The Wonder, Emma Donoghue
The Wonder, Emma Donoghue
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The Wonder

Author: Emma Donoghue

Narrator: Tara Egan Langley

Unabridged: 9 hr 49 min

Format: Digital Audiobook Download

Published: 11/15/2022

Synopsis

Now a Netflix film starring Florence Pugh: In this “old-school page turner” (Stephen King, New York Times Book Review) by the bestselling author of Room, an English nurse is brought to a small Irish village to observe what appears to be a miracle—a girl said to have survived without food for months—and soon finds herself fighting to save the child's life.

Tourists flock to the cabin of eleven-year-old Anna O'Donnell, who believes herself to be living off manna from heaven, and a journalist is sent to cover the sensation. Lib Wright, a veteran of Florence Nightingale's Crimean campaign, is hired to keep watch over the girl.

Written with all the propulsive tension that made Room a huge bestseller, The Wonder works beautifully on many levels -- a tale of two strangers who transform each other's lives, a powerful psychological thriller, and a story of love pitted against evil.

Acclaim for The Wonder:

"Deliciously gothic.... Dark and vivid, with complicated characters, this is a novel that lodges itself deep" (USA Today, 3/4 stars)

"Heartbreaking and transcendent"(New York Times)

"A fable as lean and discomfiting as Anna's dwindling body.... Donoghue keeps us riveted" (Chicago Tribune)

"Donoghue poses powerful questions about faith and belief" (Newsday)

About Emma Donoghue

Emma Donoghue is the author of sixteen novels, including the award-winning national bestseller Room, the basis for the acclaimed film of the same name. Her latest novel is The Paris Express. She has also written the screenplays for Room and The Wonder and nine stage plays. Born in Dublin, she lives in Ontario with her family. Find out more at EmmaDonoghue.com.

Reviews

Goodreads review by Emily May on September 26, 2016

Lib had a dizzying sense that time could fall into itself like the embers. That in these dim huts nothing had changed since the age of the Druids and nothing ever would. What was that line in the hymn they’d sung at Lib’s school? The night is dark, and I am far from home. I loved this book so muc......more

Goodreads review by [ J o ] on June 12, 2023

This review can be found on Amaranthine Reads. A young girl in Ireland has supposedly lived on no food at all for months on end, claiming that she is living off "manna from heaven" and English nurse Lib has been sent over from England to watch her to make sure the claim is valid. Surrounded by religi......more

Goodreads review by Deanna on January 02, 2017

My reviews can also be seen at: [URL not allowed] I've only read one other book by Emma Donoghue but I loved it. "Room" is one of my favorite books. Because I enjoyed it so much I was worried that anything else I read from the author would pale in comparison. However, after rea......more

Quotes

"Fascinating.... Like The Turn of the Screw, the novel opens irresistibly, when a young woman with a troubled past gets an enigmatic posting in a remote place.... Heartbreaking and transcendent and almost religious in itself."—Sarah Lyall, New York Times

"A fine, fact-based historical novel, an old-school page turner...Donoghue has written, with crackling intensity, about [spirituality's] power to destroy."—Stephen King, New York Times Book Review

"[Donoghue's] contemporary thriller Room made [her] an international bestseller, but this gripping tale offers a welcome reminder that her historical fiction is equally fine."—Kirkus Reviews (starred review)

"Outstanding.... Exploring the nature of faith and trust with heartrending intensity, Donoghue's superb novel will leave few unaffected."—Sarah Johnson, Booklist (starred review)

"Donoghue demonstrates her versatility by dabbling in a wide range of literary styles in this latest novel.... The closely imagined, intricately drawn story possesses many of the same alluring qualities as her bestseller, Room. .... Donoghue's engrossing novel is loaded with descriptions of period customs and 19th-century Catholic devotional objects and prayers...[and] asks daring questions about just how far some might go to prove their faith."—Publishers Weekly (starred review)

"Donoghue is known for her bestselling novel, Room.... [But] she is also well versed in historical fiction. THE WONDER brings together the best of all, combining a gracefully tense, young voice with a richly detailed historical setting."—The Millions

"Readers of historical fiction will gravitate to this tale."—Mary Ann Gwinn, Seattle Times

"A riveting allegory about the trickle-down effect of trauma."—Megan O'Grady, Vogue

"Donoghue poses powerful questions about faith and belief all the while crafting a compelling story and an evocative portrait of 19th-century Irish provincial society."—Tom Beer, Newsday

"Donoghue's superb thriller will keep readers hanging on to every word, pondering how far one will go to prove her faith."—Liz Loerke, Real Simple

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