Donnell has co-edited two major textbooks in the field of anglophone Caribbean literature. "The Routledge Reader in Caribbean Literature" (1996) recovered many lesser-known literary works, especially those published before the so-called "boom" of the 1950s. "The Routledge Companion to Anglophone Caribbean Literature" (2011) brings together three generations of critics to map a scholarly reassessment of the field. Donnell’s academic publications on recovery research of the poetry of Una Marson, and her edited collection of Marson’s Selected Poems (part of Peepal Tree's Caribbean Classics series), have been particularly significant. Although celebrated as a pioneering black Jamaican feminist and nationalist, Marson’s literary works were often dismissed for mimicking European style. Donnell has repeatedly argued that Marson’s poetry powerfully represents her complicated relationship to both nationalism and feminism  Donnell's essay "Visibility, Violence and Voice? Attitudes to Veiling Post-11 September" appeared in "Veil: Veiling, Representation and Contemporary Art" arranged by David A. Bailey. The essay gained attention because of its discussion of the veil as a symbol of political and cultural identity in the Muslim world. Donnell discusses how the West's concentration on the veil diverts attention from other issues such as legal rights, education and access to healthcare, connecting to debates within Islamic feminism.