A Book, A Poem and some letters

I read a marvellous book today. Room by Emma Donoghue. It is one of those books that you can literally read in one sitting. It was affecting, beautifully written and utterly original. One of those books that stays inside you and makes the world seem ever so slightly different. The very best sort I suppose.

'Room' is the story of five year old Jack and his ma who are imprisoned in a room measuring eleven feet by eleven feet. So far, so Fritzl. But,what makes this book so original is the narrator. The narrative is entirely told by Jack, who was born in the room and believes that there is nothing else except for his ma, 'Old Nick' and the room. Jack is a fallible narrator and Donoghue's use of dramatic irony is simply wonderful. Jack is unaware what is going on when he is counting the 'creaks' 'Old Nick' makes on the bed whilst he is with Jack's ma whereas the reader can see a much darker side to this. I've never read anything like it before, it was so powerful, so real, and so incredibly affecting.

In other news, if you have nothing to do please read 'An Almost Made Up Poem' by Charles Bukowski. http://www.poemhunter.com/poem/an-almost-made-up-poem/

Finally, I have begun writing letters. I miss the handwritten letter. I miss a scribbled note on the fridge instead of a text message. I love the idea of someone's hand curling my name into their own scrawl. Shoni (again, I implore you to read her blog http://shonielizabeth.blogspot.com/) has recently written me a handwritten letter and it was such a joy to open. It is currently stuck on my wall in front of me amongst pritned out pictures from my travels. So to all my friends out there expect a handwritten letter over the next few weeks. So much more effort than a text, and so much more rewarding (for the reciever and the writer).

An aside though, be warned, once you start writing letters...you might never stop.

This is 'BLOGPOST002'. It's been eventful. Bye Blog.