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Tuesday, July 07, 2020

Top Ten Tuesday: My Most Read Authors


All of us have favorite auto-buy (or at least auto-read) authors.  Some of them publish dozens of books, all of which we clamor to consume.  This week's Top Ten Tuesday topic—Top Ten Authors I've Read the Most Books By—made me think about the writers I've loved over my 44 years of life and how many of their books I've read.  Using Goodreads, Fantastic Fiction, and my not-very-reliable memory, I managed to come up with a list that's fairly accurate (I think). 

Before we get to that, though, I want to encourage you to click on over to That Artsy Reader Girl and give our host, Jana, a little love.  If you want to join in the TTT fun, her blog has all the deets.

Top Ten Authors I've Read the Most Books By


1.  Mary Higgins Clark (20+ books read)I've mentioned this grand dame of mystery many times on my blog.  My dad is a big MHC fan; he's the one who introduced me to her.  As a junior high/high schooler I inhaled her engrossing suspense novels (many times late at night, long after I was supposed to be asleep).  I haven't been as impressed by her more recent offerings and haven't actually read her for a number of years.  Still, the recent passing of this mystery maven made me sad.


2.  Jodi Picoult (21 books read)—Picoult's books rarely fail to engage me, so it's no wonder I've read almost everything she's ever written.   


3.  Kathy Reichs (19 books read)—I love Reichs' forensic mysteries starring Temperance Brennan and have read every book in the series.  As of yet, I haven't tried her YA series, Virals, which she pens with her son, Brendan.


4.  Maeve Binchy (15+ books read)—Binchy's recent-ish death is another I was saddened by.  She was a wonderful Irish writer whose novels I've enjoyed greatly over the years.


5.  Judy Blume (12+ books read)—Like many girls of my generation, I grew up reading books like Are You There God?  It's Me, Margaret; Super Fudge; Deenie; and Blubber.  Although I haven't read a Blume book in decades, I zoomed through a whole bunch of them as a kid.


6.  Adriana Trigiani (13 books read)—It's been a little while since I've read anything by this Italian-American author, but I've enjoyed a number of her books.  Her Big Stone Gap series is my favorite.


7.  Sharon Bolton (12 books read)—Although her British crime novels can be super dark and disturbing, I can't resist Bolton.


8.  Jane Casey (12 books read)—Ditto this Irish author of crime fiction.  I'm especially enamored of her Maeve Kerrigan series.


9.  Stephen King (11 books read)—Reading wasn't considered very cool when I was a teen, so I generally hid my bookwormish tendencies from anyone who wasn't family.  If I did risk being seen reading in public, I made sure it was with a socially acceptable author, of which King was definitely one. I'm a lot wimpier now than I used to be, so I haven't read anything from the "Master of Horror" in a decade or so.  Still.


10.  Christopher Pike (10+ books read)—Pike is another author I loved as a teen.  His YA thrillers kept me up way past my bedtime on many a night.

There you go, the top ten authors whose books I've read most throughout my life.  What do you think?  Do we have any in common?  Whose works have you consumed most?  I'd truly love to know.  Leave me a comment on this post and I'll return the favor on yours.

Happy TTT! 

66 comments:

  1. In my youth, I read a LOT of Judy Blume books. I like that I was able to "grow up" with her, transitioning from her children's to her teen books.

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    1. Agreed. Her books were a big part of my childhood. I know some of hers were considered controversial back in the day, but I love how unafraid she was to talk about real issues/concerns faced by girls and young women.

      Thanks, as always, for coming by and commenting, Sam!

      Delete
  2. I've never read Mary Higgins Clark. Which book do you recommend reading from her first?

    My TTT .

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    1. Good question. My favorites of hers were published in the late 80s and early 90s. I'd suggest starting there. Enjoy!

      Thanks for stopping by, Lydia!

      Delete
  3. Sharon Bolton would make my list, too...that is if I'd done a list this week. I used to read a lot of Mary Higgins Clark back in the day, too. :)

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    1. The thing I love about MHC is that her books are compelling but also clean. My grandma introduced her books to my dad, who introduced them to me. All of us enjoyed them. Also, I can recommend them widely knowing that they won't offend anybody.

      Thanks, as always, for coming by and commenting, Lark!

      Delete
  4. You've got some really great authors on this list! It's so crazy to see how many books Mary Higgins Clark has published. The amount of her books that I've read seems paltry by comparison.

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    1. Seriously! She's written so many books. I'm super impressed that she continued to write into her 90s. I hope I'm that productive at that age!

      Thanks for stopping by, Dani!

      Delete
  5. What a great list! I love seeing their photos too! 🙌😍

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    1. I agree. I like having faces to go with the names of authors.

      Thanks for coming by!

      Delete
  6. Yeah, Adriana Trigiani is another author I've read that I should have added to my list! I'm not sure why I've never read Picoult's books. I must change that!

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    1. I haven't read a Trigiani book in some time, but I do really like most of hers. Picoult's a longtime favorite of mine - you should definitely give her a shot!

      Thanks for stopping by, Laura!

      Delete
  7. Oooh I love how you included the picture of the authors. What a great idea. It's so funny to me reading some of these posts because the author names are so familiar but then I'm drawing a blank when I try to think of what books I might remember them by. My memory is not what it used to be. Great post!

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    1. Ha! Mine neither. I looked up all these authors' bibliographies so I could remember what they've written. I haven't used Goodreads for that long, so I had to guesstimate which books of theirs I've read and which I hadn't. My memory cannot be relied on either!

      Thanks for coming by, Angela!

      Delete
  8. Judy Blume! Such good childhood classics :D We used to listen to her audiobooks on long car journeys to distract me from feeling travel sick!

    Here's my Top Ten Tuesday!

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    1. That's awesome! I've never been able to read in the car without getting sick. Audiobooks would have helped with that on long family road trips.

      Thanks for stopping by!

      Delete
  9. These are all authors I've read. You have certainly shown them your love.

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    1. I hope so! They deserve it :)

      Thanks for coming by, Deb!

      Delete
  10. I've never read a Stephen King book! And I think I read some of Judy Blume's children's books, but I only just read Are You There God? last year. I have Summer Sisters on my bookshelf.

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    1. I haven't read a Blume book since I was a kid. I wonder what I would think of them now?? I really should re-read ARE YOU THERE GOD at least.

      Thanks for stopping by!

      Delete
  11. I read Virals, but was immediately turned off by the fact that it turned out to be sci-fi. Let me imagine TV-Brennan to have an awesome niece doing normal awesome science things!! Never did get into the regular Brennan books, as I was very fond of the show and felt like it would throw me off too much to see a different version.

    Otherwise, not much crossover with your list, but I've read two YA novels by Trigiani (Viola in Reel Life and its sequel, very cute). Also some Judy Blume: Are You There..., Deenie, Tiger Eyes, and probably a few of her children's books, but I have no idea which ones (so many familiar titles, but did I read them or decide not to read them?? A mystery). Tiger Eyes is probably my favorite but I could never quite get on board her Edgy teen brand, and for the children's books I definitely preferred Beverly Cleary.

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    1. I'm the opposite - I love book Tempe Brennan and the t.v. Tempe is SOOO different. I only watched a few episodes of Bones and that's all I could handle. Darn t.v. for ruining one of my favorite fictional characters! I hate that.

      I actually totally forgot about Cleary when I was making my list. I used to love her books.

      Thanks, as always, for coming by and commenting, RS!

      Delete
  12. I read and reread so many books that it's difficult to think about actual numbers of books read by certain authors. However, I suspect that Agatha Chrisie and Nora Roberts/J.D. Robb would be right at the top of my list. I've read everything by Louise Penny, but she's only written 15 books. As to the authors on your list, I've read many books by MHC - read most of those way back in the day. Sharon Bolton and Jane Casey - yep. Stephen King - I've read The Stand so many times. Maeve Binchy and Jodi Picoult as well. I never took to Kathy Reichs series, but I did like the TV show Bones. Interesting topic and I'm enjoying seeing what is on each blogger's list.

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    1. There's a reason you and I get along so well, Kay :) We enjoy the same kinds of books! I do have to admit, though, that I haven't read much Christie (only AND THEN THERE WERE NONE and MURDER ON THE ORIENT EXPRESS) and only one Nora Roberts (it was a post-apocalyptic one that I didn't care for).

      It's so funny that so many people liked Bones, but not the Tempe Brennan book series. I'm the opposite, like I explained above. The t.v. show bugs me because it's SO different from the books and I could never separate them enough in my head to enjoy the t.v. show.

      Thanks, as always, for coming by and commenting, Kay!

      Delete
  13. WE share the same taste in many authors. You are the second person to mention Trigiani and I planned to pick up one of her books at my local used books shop.

    Wich book are you reading about Australia right now? You mentioned that in a comment on my blog. Thanks!

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    1. Yay! We're book twins! I do like Trigiani, although I haven't read a book by her in quite some time. Her novels are fun, though.

      I just finished THE WOMAN IN THE GREEN DRESS by Tea Cooper. It's the first book I've read by her and I really enjoyed it. I'm definitely going to be checking out her others.

      Thanks for stopping by, Tina!

      Delete
  14. Interesting list. The only one of these I've read a lot of is King, and it's been quite a while since I've read him.

    Your list makes me wonder again if we all read more books written by our own gender than than not (not wanting here to get into counting multiple genders). I pretty steadily read two books written by males to one by females from one year to the next, so my list would probably have at least seven or eight men on it.

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    1. I think you're right. I definitely tend to read mostly women, and middle-aged white women at that! It's not purposeful, it's just that I tend to gravitate toward women who write about women. I guess because women tend to write - authentically - about motherhood, family, relationships, etc. and those are all issues that resonate with me. I do need to do better about reading more books by men and authors of color.

      Thanks, as always, for coming by and commenting, Sam!

      Delete
  15. Happy TTT!! Thank you for topping by and leaving me a comment on my TTT post earlier today. I'm now a new follower of your blog.

    Great list of authors in your, btw... I've read a couple of Stephen King's novels, but would like to read more of them.

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    1. Thanks so much for the follow! I appreciate it.

      I read tons of King back in the day. I don't know that I'll ever read more by him, just because his style isn't really "me" anymore, but who knows? His books definitely draw me in.

      Thanks for stopping by!

      Delete
  16. Great list! I read a lot of Judy Blume when I was a kid, too, but I don't have any idea now how many books that actually adds up to. (Same with Beverly Cleary and the Nancy Drew / Hardy Boys series.)

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    1. I completely forgot about Cleary when I wrote my list and I didn't even bother trying to remember how many Nancy Drew books I read back in the day! That would have been too much work for my aging memory :)

      Thanks for coming by, Nicole!

      Delete
  17. I read a lot of Christopher Pike! Definitely need to read more Piccoult, apparently :)

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    1. I was a huge Pike fangirl back in the day! I even wrote him a gushing fan letter. He crushed my young heart by never replying. Ha ha.

      Thanks for stopping by, Alyssa!

      Delete
  18. I've heard good things about Trigiani and looked at her books in the bookstore a few times. That's an author I can see trying at some point. And I've never tried King! Isn't that weird??

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    1. It is a little weird that you've never read King. Of course, I haven't read his books in a long time. He's not really my style these days, but when I was a teenager, I was all over his books!

      Trigiani writes fun novels. I like her.

      Thanks for coming by, Greg!

      Delete
  19. I've actually read some of these authors and now I've discovered new ones. This week's TTT has been introducing me to a lot of new authors it seems.

    Great list! :D
    Here's my Top Ten Tuesday.

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    1. Discovering new books and authors is one of my favorite things about TTT. I've added SO many books to my TBR list because of this meme!

      Thanks for stopping by, Natalie!

      Delete
  20. Oh yeah, Judy Blume! How could I forget. She's written a TON of books. It's nice that you included a photo of the authors in your post.

    Here's my TTT list.

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    1. She has and when I looked at her bibliography, I couldn't remember which of hers I'd read and which I haven't. A few of them, like ARE YOU THERE GOD? IT'S ME MARGARET really stand out in my mind, but it's been so long since I've read her that not all of them do anymore.

      Thanks for coming by, Lectrice!

      Delete
  21. Wow! Great list. I don't think I have that many authors for whom I have read that many books. I bet my most are Sue Grafton and JK Rowling. I'll have to go look

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    1. I don't think I've read much more than 20 books by any one author. I tend to jump around a lot and try new ones.

      Thanks, as always, for coming by and commenting, Helen!

      Delete
  22. I really need to read Kathy Reichs' books -- my sister adores them!

    I went on a total binge of King's work during my first and second year of university. I'd never tried it before, but it really clicked with me that year... funnily enough, I haven't read any since then!

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    1. I really like Reichs' books. They're compelling. I also like the way she talks about forensics - she explains the science well without talking down to the reader but still making it easy to understand.

      You sound like me with King. I think I'm just too wimpy now to read him!

      Thanks for stopping by, Nicky!

      Delete
  23. Great list! I grew up reading Judy Blume as well -- definitely a part of my formative years. I've read a lot of Jodi Picoult books, and love how she manages to include so much food for thought in everything she writes about.

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    1. I agree! I love how Picoult writes about hot button issues from all sides. Even if I don't agree with certain characters' perspectives, I learn from them. That's my favorite part about her books. I'm glad I'm not the only fan :)

      Thanks for coming by, Lisa!

      Delete
  24. Judy Blume! I'm sure she deserves a place on my list. I read and re-read her books so many times as a young girl. I recently played with the idea of re-reading them all again with the eye of a mom and grandma now, I think it would be interesting to look at them all from a different viewpoint.

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    1. I've wondered the same thing. Would Blume's books speak to me as strongly now that I'm grown up? I'm guessing no, but it would be interesting to find out.

      Thanks for stopping by, Cheri!

      Delete
  25. I loved reading Christopher Pike when I was younger. :)

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    1. I INHALED his books as a young teen! They were so gripping. I should try re-reading them as an adult and see what I think of them now.

      Thanks for coming by, Lauren!

      Delete
  26. I want to read more Mary Higgins Clark and Stephen King! I'm sure I would've loved Chistopher Pike had I known of him growing up. Nice list here!

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    1. Good thing they both have published TONS of books. I'd guess I've read half of MHC's, but not even a King's. They're both very prolific authors.

      Thanks for stopping by, Rachel!

      Delete
  27. I have read quite a few of these authors. I really need to go back to Adriana Trigiani. It's been a while since I read her.

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    1. I haven't read a Trigiani book in some time either. I should catch up on hers as well.

      Thanks for coming by, Marg!

      Delete
  28. Great list Susan. Kathy Reichs and Mary Higgins Clark should probably have been on my list as well. I have read all or almost all that both of these women have written.

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    1. That's a lot of books! I love both Reichs and Clark, although I haven't read the latter much in recent years. Reichs took some time off of writing due to illness, so she didn't publish for a few years. I missed not reading a book of hers every year. She's back now, thank goodness!

      Thanks for stopping by, Carla!

      Delete
  29. I read a couple of Christopher Pike's books when I was a teenager, too.

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    1. He was pretty popular back in the day!

      Thanks for coming by, Carol!

      Delete
  30. Interesting list. Completely different from mine though I know most of the authors, of course. And have read a few. But maybe not my favourites. Still, it's always great to compare.

    Thanks for visiting my TTT earlier.

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    1. Definitely! It's always interesting to compare/contrast my list with others. It's one of the things that makes TTT so fun!

      Thanks for stopping by, Marianne!

      Delete
  31. I LOVED Christopher Pike! I had a hard time finding his books because the library didn't have many and my mother wasn't super sold on them but anytime I got my hands on one I gobbled it down. I really want to read Jane Casey. Her books have really appealed to me but somehow I've never picked any of them up.

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    1. Ha ha. My parents didn't pay a lot of attention to what I read as a teen, although I definitely remember my Dad raising an eyebrow when I brought home a stack of library books by Stephen King, Dean Koontz, John Saul, etc. I've always loved mystery/thriller books with a little horror mixed in. My dad was a bit surprised when he realized that!

      I've really enjoyed Jane Casey's books. She's an underrated writer, in my opinion.

      Thanks, as always, for coming by and commenting, Katherine!

      Delete
  32. Stephen King made my list! Judy Blume will probably make the list someday. I’m slowly catching up on her backlist.

    Aj @ Read All The Things!

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    1. I read a lot of Blume back in the day, but I haven't read anything by her since I was a kid. I should try some of her recent adult novels.

      King is the same. I used to read him like crazy. Now, not so much.

      Thanks for stopping by, AJ!

      Delete
  33. Wow Susan those are some serious reading numbers for these authors!! 🤩 As you know, the only one we have in common on our lists is Stephen King and as you've read 11 of his books, you are clearly braver than me! 😅

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    1. Ha ha. When I was younger, anyway!

      Thanks for coming by, Jessica!

      Delete

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