Daniel Donovan, author of Sketches in Carbery (1876) was a doctor of medicine in West Cork, Ireland.
Having trained in medicine young Daniel joined the Royal Navy in 1863 as a medical officer but retired from the service four years later to return to West Cork and assist his (by then) ailing father.
In the navy he saw much of the world, particularly the Americas (he was, for example, in the city of New Orleans when the American Civil War came to an end, and he was in Mexico during the revolution of 1867 when the Emperor Maximillian was dethroned and executed).
Donovan made contributions to several journals and magazines but is especially recognized for his pieces in The West Cork Eagle, the local newspaper, which is where the "Sketches" first appeared.
His death announcement (along with affectionate tributes) appeared in the pages of the Eagle on 6 March 1880.