"Room" by Emma Donoghue (development, characters, plot, favorite)

[FindTheCure]

I've heard Room by Emma Donoghue is a very sad book. Could someone who has read the book tell me why the book is a sad one to read? I may eventually read it when my work schedule has calmed down, but I am incredibly curious.

[Mattie]

I liked it. It's hard to say why it's sad without giving up the plot though. I found the main characters to be very resilient, and while the premise was sad, and some of the events where, it didn't make me sad reading it.

[charisb]

I agree with Mattie. It is not a book I would describe as sad although 'sad' things happen. Without giving too much away, I would describe it as being about the ability to survive and even thrive under the most challenging circumstances.
It is a favorite of mine. I even use it in a course I teach on child development.

[fleetiebelle]

I thought it was more intense than sad, but I liked the perspective of the narrator. (How's that for vague and unspoilery?)

[Cida]

I wouldn't have chosen the word "sad," either. It's interesting and different.

It's also a pretty easy read. I mean, you don't need to carve out a lot of time in your schedule.

[Brynach]

I'm late to the page on this thread. I only recently read Room. I do not qualify it as "sad" at all. I cried during it, but not from sadness but a sense of wonder and power in the scenes. It's a book of revelations and some of those revelations are very powerful and difficult to read. But in the end I felt it was a book that ended as well as could considering the topic matter.