Learned By Heart

Donoghue’s prose is beautiful and beautifully controlled. Simply and without a shred of sentimentality, she evokes a relationship that is convincing and exquisitely touching. * The Guardian *The historical setting comes alive in glorious detail … over the course of this enthralling novel. * The Irish Times *Offers a refreshing perspective on a celebrated figure in LGBTQ+ history * Sunday Express *A slow burning love story of first love. The girls do not so much discover love as feel they are inventing it. * The Times Literary Supplement *An exquisite coming-of-age love story * The Times, ‘Historical Fiction Book of the Month’ *Spellbinding … A moving portrait of two young women who are willing to risk everything for love’ * Independent *A richly imagined novelistic account of a 19th century love affair * Vogue *A fascinating … love story that’s both queer and multiracial * The Washington Post *A master of plot * Time *A writer of great vitality and generosity * The New Yorker *Set against a vividly realised 1800s England, this spellbinding novel is a stunning character exploration that will move even the steeliest of readers. – Armistead Maupin, AttitudeDonoghue has created a gripping story of the blistering connection between Anne and Eliza Raine … This is richly told and built on meticulous research. * Sainsbury’s Magazine *Emma Donoghue’s writing is superb alchemy – Audrey Niffenegger, author of The Time Traveler’s WifeDonoghue delights in the intensity of girlhood … The book wears its painstaking research like the light shifts the schoolgirls sleep in. * Financial Times *Donoghue is a superb stylist – her prose is stirring and tender * The Sunday Times *She can do everything: be funny, be moving, be unflinching yet sensitive, write beautifully nuanced sentences and utterly gripping stories. She can write powerful historical fiction and be absolutely contemporary. And she’s unable to write a line you don’t believe – Joseph O’Connor, author of Star of the SeaEmma Donoghue is a genius of compassion. With her, the ethical imagination is always paramount. In our fractured world she brings a great sense of repair to us all. Her stories bind us back together – Colum McCann, internationally bestselling author of Let the Great World Spin

Born in Dublin in 1969, and now living in Canada, Emma Donoghue writes fiction (novels and short stories, contemporary and historical, most recently Haven), as well as drama for screen and stage. Room was a New York Times Best Book of 2010 and a finalist for the Man Booker, Commonwealth and Orange Prizes, selling between two and three million copies in forty languages. Donoghue was nominated for an Academy Award for her 2015 adaptation starring Brie Larson. She co-wrote the screenplay for the film of her 2016 novel The Wonder, starring Florence Pugh (Netflix, 2022).