Room by Emma Donoghue

Room was a tough subject to tackle. Emma Donaghue, however, manages to do this excellently. We start the story on Jacks 5^th birthday. He was born in an 11 foot by 11 foot room, which is the only world he has ever known. He lives with his Ma and his ‘friends’ Rug, TV, Wardrobe and Plant; as his mother has given characters to each of the objects in the room. Room is the only reality that Jack has ever experienced, and the things he sees on TV like other boys and girls and the outside world are not actually real to him. Jack is unaware of the true horror of his situation. Ma protects him from their captor Old Nick, who to Jack is just the man that brings them food and Sunday treats. Jack has never seen Old Nick as he is always instructed to hide inside the wardrobe when Old Nick visits. This world is shown to us through the eyes of this 5 year old boy, and Emma decides to tell this story in his voice. The reader is fully aware of what is going on even though Jack does not grasp the tragic reality of his world. This makes it a lot easier for the reader to digest such a difficult subject.
When, through various circumstances, Jack eventually does see ‘Outside’; it is a real mind trip to discover the world for the first time through the eyes of this 5 year old boy. Donaghue takes us on a journey of discovery with Jack. I did battle at times to read the 5 year olds language, and it was not an enjoyable book to get totally lost in. But it is skillfully written and the story is told in a refreshing way.