Author: Emma Donoghue
Publisher: Picador (Pan Macmillan)
Pages: 432
Price: Rs 350
Genre: Fiction / literary fiction
Rating: 10/10
Format: Paperback
I read
‘A Stolen Life’ by Jaycee Dugard some time
back. With due respect to what she went through as a captive, the book as a
piece of literature did not work for me. It felt gross and repetitive.
‘Room’
by Emma Donoghue has a strikingly similar premise. ‘A Stolen Life’ is a true
story, while ‘Room’ is a fictitious one. This widely-talked about, much-hyped, award-winning
book is essentially about Jack, a 5-year old boy, who lives with his mother -
Ma – in eleven feet by eleven feet room. He was born in that room and has been
oblivious to the world outside; this ‘room’ is his world. Jack believes that most
of the things which he sees on TV are imaginary. His ‘Ma’ has been kept captive
by a man (they call Old Nick) for last 7 years. For me, it was Jack’s story all
the way - how he rises above his circumstances, makes sense of the things around
him and copes with the changing situations.
What
differentiates this book from several others like this is the fact that the
narration is by the 5-year old Jack. And that transforms the book from a potentially
depressing and dark tale to the one of discovery, wonder and courage. Notwithstanding
their circumstances, the book is heart-warming, charming and endearing.
Though
we don’t know what Ma thinks but what Jack thinks about her mother tells a lot
about her. It is amazing how she takes care of a curious and intelligent child
in the confines of a small room; giving him enough exercise, mental
stimulation, activities and entertainment throughout the day. Jack and Ma
follow a routine everyday which includes things like playing pillow fight,
Island, Karate, Tracks, screaming at the top of their voice, watching TV,
singing, playing parrot, and weekly activities like cleaning and scrubbing,
laundry, mattress flipping, washing hair, etc.
As a
result, Jack’s vocabulary and thinking abilities are much advanced than an average
five-year old.
Despite
the fact that Ma has been a victim of forced captivity and abuse for so many
years, the book does not focus on that aspect. We hardly get to know any major
details even about the Old Nick. We gather some bits and pieces from what Jack
puts across matter-of-factly. For example, Old Nick visits their room on
several nights, when Jack is supposed to be hidden in the cupboard (Ma does her
best to keep Jack away from Old Nick). Ma bears the entire ordeal of sexual
abuse (implied) so that she can get food and utilities for Jack’s survival from
Old Nick.
“When Old Nick creaks Bed, I listen and count
fives on my fingers, tonight it’s 217 creaks. I always have to count till he
makes that gaspy sound and stops.”
After
his fifth birthday, Ma starts telling Jack about the existence of a real world outside,
and starts putting together a plan for escape.
It is
interesting the way the author has put across the relevance of “the room” for
Jack. Ma and Jack look at the room differently. For Ma, it epitomizes her
plight, while for Jack it has been the world for five years of his life. The ‘room’
is his cocoon, where he wants to crawl back for comfort.
The
author, in her interview at the end of the book, says she has used ‘classic
errors and grammatical oddities that would not seriously confuse readers” and
yet keep the essence of the voice of a 5-year old.
I kept
wondering about the closure of the book, and prayed that it should not be
disappointing. Though it was not a dramatic closure, it was certainly the most
apt.
Beautiful
characterization and excellent story-telling make this book worthy of all the
attention and praise it is getting all over the world.
Never
mind the 400 pages. Read it. Period.
