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Back to topThe Wonder (Paperback)
October 2016 Indie Next List
“Lib Wright, a protege of Florence Nightingale and a nursing veteran of the Crimean War, is dispatched from London to a remote Irish village to keep watch on Anna O'Donnell, a young girl who is rumored to have refrained from eating for four months yet continues to thrive. Miracle or hoax? Lib is determined to uncover the truth, but the truth is never simple. In this beautiful, haunting novel, Donohue weaves a tale of misguided faith and duty, exploited innocence, and redemptive love. What is the secret behind Anna's mysterious ability to survive? The truth is uncovered as The Wonder propels readers to a shocking conclusion.”
— Cathy Langer (M), Tattered Cover Book Store, Denver, CO
Description
SCOTIABANK GILLER PRIZE FINALIST
#1 NATIONAL BESTSELLER
"Heartbreaking and transcendent." --The New York Times
The latest masterpiece from the Man Booker Prize-shortlisted author of Room
In 1850s Ireland a village is baffled by young Anna O'Donnell's fast. The girl appears to be thriving after months without food, and the story of this "wonder" has reached fever pitch. Tourists flock to the O'Donnell family's cabin, and a journalist is sent to cover the sensational story. Enter Lib, an English nurse trained by Florence Nightingale, who is hired to keep watch over Anna for two weeks to determine whether or not the girl is a fraud. As Anna deteriorates, Lib finds herself responsible not just for the care of a child, but for getting to the root of why the girl may actually be the victim of murder in slow motion.
Written with all the spare and propulsive tension that made Room a bestseller, The Wonder is a tale of two strangers who will transform each other's lives, a powerful psychological thriller and a story of love pitted against evil in its many masks.
"Beautifully moody with the taut pace of a thriller, The Wonder grapples with the potency of love, both human and divine." --Chatelaine