Book Review: Room by Emma Donoghue

In Room, a five-year-old boy and his mother are held captive in an 11 x 11 foot room. 

A few years ago, I walked into my local bookstore. 

The proprietor greeted me--book in hand. "Leanne, you have to read Room."

"What's it about?"

"A mother and her son are held captive in an eleven-by-eleven foot space." Was all I heard her say.

And all I could think was:  How depressing. Do I really need to feed my brain something so heavy?

But I value her opinion. So brought Room home. 

For two years the book haunted me until I finally gave in. I took the book off the shelf, flipped it open and read the first page. 

And what I thought was:  The story is told by a five-year-old boy? What an original narrator. Maybe I should just read the book simply to discover how/if Emma Donoghue pulls it off. 

I tried to keep reading but...

All I could think was:  What if something happens to the little boy? I don't want to read about the victimization of a child. 

Then, one day, curiosity won. I dived back in. I learnt that Jack isn't a victim. And even though hero and survivor are adjectives I would use to describe him I learnt that he wouldn't claim them. Room to me symbolizes fear and confinement--Room to him symbolizes a cozy home, thanks to his courageous mother.  

As I write this I have ten pages left to read--and I don't want to leave Jack. I feel a deep connection to him. He has made me laugh out loud; he has brought me to tears. 

Yes, it is a story about a mother and son confined in a small space. But, oh, it's so much more than that.

Questions I asked myself as I read:  What's my Room? What's my Outside? Why? How can I break free and overcome?

Published by HarperCollins Canada

Published in 2010

Buy this book

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No MFA? Submit to these literary magazines by Leanne Dyck

In her article -- What Your Writer's Resume Says About Your Chances for Recognition -- Sharon Bially outlines steps authors can take to keep their manuscripts out of the shredder and increase the likelihood that your potential publisher will read it. Among these steps, Ms. Bially recommends submitting short stories to literary journals. 

To this recommendation, Paula Cappa wrote:  'My question is how does a serious writer break into literary magazines without writing or academic credentials already established? Would you be able to give us a few names of lit magazines that you know to be open to new writers who don't have MFAs or a list of previously published short stories?'

Canadian literary magazines that are open to new writers who don't have MFAs or a list of previously published short stories...

The Fiddlehead

From their website:  'Work is read on an on going basis, the acceptance is rate is around 1-2%'
Welcomes international submitters.


The Malahat Review 

From their website: 'It publishers poetry, short fiction, and creative nonfiction by new and established writers mostly from Canada as well as reviews of Canadian books, and the best writing from abroad.'

Room

From their website: '[P]ublishes orriginal work by women.'

Prism International 

Welcomes international submitters.

The New Quarterly

From their website: 'Please be advised that we only publish writing by Canadian citizens (whether living at home or abroad) and landed immigrants.'


Grain

From their website: '[I]internationally acclaimed literary journal that publishes engaging, surprising, eclectic, and challenging writing and art by Canadian and international writers and artists.'

Prairie Fire

Welcomes international submitters.

Capilano Review

Welcomes international submitters.

This list was last updated on February 15, 2025.

All of these journals pay contributors. In 2014, I submitted a manuscript to each of these journals -- at least one, some more than one. I haven't been published, yet -- but I've come close.
Submitting to literary magazines is like dating: you should have fun, be polite, and get to know each other. Not all of them will be a good fit, but you'll meet some nice people.

Sharing my author journey...