A Room Called Earth
by Madeleine Ryan
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Pub Date 14 Jan 2021 | Archive Date 31 Jan 2021
Scribe UK | Scribe
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Description
A brilliant debut from a neurodiverse author that explores a young woman's magical, sensitive, and passionate inner world.
A young woman gets ready to go to a party. She arrives, feels overwhelmed, leaves, and then returns. Minutely attuned to the people who come into her view, and alternating between alienation and profound connection, she is hilarious, self-aware, sometimes acerbic, and always honest.
And by the end of the night, she’s shown us something radical about love, loss, and the need to belong.
Advance Praise
‘A resolute deep dive into an inner self, a transcendent character study, and a timely reminder that there’s an entire universe inside of everyone we meet. You will be moved.’
—Matthew Quick, New York Times bestselling author of The Silver Linings Playbook
‘Heralds the debut of a writer to whom it is worth attending. Flashes of insight, eruptions of startling descriptions, and an original style all add to the excitement of discovering Ryan's fresh observations of the world around her protagonist. Worth reading slowly to savour this highly engaging perspective and this unique new voice.’
— Naomi Wolf
‘A daring, prismatic novel about seeing and being seen, and the hunger for universal connection. Madeleine Ryan’s clarity of vision imbues the ordinary — a party, strangers, inner-city streets — with cosmic significance. I came out of A Room Called Earth with fresh eyes and a full heart.’
— Laura Elizabeth Woollett, author of Beautiful Revolutionary
Available Editions
| EDITION | Ebook |
| ISBN | 9781925938388 |
| PRICE | US$31.99 (USD) |
| PAGES | 304 |
Links
Available on NetGalley
Featured Reviews
Lara F, Reviewer
I think the unnamed narrator of this novel might be the coolest fictional character I’ve ever encountered and I really wanted to spend more time with her. A novel about autism that wonderfully explains how differently the protagonist thinks from other people that is in most ways actually a story about a party and being young and how relationships work - I learned so much (also about the situation of the Aboriginal population in Australia, various healing practices and how to care for both native and exotic flora and fauna) without ever feeling like I was being preached at. I was desperate to know what happened next and to spend some more time in the company of the narrator and I will definitely be recommending this novel to everyone I meet! Thanks to NetGalley for the ARC.
Reviewer 732522
🌿BOOK REVIEW🌿
A Room Called Earth by Madeleine Ryan
🌼🌼🌼🌼/5
“If I said and did what I wanted without restraint- the man in my life wouldn’t be able to comprehend it.”
This novel is written in a stream of consciousness from the perspective of a young woman on the autism spectrum. It is based over the course of one night when she goes to a party. It explores so many key issues from Australian Aboriginal people, identify, being different and social constructs.
I can honestly say I felt like I was inside the narrators brain. I have never read a book where the protagonist is so aware of how different she is to those around her while trying to find someone who she connects with. I also cannot rave enough about the fact that the main trait of this protagonist isn’t being afraid of social interaction! I feel this author has written a great activist piece about autism and how every individual is beautifully unique.
I have read books written as a stream of consciousness before and haven’t liked them, but I couldn’t put this one down! I loved the short chapters and I finished this book within a few days.
It is a gorgeously infinite insight into the life of someone who is on the autism spectrum. Madeleine Ryan has written a great OwnVocies novel about neuro-diversity and I highly recommend picking it up (if you couldn’t tell already!!).
I kindly received an eARC from Scribe in exchange for an honest review.
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