the end takes on the tinge of adult satire and I felt like it was the author, not the character, talking about how people have too little time to enjoy their lives).

But these are small niggles in a powerful and overwhelmingly confident narrative. I started this in the afternoon and was literally unable to put the book down till I finished it that night and even after that Jack's voice still haunted me. It's quite rare for me to be really gripped by a contemporary literary novel but this one managed it effortlessly: highly recommended.
Was this review helpful to you?
Would you like to see more reviews about this item?
Were these reviews helpful?   Let us know
Most Recent Customer Reviews
5.0 out of 5 stars Brilliant
It was quite difficult initially to follow the language in the beginning, as you're inside the head of a 5yr old without introduction. Read more
Published 2 hours ago by Caroline Purvis
1.0 out of 5 stars not for me
I got bored, I didn't like the writing style. even though this had been recommended top me. I gave up after a few chapters.
Published 1 day ago by amy502
1.0 out of 5 stars Awful!
Reading the storyline on the back of the book, this seemed like a very interesting read...how wrong was I? Read more
Published 2 days ago by watkinss2
1.0 out of 5 stars Not a good read
Have read some bad books in my time but most of them i could finish this one however is not one of them. Read more
Published 3 days ago by megans
2.0 out of 5 stars Not my cup of tea.
I don't particularly enjoy children on a whole, meaning I found parts of this book annoying and frustrating. Read more
Published 3 days ago by Lauren
5.0 out of 5 stars Room - Review
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. Read more
Published 4 days ago by SammyF
5.0 out of 5 stars A riveting read
I found this story very thought provoking and very believable, as I believe this sort of kidnapping/controlled imprisonment does go on even today. Read more
Published 4 days ago by Trevor Skeates
5.0 out of 5 stars gripping
Such an emotive read. One of the best books I have read in a long time. Seriously thought provoking. Huge praise for the author!
Published 5 days ago by Mark Anthony
3.0 out of 5 stars abrupt ending!
I really enjoyed this book. The idea of the heroine telling her son that the outside world they saw on the television was make believe, so that he was content to spend all of his... Read more
Published 5 days ago by tracy gallagher
4.0 out of 5 stars Room
I first saw this book in a pub of all places. So only had a quick look at the synopsis. As it looked interesting and my Granddaughter,
who had read it thought I would like it,... Read more
Published 5 days ago by David John
Search Customer Reviews
Only search this product's reviews

Popular Highlights

 (What's this?)
"e;
“It’s called mind over matter. If we don’t mind, it doesn’t matter.” "e;
Highlighted by 121 Kindle users
"e;
Also everywhere I’m looking at kids, adults mostly don’t seem to like them, not even the parents do. They call the kids gorgeous and so cute, they make the kids do the thing all over again so they can take a photo, but they don’t want to actually play with them, they’d rather drink coffee talking to other adults. Sometimes there’s a small kid crying and the Ma of it doesn’t even hear. "e;
Highlighted by 94 Kindle users
"e;
When I was a little kid I thought like a little kid, but now I’m five I know everything. "e;
Highlighted by 83 Kindle users

Customer Discussions

This product's forum
Discussion Replies Latest Post
Pricing for Kindle books. 31 25 May 2011
Room: Not The End 8 9 May 2011
See all 2 discussions...  
Start a new discussion
Topic:
First post:
Prompts for sign-in
 

Search Customer Discussions
   


Customers Who Highlighted This Item Also Highlighted


Look for similar items by category


ARRAY(0xa975d480)