※本書為《房間》電影書封小說。
一個年輕媽媽的牢籠,是她五歲兒子的全世界。
我四歲的時候,對這世界一無所知,以為它只是一些故事。我五歲的時候,媽對我吐露真相,說真實的世界大到你無法相信,而房間只是它一個 又小又臭的碎片。
對五歲的傑克而言,房間就是全世界。這是他出生和成長的地方,他跟媽住在這裡,學習、閱讀、吃飯、睡覺、遊戲。晚上,當老尼克來訪時, 媽把他安全地關在衣櫃裡。
對傑克來說,房間就是他的整個世界,但對媽而言,卻是老尼克囚禁她七年的監獄。靠著決心、機智和強大的母愛,媽為傑克創造了人生。但她 知道這樣 是不夠的……對她不夠,對傑克也不夠。她想出一個大膽的脫逃計畫,需要仰賴她兒子的勇氣,以及大量的運氣。她沒想到的是,對這計畫一旦成功會 產生什麼樣的 後果,自己竟然沒有充分的準備。
《房間》全書透過精力充沛、童言童語的五歲傑克的口吻來敘述,它不是一個恐怖故事,也沒有催淚的企圖,而是謳歌親子之間的活潑互動與愛 的真諦。 五歲的傑克打動了每個人的心,他的聲音、他的遭遇、他的天真、他的幽默、他對媽的愛,使得故事雖然設定在這麼一個令人不安的前提上,仍能處處 感受到希望與力量。
To five-year-old Jack, Room is the entire world. It is where he was born and grew up; it’s where he lives with his Ma as they learn and read and eat and sleep and play. At night, his Ma shuts him safely in the wardrobe, where he is meant to be asleep when Old Nick visits.
Room is home to Jack, but to Ma, it is the prison where Old Nick has held her captive for seven years. Through determination, ingenuity, and fierce motherly love, Ma has created a life for Jack. But she knows it’s not enough...not for her or for him. She devises a bold escape plan, one that relies on her young son’s bravery and a lot of luck. What she does not realize is just how unprepared she is for the plan to actually work.
Told entirely in the language of the energetic, pragmatic five-year-old Jack, ROOM is a celebration of resilience and the limitless bond between parent and child, a brilliantly executed novel about what it means to journey from one world to another.
★本書中譯本《房間》由大塊文化出版