gandpsmommy Posted June 14, 2010 Share Posted June 14, 2010 (edited) For much of my reading life I have had an affinity for classics, but recently I have found some really great, well-written, thoughtful modern novels. I would love to find more. So, I thought I would share that Khaled Hosseini and Elizabeth Strout are two of my favorite current writers. Whose contemporary work could you recommend? Thanks for sharing. Edited June 14, 2010 by gandpsmommy typo Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
2cents Posted June 14, 2010 Share Posted June 14, 2010 I like the books by Erik Larson. I want him to write more!!! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SailorMom Posted June 14, 2010 Share Posted June 14, 2010 Oh! SO many... Barbara Kingsolver, Tom Robbins, JK Rowling,,,, I'll have to go look at my bookshelf.... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
fivetails Posted June 14, 2010 Share Posted June 14, 2010 Charlaine Harris and Tanya Huff are two of my current faves. :) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
duckens Posted June 14, 2010 Share Posted June 14, 2010 Margaret Atwood Terry Pratchett Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
elegantlion Posted June 14, 2010 Share Posted June 14, 2010 Ray Bradbury, the man can read my mind. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
runamuk Posted June 14, 2010 Share Posted June 14, 2010 Brandon Sanderson, Orson Scott Card and Laurie R. King are 3 of my favorites. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
unsinkable Posted June 14, 2010 Share Posted June 14, 2010 :blink: :lol: Ray Bradbury, the man can read my mind. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Crissy Posted June 14, 2010 Share Posted June 14, 2010 Anne Tyler Edward Rutherfurd Audrey Niffenegger Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
duckabell Posted June 14, 2010 Share Posted June 14, 2010 Suzanne Collins J. K. Rowling Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Virginia Dawn Posted June 14, 2010 Share Posted June 14, 2010 Connie Willis Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Stacia Posted June 14, 2010 Share Posted June 14, 2010 Top tier favorites: Terry Pratchett Kurt Vonnegut Walter Moers Truman Capote Second tier: Colum McCann Jeffrey Eugenides Robert Graves Dai Sijie Kazuo Ishiguro Third tier: Jasper Fforde Ann Patchett Isabel Allende Jonathan Carroll Donna Tartt Hunter S. Thompson Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
smrtmama Posted June 14, 2010 Share Posted June 14, 2010 I love Sarah Dunant (I'm a history goob), Audren Niffenegger, and recently discovered Yann Martel. Also adore JK Rowling and George R.R. Martin. :) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
elizabeth Posted June 15, 2010 Share Posted June 15, 2010 I love Sarah Dunant (I'm a history goob), Audren Niffenegger, and recently discovered Yann Martel. Also adore JK Rowling and George R.R. Martin. :) Last night while waiting for TBlood to begin its new season I saw...HBO is tackling George RR Martin's series. Link here http://geeksofdoom.com/2010/06/14/hbo-unveils-trailer-image-for-george-r-r-martin-adaptation-game-of-thrones/ Maybe you already knew this but I wanted to be sure. I am aflutter, kerfluffled and a few other words that cannot be printed here. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
abbeyej Posted June 15, 2010 Share Posted June 15, 2010 Diana Gabaldon. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mergath Posted June 15, 2010 Share Posted June 15, 2010 Haruki Murakami is a literary god- Kafka on the Shore changed my life. I also like Philip Pullman and Margaret Atwood. Ian McEwan is great if you're in the right sort of mood. Sorry I can't think of more. I've been reading a ton of Victorian lit lately, and my brain seems to have forgotten about most of what I've read that was published during the current or last century, lol. Has anyone read Philip Roth? I want to, but I always end up intimidated by the size of his books. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jyniffrec Posted June 15, 2010 Share Posted June 15, 2010 Stephen Lawhead! He writes great historical fiction/fantasy. I only don't recommend the second book in his Hood series. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jewellsmommy Posted June 15, 2010 Share Posted June 15, 2010 I greatly enjoy Terri Blackstock, Brandilyn Collins, Ted Dekker, Frank Perretti, and Coleen Coble. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JennW in SoCal Posted June 15, 2010 Share Posted June 15, 2010 Paul Theroux. I'm not a huge fan of his fiction, but I love his travel writing. Bill Bryson. Witty, wise and insightful stuff. Elizabeth George mysteries Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Hunter's Moon Posted June 15, 2010 Share Posted June 15, 2010 Dean Koontz Philippa Gregory J.K. Rowling Stephen King Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Hannah C. Posted June 15, 2010 Share Posted June 15, 2010 Margaret Atwood's books are absolutely fantastic. Her writing leaves me in awe every time. Philippa Gregory is awesome for those who like historical fiction. I've really been enjoying Jodi Picoult books lately...be warned however, they deal with hefty issues and are rarely light reading. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
hornblower Posted June 15, 2010 Share Posted June 15, 2010 Rohinton Mistry Vikram Seth Bill Bryson Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Heather in Neverland Posted June 15, 2010 Share Posted June 15, 2010 Toni Morrison Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Catherine Posted June 15, 2010 Share Posted June 15, 2010 Bill Bryson-he makes me LOL. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tina Posted June 15, 2010 Share Posted June 15, 2010 Kristen Hannah. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
6packofun Posted June 16, 2010 Share Posted June 16, 2010 I love Laurie R. King, too. I think many ladies here would appreciate Carol Goodman (The Lake of Dead Languages, The Seduction of Water, Arcadia Falls...maybe the more conservative would not appreciate some of the sexual content, but the writing is very good and there are many classical goodies within, lol). I like Ha Jin and Kazuo Ishiguro. David Lodge. Bill Bryson. Geraldine Brooks. Lisa See. Douglas Preston. Gail Godwin. Many, many more, but several I've only read once so I hesitate to recommend. :) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
E_Edgerton Posted June 16, 2010 Share Posted June 16, 2010 I love the Beat writers. Kerouac infected me when I was 14 and I have been trying to recover ever since. I love Thompson, The Rum Diaries is insanely beautiful (fairly new release.) I also think that Tom Perrotta is very talented (Little Children is a one of kind experience). I like Kate Christensen, The Great Man blew my mind. I also can't forget Nick Hornby! I love David Foster Wallace, he will be missed. Mary Roach, Stiff is fascinating. Mary Karr, Lit was terribly emotionally and worth the agony! Wow, I could go on and on! I love authors and all the gifts they give me!:001_smile: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Parrothead Posted June 16, 2010 Share Posted June 16, 2010 (edited) Stephen Lawhead! He writes great historical fiction/fantasy. I only don't recommend the second book in his Hood series. I loved the Pendragon series. Edited June 16, 2010 by Parrothead Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Momling Posted June 16, 2010 Share Posted June 16, 2010 Jeanette Winterson Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dangermom Posted June 16, 2010 Share Posted June 16, 2010 Chitra Banerjee Divakaruni. My favorite modern fiction author. A. S. Byatt I'm conflicted about. I want to like her more, yet she is a bit longwinded and pretentious. As for authors who are modern because they wrote after 1900, I'll vote for Eleanor Farjeon. And my favorite fantasy author is Diana Wynne Jones. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LaissezFaire Posted June 16, 2010 Share Posted June 16, 2010 Suzanne Collins Khaled Hosseini Yann Martel Sara Gruen Bobbie Ann Mason Diana Gabaldon Margaret Atwood Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Vida Winter Posted June 16, 2010 Share Posted June 16, 2010 Diane Setterfield Arthur Golden Carlos Ruiz Zafon Larry McMurtry Pat Conroy and I'll say C.S. Lewis because I think he was still alive when I was born. I'm not sure of your definition of contemporary. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ester Maria Posted June 16, 2010 Share Posted June 16, 2010 At the moment Cortázar, a story or two by Borges and a work or two by Kundera, Kazantzakis, Svevo or Stamatis. If you ask me in a month, the answer will probably be different. :D Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
radiobrain Posted June 16, 2010 Share Posted June 16, 2010 Italo Calvino Robert Graves Gabriel Garcia Marquez John Steinbeck Neal Stephenson Good fun reads: Douglas Preston, Lincoln Childs Dean Koontz Hmm.... I don't seem to have any women writers on here... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ester Maria Posted June 16, 2010 Share Posted June 16, 2010 Italo Calvino Calvino :D:D:D:D What by him? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Negin Posted June 30, 2010 Share Posted June 30, 2010 My favorite reads in the past few years, or maybe a bit more than the past few years ... The Kite Runner then wait about 6 months (or else it's Afghanistan overkill) before reading his even better book Thousand Splendid Suns - this one, by far, is amongst one of the best books I have ever read The Help The Five People You Meet in Heaven Tuesdays with Morrie - pretty much any Mitch Albom book – we even got the DVDs of three of his books and really liked them - light reading, but very deep The House of Spirits by Isabel Allende and anything else by her ... am crazy about Isabel Allende, although this one will always be my favorite Can't Wait to Get to Heaven by Fannie Flagg ... fabulous :) Anything by Maeve Binchy ... sweet and light, and oftentimes funny Funny in Farsi Pillars of the Earth by Ken Follett The Secret Life of Bees The Book Thief A Respectable Trade by Philippa Gregory Most John Grisham books – more so his older ones The Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Pie Society Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Slartibartfast Posted June 30, 2010 Share Posted June 30, 2010 (edited) Kurt Vonnegut I really loved Like Water for Elephants. Margaret Atwood Neil Gaiman, but he is becoming almost mainstream now...I still think of him as a comic book writer. :lol: I like A.S. Byattt a bit. I am ok with pretentious if they talk pretty. :lol: Frank Miller Alan Moore ETA: What counts as contemporary? There are a lot of books I thought were brilliant but I might not necessarily list them because I was horrified by them (Life of Pi) am too embarassed to mention them on this board AND was horrified (Chuck Palahniuk) or I found them too depressing to ever want to read them again, ever. (Angela's Ashes) If a book makes me cry my eyes out, throw up in my mouth a little, or just makes me depressed for days I don't really list it among favorites even though it might actually be a good book. I still shudder from Life of Pi and I read it when it was new. "Oh look! Look at this cover! It looks like a perfectly whimsical book, how delightful!" "NO NO NO NO NOT DELIGHTFUL OR HAPPY!!! There is NO WHIMSY!!!" Edited June 30, 2010 by Sis Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rosie_0801 Posted June 30, 2010 Share Posted June 30, 2010 I like James Clavell's books. Rosie Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Peela Posted June 30, 2010 Share Posted June 30, 2010 The Kite Runner then wait about 6 months (or else it's Afghanistan overkill) before reading his even better book Thousand Splendid Suns - this one, by far, is amongst one of the best books I have ever read :iagree:. I read A Thousand Splendid Suns first. I rarely read novels but someone told me I had to read this one- so glad I did. Powerful. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AspieMel Posted June 30, 2010 Share Posted June 30, 2010 Robert Jordan JK Rowling Anne McCaffrey Mercedes Lackey Elizabeth Hayden Tara K Harper Just to name a few... :D Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dangermom Posted June 30, 2010 Share Posted June 30, 2010 Last year I discovered Elizabeth Goudge, who wrote in the 30's-50's. I really like her books--am currently finishing the Eliot chronicles. (It's a 3-generation family story, and I don't usually go for those. It's the only one she wrote AFAIK.) I also loved City of Bells. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
NanceXToo Posted June 30, 2010 Share Posted June 30, 2010 Not in any particular order: Philippa Gregory Jodi Picoult JK Rowling Stephen King Michael Crichton John Grisham Laurel K. Hamilton J.R. Ward Diana Gabaldon Charlaine Harris Piers Anthony (in particular, his "Incarnations of Immortality" series. That was really interesting, even though I don't read a lot of fantasy in general)! I'm sure there are more but those come to mind first. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Oak Knoll Mom Posted June 30, 2010 Share Posted June 30, 2010 Jhumpa Lahiri Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mrs Mungo Posted June 30, 2010 Share Posted June 30, 2010 Authors of fiction, I'm assuming? How modern? Kurt Vonnegut Margaret Atwood Alison Weir Neil Gaiman Flannery O'Connor Aldous Huxley George Orwell Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Staci in FL Posted June 30, 2010 Share Posted June 30, 2010 Hands down, my favorite modern author is Marilynne Robinson (Housekeeping, Gilead, and Home). Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
HollyDay Posted June 30, 2010 Share Posted June 30, 2010 Bernard Cornwell - esp the Saxon series Anne McCaffrey Dee Henderson Jeffrey Archer (his older works) Karen Kingsbury - esp the Baxter series Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Parrothead Posted June 30, 2010 Share Posted June 30, 2010 (edited) Quite a few already listed. I'll add Steve Berry and Matthew Riley. I also like John Dunning, Ted Bell and Johnathan Kellerman. (I'm not overly fond of Faye Kellerman's (Johnathan Kellerman's wife) books.) Edited June 30, 2010 by Parrothead Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Recommended Posts
Join the conversation
You can post now and register later. If you have an account, sign in now to post with your account.