Gerard Donovan (born 1959), is an Irish-born novelist, photographer and poet living in

Plymouth, England Plymouth () is a port city and unitary authority in South West England. It is located on the south coast of Devon, approximately south-west of Exeter and south-west of London. It is bordered by Cornwall to the west and south-west. Plymouth' ...

, working as a lecturer at the

University of Plymouth The University of Plymouth is a public research university based predominantly in Plymouth, England, where the main campus is located, but the university has campuses and affiliated colleges across South West England. With students, it is the ...

Career

Donovan attracted immediate critical acclaim with his

debut novel A debut novel is the first novel a novelist publishes. Debut novels are often the author's first opportunity to make an impact on the publishing industry, and thus the success or failure of a debut novel can affect the ability of the author to p ...

Schopenhauer's Telescope ''Schopenhauer's Telescope'' is the debut novel of Irish novelist and poet Gerard Donovan. Published in 2003, the book received general acclaim, appearing on the long list for the Man Booker Prize and garnering the Kerry Group Irish Fiction Award ...

'', which was long-listed for the

Booker Prize The Booker Prize, formerly known as the Booker Prize for Fiction (1969–2001) and the Man Booker Prize (2002–2019), is a Literary award, literary prize awarded each year for the best novel written in English and published in the United King ...

in 2003, and which won the

Kerry Group Irish Fiction Award The Kerry Group Irish Novel of the Year Award is an annual award for Irish authors of fiction, established in 1995. It was previously known as the Kerry Ingredients Book of the Year Award (1995–2000), the Kerry Ingredients Irish Fiction Award ...

in 2004. His subsequent novels include ''Doctor Salt'' (2005), ''Julius Winsome'' (2006), and ''Sunless'' (2007). However, ''Sunless'' is essentially a rewritten version of ''Doctor Salt''—ultimately very different from the earlier novel, but built upon the same basic narrative elements—of which Donovan has said: "''Doctor Salt''... was a first draft of ''Sunless''. I wrote 'Doctor Salt''too fast, and the sense I was after just wasn't in the novel. ... I saw the chance to write the real novel, if you like, hen ''Doctor Salt'' was due to be published in the United States in 2007and this I hope I've done in ''Sunless''." Before writing prose, Donovan published three collections of poetry: ''Columbus Rides Again'' (1992), ''Kings and Bicycles'' (1995), and ''The Lighthouse'' (2000). His next publication was ''Young Irelanders'' (2008) - a collection of short stories set in Ireland. He was said to be working on a novel set in early twentieth-century Europe.Donovan, Gerard
Interview by Mark Thwaite
''The Book Depository'': 2007.

References

External links

''Schopenhauer's Telescope'' reviewed by Matthew Kirkpatrick at ''Bookslut''

''Doctor Salt'' reviewed by John Tague in ''The Independent''
{{DEFAULTSORT:Donovan, Gerard 1959 births Living people Irish male novelists Irish male poets Irish male short story writers 21st-century Irish novelists 21st-century Irish male writers 21st-century Irish short story writers