I have got into the best of best mode these days! After writing about the five best films of Bollywood for 2002, I am about to write on ten best authors now! This is a difficult topic to write on, simply because, in a generic sense, each person has his or own personal choices. I am about to present my own personal choices, however, I would like to point out that these are the authors which came into my mind when I first thought of writing the review.
My criteria for choosing TOP 10 Authors
1.Author has written more than one book.
2.Author has good writing style.
3.Author has consistently impressed me in his/her books.
Note:Few of the best books I have ever read were written by authors who still haven’t written their second books yet. They may not feature in the top 10 list. The authors are in order of preference.
MICHAEL CRICHTON
He is undoubtedly my favorite author right now. Crichton is one author who has managed to write books on a variety of topics. One thing that sets apart him from others is the amazing amount of research he puts in all his books. Be it the process of evolving dinosaurs from frog DNA to the nano-robot swarms with artificial intelligence, he can make you believe its possible! On the other hand, check out his business acumen in his book Rising Sun, or Disclosure, and you will know that this man writes superb. Definitely my favorite author right now!
Strengths: Superb Research in each and every book
Weakness: Lack of character development.
Best Books: Jurassic Park, Andromeda Strain, Disclosure, Air Frame.
Worst Books: Terminal Man
SALMAN RUSHDIE
I first heard of Salman Rushdie when he got the fatwa. That time, I was at no age to read his type of books. I attempted to read one of his books but never really got through it. Some years later, I read Midnight’s Children and was bowled over by it. Since then, I have read all of his books, and most of the time he has been great in his books.
Strengths: Superb writing style, fantastic imagination.
Weakness: Can confuse a reader, too high level English.
Best Books: Midnight’s Children, Shame, The Satanic Verses
Worst Books: The Moor’s Last Sigh, The ground beneath her feat, Fury
JOHN GRISHAM
When it comes to legal thrillers, no one tops it like Mr. Grisham. His stories are fast paced, and come with a good solid plot. However, he does tend to go very movie-ish every now and often.
Strengths: Simple writing style, fast paced action.
Weakness: Can make you feel like as if you are watching a movie
Best Books: The Firm, The partner, The pelican brief, The client, The Chamber
Worst Books: The Summons, His non-legal books.
AGATHA CHRISTIE
Agatha Christie is my child hood favorite and she still remains my favorite. Her best creation was the ever so dependable Mr. Hercule Poirot. Good suspense and plot were high points
Strengths: Good suspense, Hercule Poirot mysteries.
Weakness: Couldn’t catch up after giving up Hercule Poirot.
Best Books: The murder of Roger Ackroyd, The Curtain, Murder on Orient Express
Worst Books: Elephants can remember, Endless Nights.
IRVING WALLACE
Irving Wallace was the first ‘adult’ author I had read. Graduating from the hardy boys to Irving Wallace was a difficult transition, but then, he packed in enough information for my transition from high school boy to an adult-teenager!
Strengths: Good Plot, Good writing style
Weakness: Again, can make you feel you are watching a movie.
Best Books: The Almighty, The Seventh Secret.
Worst Books: The Miracle
ERICH SEGAL
He too is one of my current favorites. Love is his forte, and he write about it in the best way possible. All his books are totally sentimental stuff, but he can literally make you feel the characters and live them. It is the sign of a great author who can make you feel the characters. Dialogues are again his high points. He is simply a lovable author.
Strengths: Superb writing style, great use of prose.
Weakness: Nothing.
Best Books: The Class, Love Story, Doctors, Man Woman and Child.
Worst Books: Only Love, Prizes.
UPAMANYU CHATERJEE
He is one author who barely made my list because he has written just few books! But my, his books are awesome to say the least. His ridicule on the functioning of the government and the bureaucracy is simply great. Being in IAS himself has given him the needed insight to write such good books.
Strengths: Superb comedy and ridicule
Weakness: Hasn’t written enough to gauge them.
Best Books: English August, The Mammaries of the Welfare State
Worst Books: Hasn’t written enough to determine which ones.
WILLIAM SHAKESPEARE
Right from childhood, there must be no author more forceful in our textbooks than Shakespeare. However to really appreciate his writing, one needs to be mature enough to understand his prose. In fact, I would suggest that people read his plays rather than the abridged versions to enjoy his works better.
Strengths: Character Development, Stories.
Weakness: None.
Best Books: Hamlet, Macbeth, King Lear, Tempest.
Worst Books: None.
R.K NARAYAN
R.K. Narayan, most famous for his Malgudi Days has been one of my favorite authors since long. Many of his stories reflect so much on real life. His characters were simple, yet they captured your hearts for ever. He was a gifted author.
Strengths: Character Development, Stories, Writing Style.
Weakness: None.
Best Books: Malgudi Days, Waiting for the Mahatma.
Worst Books: None.
CHARLES DICKENS
Another author who has remained since childhood with me is Charles Dickens. At a younger age, I did read his abridged books which never gave me an idea as to how good an author he is. Only when I read his un-abridged books, did I realize that he is probably one of the best authors to have ever existed. A great author. Period.
Strengths: Character Development, Stories, Writing Style.
Weakness: None.
Best Books: Oliver Twist, Tale of two cities, Great Expectations, The Pickwick Papers.
Worst Books: None.
All right, they were my top 10 authors. However there are many other authors who may have made this list, but either they have written too less or I haven’t read much of their works…any reason, they couldn’t make the list. Some of the notable mentions are:
Arundhati Roy: The God of Small Things
Ian McEwan: Amsterdam
James M Coetzee: Disgrace
Simon Singh: The Code Book
Stephen Hawking: A Brief History of Time
Scott Turrow: Presumed Innocent
Rabrindranath Tagore: All his stories.
That’s it! They are my favorite authors! This topic is so good. I suggest all my MS friends to write on this!