in 2017
Stir Fry and Hood Donoghue's first novel was 1994's
Stir Fry, a contemporary
coming of age novel about a young Irish woman discovering her sexuality. It was a finalist for the
Lambda Literary Award in 1994. It was a finalist for the 2001
Irish Literature Prize for Fiction and was awarded the 2002
Ferro-Grumley Award for Lesbian Fiction (despite a lack of lesbian content).
Landing Her 2007 novel,
Landing, portrays a long-distance relationship between a Canadian curator and an Irish flight attendant.
The Sealed Letter The Sealed Letter (2008), another work of historical fiction, is based on the Codrington Affair, a scandalous divorce case that gripped Britain in 1864. The protagonist is
Emily Faithfull.
The Sealed Letter was longlisted for the
Giller Prize and was joint winner with
Chandra Mayor's
All the Pretty Girls of the 2009
Lambda Literary Award for Lesbian Fiction.
Room On 27 July 2010, Donoghue's novel
Room was longlisted for the
Man Booker Prize and on 7 September 2010 it made the
shortlist.
Room was also shortlisted for the
2010 Governor General's Awards in Canada, and was the winner of the
Irish Book Award 2010. It was short-listed for the
Orange Prize for Fiction 2011, but lost out to
Téa Obreht. Donoghue later wrote the screenplay for a film version of the book,
Room (2015), for which she was nominated for an Academy Award, Golden Globe and BAFTA Award, and in 2017 adapted it into a play performed at the
Abbey Theatre in Dublin.
Frog Music Donoghue's novel
Frog Music, a historical fiction book based on the true story of a murdered 19th-century cross-dressing frog catcher, was published in 2014.
The Wonder Donoghue's 2016 novel
The Wonder was shortlisted for the
Scotiabank Giller Prize. It describes a case of
Anorexia mirabilis in which an English nurse is brought in to observe a
fasting girl in a devout Irish family; the after effects of the
Crimean War, in which the protagonist served, and the
Great Famine, in which the family suffered, cast their shadows. A
film of the novel was released in autumn 2022. Directed by
Sebastián Lelio, the screenplay is by Donoghue and
Alice Birch, with
Florence Pugh in the leading role. David Ehrlich of
IndieWire called it a "sumptuous but slightly undercooked tale", praising Lelio's direction, the performances, the cinematography, and the score. Peter Bruge praised the cast performances in his review for
Variety but criticized the screenplay, summarizing it as an "evenhanded but ultimately preposterous adaptation".
The Hollywood Reporter's Stephen Farber found it an "illuminating study of dark prejudices" and commended Pugh's performance, as well as Lelio's direction which he said represents perhaps his "finest achievement to date".
Akin Akin (2019) is a contemporary novel, though with much discussion of events during the
Second World War in France. Alex Preston in
The Guardian called it "dispiriting". The novel received strongly positive reviews from critics and was longlisted for the Giller Prize in 2020.
Haven This novel, published in 2022, is set among monks in the seventh century on
Skellig Michael. Hephzibah Anderson, in
The Guardian, wrote that "While
Haven certainly isn’t her most accessible novel, a flinty kind of hope brightens its satisfying ending. What the reader is likely to take away, however, is the image of a bleak place made still bleaker by human intervention".
Learned by Heart This novel published in 2023 explores the relationship between Anne Lister and Eliza Raine during their time at Miss Hargrave's Manor school. The novel delves into their deep connection and Eliza's reflections from an asylum. While praised for its portrayal of first love, some critics found the detailed depiction of school life overshadowed the central narrative.
Learned by Heart was shortlisted for the 2023
Atwood Gibson Writers' Trust Fiction Prize.
The Paris Express The Paris Express (2025) is inspired by the
Montparnasse derailment of 1895 Paris. The book was shortlisted for the 2025
Giller Prize. ==Bibliography==