Ratings265
Average rating3.9
I read “Room” based on a recommendation from a friend. I wasn't expecting to like it, based on reviews I had seen. To my pleased surprise, it was one of the best books I've read in years.
The plot is simple: a young woman is abducted, locked in a room where she is repeatedly raped, gives birth, and tries to escape. But the story is told from the viewpoint of her 5 year old son. And that is where the beauty of the story develops; what seems totally illogical and unbelievable to an adult is accepted without question by a 5 year old. The parenting choices the mother makes would seem, at best, odd, in the normal world. But in the confines of a 10 by 10 room which is their whole world, they are understandable and in the best interests of the child.
The book illustrates the boundless love of a mother for her child, and yet she commits an act of unalloyed selfishness. The little boy is a typical child who doesn't question anything told him by an adult, who starts to question everything.
The book left me wondering what happens to these characters in the future.