It’s Freebie week for Top Ten Tuesday, hosted by The Broke and the Bookish, so I decided to use it as an opportunity to write about something that’s been on my mind lately: authors whose work I’ve never read, but want/need to. Iconic authors who are glaring omissions in my “I’ve read that” lists.
Toni Morrison
This is by far the omission that feels the most ridiculous – how can I not have read any Toni Morrison? I bought a copy of Beloved this summer, and hope to get to it before the end of the year, once the Fall Releases / Galley madness slows down a bit.
John Updike
A heavyweight in the literary scene that I’ve somehow managed to not cross paths with thus far. (In literature – I’m aware that the opportunity to cross paths in person has unfortunately passed.) I own a copy of Couples that I got at a book sale somewhere, but I think I should probably start with the Rabbit series, yes?
Walter Isaacson
I’m an enthusiastic buyer of Walter Isaacson’s biographies/non-fiction. I own three of them. I got to hear him speak at a conference a few years ago – he’s smart and endearing, and a great storyteller. But those big biographies are still sitting on my shelves, unread. I started the one about Benjamin Franklin and was enjoying it, but then it got lost in the shuffle of life and was never finished.
Evelyn Waugh
Another heavyweight I’ve never read. I’d imagine that starting with Brideshead Revisited is the most obvious choice, but I’ve also heard great things about so many others. Are there any gems that make a better entry point to Waugh?
Henry James
I keep seeing quotes & passages from Henry James’s novels, and they are all delightful. It’s time that I actually read one of his novels. I want to start with The Portrait of a Lady because I absolutely love the painting on the cover of this edition. That’s a good way to make a selection, right?
Stephen King
I’m not big on horror/thrillers, but I still feel like I need to try a Stephen King novel. Does anyone have a recommendation? The premise of 11/22/63 intrigues me, but I’m not sure if there’s a better place to start.
George Orwell
I own 1984 and Animal Farm, and yet they sit on my shelves, unread. For no good reason.
Norman Mailer
I stated in a previous Top Ten Tuesday that I had no interest in reading The Naked and the Dead, but that doesn’t mean that I don’t want to read Mailer at all. I’m most interested in The Executioner’s Song, but it’s so long! I’ll need to start it at a strategic time, when I have plenty of time to dive in. Should I read a different one in the meantime?
Salman Rushdie
Sigh. I’ve never read Salman Rushdie either. What should I start with? The Satanic Verses? Something else?
Barbara Kingsolver
Here’s a more modern powerhouse that I’ve never read. I’ve owned The Poisonwood Bible for ages. My mom has often told me how great The Bean Trees is. It’s time to get acquainted with Barbara. I think I’ll start with The Poisonwood Bible, as I’ve been on a multiple-narrator kick / obsession lately.
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What are your biggest unintentional “Author Omissions” … and who do you want to read next?
Can you assist in cornering me and making me read these 10 authors, ASAP? Do you have any advice on which books I should start with for the authors above? Please share!
Sadly, many of these are on my list, too. I read Morrison for the first time last year (starting with Beloved) and totally wished I had started sooner. Definitely keep her at the top of your list!
Will do! Determined to read her by the end of this year. I’ll start with Beloved, but am also very interested in God Help the Child, as I think I remember reading that it’s her first novel set in the present. I have it on audiobook too – so I’ll give that a try after Beloved.
I am in the same boat as you in regards to the amazing Toni Morrison. I don’t know how I came to be 31 without having read anything she has written! I highly recommend Barbara Kingsolver — I agree with your mom: The Bean Trees is wonderful. I loved The Poisonwood Bible, too, though it took me just a little while to get into it. My favorite Kingsolver book is The Prodigal Summer, which has alternating narrators, too!
I’m excited about all the great Barbara Kingsolver that’s ahead of me! It’s very good to hear that The Prodigal summer has alternating narrators as well, and that you loved it!
Cheers to reading Toni Morrison soon! :D
With Stephen King, I can’t recommend The Stand enough. I’ve read it twice and I am not a huge King fan.
And I don’t want to deter you but I wish I had never read Beloved. It was disturbing in a way that still makes me cringe when I think of it.
I’ll definitely keep The Stand in mind! It has great reviews / recommendations. Have you watched the mini-series? Haven’t heard from any fans whether it was good or something to stay away from.
I’m sorry to hear Beloved was so upsetting for you! I feel like it’s something I have to read, so I will likely still start with it. But it’s good to be aware of potential for disturbing content before going in, so thank you.
I’ve owned The Poisonwood Bible for a long time, too. I bought it from a charity shop and intended to read it a.s.a.p – oooops!! The dilemmas of a book lover! I hope you enjoy it when you get to it :-D Also, I added Brideshead Revisited to my TBR just this week, after it appeared on an author’s favourite literary castles and country houses list :-D it sounds like a great read.
Ooooh I just love classic books with wonderful settings – I’m excited for Brideshead Revisited already!
I’ve had mixed experiences with Rushdie, but I read “The Enchantress of Florence” this summer and loved the mixture of history and fairy tale and the story-within-a-story plot.
Oooh, I really like the sound of that! I may need to start with that one, it sounds right up my alley.
Regarding Stephen King, I would recommend starting with a novella called “A Very Tight Place”. I originally read it in McSweeney’s #27, but it can also be found in one of the author’s short story collections, Just After Sunset. It’s a tight, creepy story that got me hooked on Stephen King (after 15 years of dismissing him as a hack). At a mere 70 pages, it should be a quick read.
Salman Rushdie’s Midnight’s Children is the one of his that I liked a lot.
I really like that recommendation – starting with a novella sounds very manageable, and like a good entry point to his work which, at the moment, seems a bit intimidating.
It seems like everyone I talk to has a different favorite of Rushdie – that’s really cool / interesting. I will check out Midnight’s Children.
I’ve only read one Rushdie and I really would like to remedy that. I remember loving the book – just can’t remember which it was. I think I’ll start with his newest.
I adore the Bean Trees. You cannot go wrong with starting Kingsolver with the Poisonwood Bible though, its excellent.
I’m interested in his newest as well – I’m curious about if it’s a good place to start with his work.
Everyone is getting me really excited for Kingsolver too! I own The Poisonwood Bible, so I’ll likely start with that, but I’ll also keep my eye out for a good used copy of The Bean Trees, because I’m excited for that one as well.
I agree with Katie… if the length of The Poisonwood Bible puts you off (I started it twice, but never finished it, for totally unexplainable reasons), then read Prodigal Summer. A wonderful book, and you would probably enjoy the nature aspect of it. I read Brideshead Revisited early this year, and it’s wonderful, too. It feels so British. I have yet to read Rushdie, and I have no great desire to read Stephen King, although everyone tells me I should.
A nature aspect – you know how to hook me! I’m really getting excited for Kingsolver after all this love for her the comments!
I’m glad to hear you liked Brideshead Revisited too – maybe I’ll save it for my trip to England later this year, sounds like it might be perfect atmospheric reading. :)
I’m not sure I really have a desire to read Stephen King … I think it’s more just thinking I should give him a shot, since he’s such a glaring omission in my reading. I like to try new things, so maybe I’ll enjoy it more than I expect!
My shameful unread author is Maya Angelou. For some reason I have never read anything she wrote. That and Kingsolver, as she lived in my town for 20+ years and is considered one of our treasures. I may have to put them on reserve at the library.
I hadn’t read any Maya until a few years ago… and I’m really glad I finally did! Her books are incredible on audiobook, if you enjoy audio. I still haven’t read I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings though- her most famous! I need to get on that. :)
I just read Portrait of a Lady over the summer! Really good! It might not be the best place to start with James though unless you are up for total immersion. His novella Turn of the Screw is really good and a great ghost story for Halloween :)
Oooh that’s a great tip – I don’t think I have time to fit in Portrait of a Lady before the end of the year (still recovering from Anna Karenina – chunksters are rough for me to get through), but I would definitely have time for a Novella. I’ll try to grab it for October’s Readathon, thank you for the idea!
I tried The Poisonwood Bible and felt like I really should be able to get into it… but couldn’t lol. Hopefully you will have a better experience :) My TTT
I can see that – I think I might have done the same several years ago, but I’m not sure how much of a shot I gave it before I put it down. I’ll definitely make sure I start it when I’m in the right frame of mind to buckle down and stick with it until I get into it!
If you’re in the mood for a chunkster of an audio book and some danged good horror, I started listening to IT (at Trish of Love, Laughter, Insanity’s glowing recommendation) last week and am really digging it. I might be listening to it for the next year or so (44 hours!), but I think it will be worth it.
Also I feel like such a cliché high schooler for saying so but READ 1984! It’s worth it.
Oh man – you’re going to go ahead and get me sucked into Stephen King on AUDIOBOOK, aren’t you!
OK – I’ll sit here and wait patiently while you finish it and then I want to hear your full report please. :D
And in return, I PROMISE I’ll read 1984 soon. As soon as, you know, possible. Which for a bookworm is not a very clear amount of time, but I know you understand.
I really feel I need to read Toni Morrison and George Orwell too!
I have some Kingsolver books, but it’s just bene sitting on the shelf.
Here’s to finally reading some Morrison and Orwell!
I just picked up The Bean Trees by Kingsolver too, that might be a less intimidating place for me to start, as it’s much shorter than The Poisonwood Bible.
For Norman Mailer you might want to check out his collection of Essays, “The Time of Our Time”. I keep my copy right next to my edition of Gore Vidal’s essays, “United States”. At times, the two Volumes have come to blows.
If you do decide to read Stephen King’s “The Stand”, be sure to pick up the longer “Directors Cut” version.
Plus, you need to add T.R. Pearson & Stanislaw Lem to your list of authors to be read.
Oh- I never even thought about essays by Norman Mailer- that sounds great! I will keep my eye out for a copy.
This list is by no means complete – it’s just the ten authors that have been lingering on my “never read” list for the longest! There’s plenty of room for T.R. Pearson & Stanislaw Lem on the list! :)