Room by Emma Donoghue - Book Review

I heard from my coworker that Room was a book she couldn't put down, so when my sister got a copy, I couldn't wait to get my hands on it!

Room is told through the perspective of five-year-old Jack, and to him, Room is the entire world. He was born there and he lives with his Ma, eats, plays and learns there and sleeps in the wardrobe at night, in case Old Nick shows up. To Jack's Ma, Room is a small shed where Old Nick has kept her for seven years after kidnapping her, ever since she was nineteen. She has created a life for her son but knows they can't go on like this forever. She has to figure out a way to escape her prison.

I couldn't put the book down once I started. Emma Donoghue does an excellent job of drawing you into Jack's world, seeing things through his eyes, a child born and raised in captivity who doesn't know anything about the outside world. You feel the danger that Jack's Ma feels and the urgency of which she wants to escape. I highly recommend this book (try not to read it during a weeknight, you won't be able to put it down!) and I'm looking forward to reading more of Donoghue's books.

Julie and Julia

Last week I finished reading Julie and Julia by Julie Powell about her year cooking through Julia Child's cookbook, Mastering the Art of French Cooking and blogging about it. It's an interesting read, interspersed with snippets of Julia Child's life. What makes it more fun is that it's a true story, and Julie Powell actually exists, and she actually did cook through all those recipes. Even the original blog still exists!!! Check it out here. She has a new blog now that her cooking project is finished, about her life.

Last night, I watched the movie adaptation. Meryl Strep does a spot on impression of Julia Child. She's brilliant! It's a fun movie to watch, and though it does not follow the book exactly, I would recommend it to anyone looking for something light to watch!

The Girls

I finished reading The Girls by Lori Lansens. I received it as a freebie but it turned out to be a pretty good book anyway. It's about craniopagus twins, Rose and Ruby Darlen, and their life growing up in Ontario. Rose is diagnosed with an aneurysm, and she starts writing an autobiography. Lansens does an excellent job of narrating the girls' stories, with such good details. Soon I kept wondering if this was even a fiction novel (it is) because it's so beautifully written.

The Time Traveler's Wife

I finished another book in two days, The Time Traveler's Wife, by Audrey Niffenegger. It was a really good read, and so sad too! I'm sure a lot of you watched the movie version already, so you probably know what it's about. (I haven't seen it yet, though it does look really good!!). Henry has chronic displacement disorder and time travels involuntarily to the past or future. Clare is his wife/future wife who is always waiting for him. The story is full of longing and frustrations of their love story and I guarantee you won't be able to put it down until you've finished the book! I was staying up until 4am just to read this. Egads, I need to stop buying and borrowing books to read, otherwise I will never get any sleep!   

Pirate Latitudes

I finished reading Michael Crichton's latest (and last) novel, Pirate Latitudes last night. As usual, it was an excellent read. Crichton is my favorite author, and with good reason! All his novels are exciting and gripping, with interesting topics. Pirate Latitudes is about a group of men who go on a privateering expedition (not pirates!) to capture the treasure from Mantanceros. Of there, there is a lot of fighting, ship wrecks, and treasures.

Crichton passed away last November from cancer, and Pirate Latitudes was found as a complete manuscript by one of his assistants. How sad that this is his last book ever! I have read and bought almost all of his books (I think I am missing one, two now that this is out) because he is just THAT good a writer. Go order your copy today, you won't regret it!

Princess Books: The Stepsister Scheme and The Mermaid's Madness

I have been reading some awesome books by Jim C. Hines. This is a new series by the author about fairytale princesses we all know and love. Except totally twisted. These are kickass princesses who don't get their happily ever after (except Cinderella). Two books are out so far, The Stepsister Scheme and The Mermaid's Madness. I read it out of order, so I just finished the 2nd book yesterday and am currently reading the first book. They are SOOOO good. The stories center around Danielle (Cinderella), Snow (Snow White - Snow is just her nickname, her real name is long and I forget), and Talia (Sleeping Beauty).

Danielle marries Prince Armand and gets her happily ever after. Snow killed her mother, who killed the hunter who was supposed to kill Snow, but fell in love with her and lived with her for a year. Snow fled her kingdom after that. Talia and her family gets put into 100 years of sleep, only to have her uncle try to take the throne. The prince that hacks his way through the thorns into the castle kills Talia's family, then rapes her. Talia wakes up from labour pains! She flees her kingdom too and learns all sorts of kick ass fighting skills. Now Snow and Talia serve Queen Beatrice, the queen of Lorinder, where Danielle lives.

In the first book, Danielle's stepsisters kidnap Armand...then try to steal her child before he is even born! The trio of princesses set out to rescue him in Fairyland, where they think the stepsister's took him. That's all I got up to in the book so I can't tell you what happens next, sorry. You'll just have to read it yourself!


In The Mermaid's Madness, Queen Beatrice gets stabbed by The Little Mermaid, who has gone crazy because she killed her prince. The three princesses have to set out to sea to find the mermaid's grandmother, who made the knife.



A third princess book, Red Hood's Revenge, is coming out next year in 2010 focused on Little Red Riding Hood, who is an assassin.