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Wow! That's a nice photo, even if the nom-de-plume is somewhat boastful. I have so many favourtite authors that I could probably write a book about it! But one of them is certainly Mary Renault. Why? Because she had a fantastic talent for description that was so good she could make you believe she actually lived in ancient Greece, and because she wrote honestly, from the heart.
While I think of it, I've been trying to put my own photo on this forum, but for some reason, it doesn't seem to work. Any tips, anyone?
Take it to the help section.
Thanks pal.
One of my favorites is Tom Sharpe. He wrote satirical novels lampooning racism in South Africa ("Riotous Assembly," "Indecent Exposure"), British higher education ("Porterhouse Blue"), and the publishing industry ("The Great Pursuit").
Another favorite is C S Forester, author of the "Hornblower" series of novels, which are based loosely on the life of Nelson.
I like the Hornblower TV series, and one or two of his fellow naval officers in that - mmmm! Very. But not so much Ioan Griffud. I'm thinking more of Robert Lindsay ( he always was rather dishy ) and Jamie Bamber. But, we were talking about books, weren't we? Sorry. *smacks own wrist* Mustn't hijack!
LOL. I just like the ships and the history. And I think the books are far better than the TV series. I found Ioan Griffud a bit disappointing in the title role.
That's always the problem with film versions when you've read the book, isn't it? The film destroys the pictures in your mind which are always so much better and so much more personal. For that reason I've never watched 'Game of Thrones' on TV although I've read all the books - more than once. I had a 'thing' about Jaime Lannister, but one look at the character list on the internet , and that dream went 'Pop!' Anyway, count George R R as another favourite author. Back to books, see?
Algebe,
The main character's name actually means bigoted in a pathetic way.
@BD: "bigoted in a pathetic way"
Is there any other way to be bigoted?
Yes... Not really. I am not entirely sure if there is a correct direct translation for it.
One of my favorites is Kurt Vonnegut. I enjoy his dark humor.
The Church of God the Utterly Indifferent.
My favorite religious sect is the Church of God the Utterly Indifferent.
Yeah, me too, Chimp 3. When I was young, I read science fiction almost exclusively. J G Ballard, Robert Heinlein, Philip K Dick, Ray Bradbury. Arthur C, Isaac Asimov and many, many others. loved them all. Still do.
I think the name 'Hornblower' sucks. Whoops...sorry. I mean, CS Forester probably never thought about that. did he? Books, books, concentrate on books!
"Who is your favorite author and why? "...
Who..? ........... Terry Pratchett
Why... ? .......... Because I spend so much time reading Reference works.... dry ,dusty source material... that when I read for recreation I find his humour ,style ,and subject matter really refreshing....
(Plus...he has the best portrayal of "DEATH" ....ever.)
Sir Terry is another of my favs. He was more than just a writer - he a was genius. I've read all his Discworld books and loved every one, but my fav character ( If you wan to know ) is Vimes.
Arthur C. Clarke for science fiction
Who: Charles Dickens
Why: Brilliance
Fair comment, CyberLN. But what about more modern authors? I think the only author I would call brilliant is William Shakespeare, but then, he was a playwright and not a novelist.
I answered the OP's question. It didn't specify parameters. As for living authors, there are quite a few I like a great deal but none of them is 'my favorite'.
Almost every book I read has been in Spanish; in its original English, I have only read a dozen novels or so... Of those my favorite is "The Bluest Eye", by Toni Morrison.
It helped me to widen my perspective on how victims of racism (or other prejudices) are indoctrinated to legitimate and perpetuate a particular belief system; and I also enjoyed the reading, because the story is enthralling. This exercise on empathy totally worth the effort it took me, as a non-native speaker, to understand the words to depict black people's slang in USA in the forties.
Angiebot: I have read Spanish speaking writers. Gabriel Garcia Marquez wrote his own English translations. Roberto Bolano , I have read the translations.
Chimp, it's great when authors can make their own translations... 1/3 of my books are translations, but I wanted to be fair.
If I have to choose, regardless of the language, then my favorite novelist still alive is Rosa Montero.
P.S. On science-fiction, my point to late Arthur C. Clarke.
Marquez writes in English. But you can hear a narrator with a Columbian accent. Quite beautiful to read. "One Hundred Years of Solitude" is a great book.
So, I believe, did Carlo Ruiz Zafon. I loved his story 'The Shadow of the Wind' and it's sequel. I picked it up in a bookshop because of it's interesting and unusual title.
I've read some of Paulo Coelho's work too. He's Brazilian, and therefore probably a Portuguese speaker but I don't know if he does his own translations. Angiebot does, though.
The latest murder mystery any and all authors that can keep me guessing. They tend to be British and they tend to be female.
or
Douglas Adams Hitchhiker's guide to the galaxy series.
Douglas Adams is my favorite as far as science fiction goes. For fantasy, I'd have to say Terry Goodkind, because his characters behave like adults really would. It felt real, despite the magic and fictional landscape.
Samuel Clemens (aka Mark Twain) for his irreverence. Otherwise the field is about level for artistry among the classics. Daniel Defoe's Robinson Crusoe was a work done entirely from his imagination, in his English home, and yet so vitally real. Jane Porter's Scottish Chieftains was another such story written entirely from memories of stories told to her by her chambermaid of a certain Scottish hero (William Wallace). Still, being a cynic of all things religious, I enjoy Twain's treatment of them as a necessary secular indulgence before my eternal unconsciousness.