Peter O'Donnell

John Joseph Higgins (University of Stirling)

The Literary Encyclopedia. Volume 1.2.1.09: English Writing and Culture: Postwar and Contemporary Britain , 1945-present.
Vol. editors: Gina Lyle (University of York), Graham MacPhee (University of Manchester), Kerry Myler (Birmingham Newman University), Jenni Ramone (The Nottingham Trent University)

Dates

Born 1920
Died 2010

Places

Born in United Kingdom
Active in United Kingdom

Genres and Modes

Gothic & Ghosts
Romance
Thriller/ Noir

Activities

Primary

Novelist

Resources

O'Donnell's Works

Save to Bookshelf

Some books are disparagingly described as “escapist”, so easy to read that they will provide an escape from present troubles or boring routine. There is an implication that “good” books must demand a more committed response from readers than merely letting themselves be distracted. Can an escapist piece of writing also be good writing? The thrillers and gothic romances of Peter O’Donnell (1920 - 2010) provide interesting matter for such a discussion.

Peter O’Donnell was born in London on 11 April 1920, and went into journalism as a teenager. He joined the Royal Corps of Signals when war broke out and served as a radio operator with the 8th Army in the Middle East. A desert encounter with a refugee girl in Persia in 1942, related in several articles and interviews, later

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2032 words

Citation: Higgins, John Joseph. "Peter O'Donnell". The Literary Encyclopedia. First published 01 September 2014 [https://www.litencyc.com/php/speople.php?rec=true&UID=13388, accessed 21 November 2024.]