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purplesaturday's review against another edition
challenging
dark
emotional
mysterious
sad
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.75
Very compelling, very heartbreaking.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Child abuse, Eating disorder, Suicidal thoughts, Blood, and Suicide attempt
Moderate: Confinement, Incest, Rape, Grief, and Classism
k84's review
dark
emotional
mysterious
reflective
sad
tense
medium-paced
4.25
Morally ambiguous and moving. 1st person peripheral perspective was flawless and created a slow building mystery that I couldn’t help but get wrapped up in. Big themes at play here: religious trauma, sexual abuse, grief, patriarchy, medical malfeasance, immigration, historical context, savior complex, journalistic integrity, ethics … almost too many ways to view the emotional complexities of each character… but nevertheless you find yourself mulling them over because there’s enough depth to, lol, ‘wonder’ about the human condition in all it’s multifaceted glory. Not a 5 because it didn’t stir my soul, but a solid 4 for voice, writing, character development, pacing, and complex themes.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Child abuse, Child death, Eating disorder, Incest, Misogyny, Self harm, Sexual assault, Suicide, Xenophobia, Medical content, Kidnapping, Grief, Religious bigotry, and Medical trauma
emalillah's review
challenging
dark
emotional
mysterious
sad
tense
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Body horror, Child death, Death, Eating disorder, Emotional abuse, Incest, Rape, Sexual assault, Sexual violence, Suicidal thoughts, Suicide, Grief, Religious bigotry, Suicide attempt, and Gaslighting
jinmichae's review
challenging
dark
emotional
hopeful
tense
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5
I saw the movie first, but I really enjoyed this. The writing was beautiful, and it was interesting to be inside Lib's head from the beginning (in her most insufferable) to where she progresses to at the end.
It was a slow narrative, but I felt it was quite tense: I read it all in one sitting, even knowing the end. Every 8 hour shift you hope that a change will come, and you feel as worn thin as Lib by the time it finally does. Bonus points for the scene at the end with Sister Michael: reminded me of one of my favorite scenes in Les Miserables.
It was a slow narrative, but I felt it was quite tense: I read it all in one sitting, even knowing the end. Every 8 hour shift you hope that a change will come, and you feel as worn thin as Lib by the time it finally does. Bonus points for the scene at the end with Sister Michael: reminded me of one of my favorite scenes in Les Miserables.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Child abuse, Eating disorder, Suicidal thoughts, Terminal illness, Religious bigotry, and Suicide attempt
Moderate: Child death, Death, Emotional abuse, Incest, Mental illness, Rape, Xenophobia, Grief, Fire/Fire injury, Gaslighting, and Classism
Minor: Gore, Infidelity, Violence, Vomit, War, and Injury/Injury detail
e_199's review
dark
mysterious
reflective
sad
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
Content Warnings
Graphic: Child abuse, Death, Eating disorder, Emotional abuse, Incest, Mental illness, Miscarriage, Rape, Self harm, Sexual assault, Sexual violence, Suicidal thoughts, Suicide, Terminal illness, Torture, Medical content, Grief, Medical trauma, Suicide attempt, and Injury/Injury detail
james1star's review against another edition
challenging
dark
mysterious
reflective
tense
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.0
I would argue this is a good book objectively but on the whole I didn’t particularly like it. That being said I am still very interested in picking up more books by Emma Donoghue and would still recommend giving this one a read.
For a quick plot summary, in The Wonder we follow the main character of Elizabeth ‘Lib’ Wright who’s a Nightingale-trained English nurse offered a job in rural Victorian Ireland for a couple of weeks to look after a girl. When she arrives though, the case isn’t what it seems and instead she, alongside a nurse nun, is there to observe the eleven-year-old Anna O’Donnell who’s apparently not eaten for four months but is still surviving. Her family and the town are all convinced the child is surviving via divine intervention and this is a miracle but Lib is much less eager to accept this. What ensures over ‘the watch’ is a very tense account of the two MCs getting to know each other, we learn about their past and essentially Donoghue depicts the slow murder of girl in view of the masses.
At the book’s heart, there is a lot of contradicting ideologies and characters essentially butt-heading, with the victims of these ‘arguments’ being pushed aside. The key battle is that of religion vs science and what the watch - and hence the book - hangs on the balance of: whether or not Anna is a living miracle or it’s really a hoax all along. In a similar vein, the contrasting opinions of England and Ireland (or more so their people) at the time is explored in Lib being an English women surrounded by this small town in Ireland. Lib would probably be called an atheist today and she does express her religious beliefs but there’s also a battle of anglican vs catholic ideologies at place being a representative of each country’s primary religious affiliation. With the use of other characters, specifically Dublin journalist William Byrne, a rural vs urban distinction can be made and I think this is done very well especially because Ireland (unlike a lot of the western world) had recently lost a big chunk of their population with rural communities taking the brunt force of this. The differences within the country aren’t that extreme but Byrne does allude to some and I did enjoy what his character added to the story. A final conflict point that’s explored is that between women and men. Donoghue does a good job at depicting the history of the time very well with a focus on medicine, women and their position in society - a specific remark is how their opinions weren’t trusted or given their appropriate level of attention and it’s quite frustrating at times.
Whilst the writing and prose is definitely very good, I would say this was the thing I personally disliked the most. It’s great don’t get me wrong but the pacing, whilst consistent, is extremely slow and there are many instances of the same conversation or event taking place and it was a bit of a slog to get thought at times. I understand the repetition in parts and it adds to the tension present between Lib and Anna which I liked but I wasn’t too keen as certain things were shown again and again. As mentioned, the tension that Donoghue generates is very good and adds to the eerie atmosphere present in the novel. Similarly, the character studies was handed very well with many having nuance and various parts to them, the most of which is Lib and she for sure is a complex woman. The mystery elements again was good and for a lot of the book I was generally shook and dumbfounded at what was actually happening here. The twists I personally didn’t see unlike some and whilst I see how the book doesn’t hang on such twists, they did still impact me when I go to such parts.
Overall, I would recommend this book but after consideration I’m just quite confused on whether or not I actually liked it. It’s a strange one and I would say it impacted me quite a bit, Donoghue definitely knows how grip the reader and I cannot wait to explore more of her works.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Death, Eating disorder, and Religious bigotry
Minor: Child abuse, Child death, Incest, Rape, Xenophobia, Grief, and Classism
lauramcc7's review against another edition
dark
mysterious
reflective
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
1.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Child death, Chronic illness, Confinement, Death, Eating disorder, Incest, Suicide, Terminal illness, Blood, Excrement, Grief, Religious bigotry, and Sexual harassment
jamiejanae_6's review against another edition
dark
mysterious
sad
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.5
Content Warnings
Graphic: Body horror, Child abuse, Child death, Death, Eating disorder, Incest, Misogyny, Self harm, Sexual assault, Toxic relationship, Vomit, Medical content, Grief, Religious bigotry, Suicide attempt, and Gaslighting
kelly_e's review against another edition
dark
mysterious
reflective
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5
Title: The Wonder
Author: Emma Donoghue
Genre: Historical Fiction
Rating: 4.50
Pub Date: September 20, 2016
T H R E E • W O R D S
Intriguing • Mystifying • Distinctive
📖 S Y N O P S I S
A village in 1850s Ireland is baffled by Anna O’Donnell’s fast. A little girl appears to be thriving after months without food, and the story of this 'wonder' has reached fever pitch.
Tourists flock in droves to the O'Donnell family's modest cabin, and an international journalist is sent to cover the sensational story. Enter Lib, an English nurse trained by Florence Nightingale, who is hired to keep watch for two weeks and determine whether or not Anna 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 child may actually be the victim of murder in slow motion.
💭 T H O U G H T S
Emma Donoghue writes such compelling and distinctive tales unlike anything else and in such a way that I am kept guessing from start to finish. This is precisely why she became one of my auto-buy authors. The Wonder has say unread on my shelf for several years, but with the release of a a full-length film in late 2022, I decided I needed to move it up my TBR before watching.
And what a unique book! Similar Donoghue's past books I've read, it took a good 50 pages to be fully engaged, yet as the story progresses it gets stronger and stronger until the dramatic grande finale. Despite the slow start, I found myself instantly curious to see how everything would unfold. My interest and suspicious continued to rise until everything comes together in the end. It's hard to say too much without giving away big parts of the story, but I just couldn't predict where it was going to go.
Donoghue has a very distinctive writing style, and her phenomenal writing was definitely on display throughout. The characters are well developed that I wanted to know more about each of them. Anna and Lib's relationship flourishes over their time together, even though it is so short. And the setting helped created an atmosphere of lies and secrets.
Bringing together science, religion, and superstation in a variety of ways, The Wonder was such a unique and thought-provoking story. While it started out slow, the ending was highly fitting and the narrative speaks to the power of two strangers coming together to transform each others lives.
📚 R E C O M M E N D • T O
• Emma Donoghue fans
• readers looking to diversify their historical fiction repertoire
🔖 F A V O U R I T E • Q U O T E S
"Good nurses follow rules," Lib growled, "but the best know when to break them."
"I must be cruel, only to be kind."
Author: Emma Donoghue
Genre: Historical Fiction
Rating: 4.50
Pub Date: September 20, 2016
T H R E E • W O R D S
Intriguing • Mystifying • Distinctive
📖 S Y N O P S I S
A village in 1850s Ireland is baffled by Anna O’Donnell’s fast. A little girl appears to be thriving after months without food, and the story of this 'wonder' has reached fever pitch.
Tourists flock in droves to the O'Donnell family's modest cabin, and an international journalist is sent to cover the sensational story. Enter Lib, an English nurse trained by Florence Nightingale, who is hired to keep watch for two weeks and determine whether or not Anna 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 child may actually be the victim of murder in slow motion.
💭 T H O U G H T S
Emma Donoghue writes such compelling and distinctive tales unlike anything else and in such a way that I am kept guessing from start to finish. This is precisely why she became one of my auto-buy authors. The Wonder has say unread on my shelf for several years, but with the release of a a full-length film in late 2022, I decided I needed to move it up my TBR before watching.
And what a unique book! Similar Donoghue's past books I've read, it took a good 50 pages to be fully engaged, yet as the story progresses it gets stronger and stronger until the dramatic grande finale. Despite the slow start, I found myself instantly curious to see how everything would unfold. My interest and suspicious continued to rise until everything comes together in the end. It's hard to say too much without giving away big parts of the story, but I just couldn't predict where it was going to go.
Donoghue has a very distinctive writing style, and her phenomenal writing was definitely on display throughout. The characters are well developed that I wanted to know more about each of them. Anna and Lib's relationship flourishes over their time together, even though it is so short. And the setting helped created an atmosphere of lies and secrets.
Bringing together science, religion, and superstation in a variety of ways, The Wonder was such a unique and thought-provoking story. While it started out slow, the ending was highly fitting and the narrative speaks to the power of two strangers coming together to transform each others lives.
📚 R E C O M M E N D • T O
• Emma Donoghue fans
• readers looking to diversify their historical fiction repertoire
🔖 F A V O U R I T E • Q U O T E S
"Good nurses follow rules," Lib growled, "but the best know when to break them."
"I must be cruel, only to be kind."
Content Warnings
Graphic: Eating disorder, Incest, Rape, Sexual assault, Religious bigotry, and Medical trauma
Moderate: Child abuse, Child death, Death, Emotional abuse, Suicidal thoughts, Medical content, Grief, and Suicide attempt
Minor: Body horror, Misogyny, Vomit, Kidnapping, and Fire/Fire injury
vixenreader's review against another edition
challenging
dark
emotional
mysterious
reflective
sad
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.25
Despite how dry it can be at times, the mystery keeps you on edge, the lead is fascinating, and it reveals the darkest paths people will take to protect themselves and their reputations.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Child abuse, Death, Eating disorder, Emotional abuse, Xenophobia, Medical content, Grief, Religious bigotry, Gaslighting, and Classism
Moderate: Child death, Incest, Sexual assault, Suicidal thoughts, Blood, Kidnapping, Fire/Fire injury, Alcohol, and Injury/Injury detail
Minor: Cursing
Be aware that there is sibling incest, Münchausen syndrome by proxy, slut-shaming, and changing identities in order to get out of a hostile situation.