The Good Ones

Dad's comment got me thinking about the different authors I read and enjoy (so much better than thinking about those I DON'T enjoy), so I decided to make a list (I am also studiously avoiding work on my master's class):

Character Authors
- These folks create characters you will either love or hate with a passion. You laugh at their foolishness, cry over their losses, or shake with anger at their inhumanity. These characters remain in your mind always.

Stephen King
I know there are those of you who would consider him brain candy, but you must admit he has a talent for bringing his characters, even the incidental ones, to life.

Barbara Kingsolver
I just finished rereading The Poisonwood Bible, and even the second time through I suffered right along with those girls and their mother.

Amy Tan
She gets you right into the minds of the women in her stories. I especially enjoy feeling as though I am gaining an understanding of a culture I know little about when I read her books.

Jodi Picoult
I add her to the list because of My Sisters Keeper. While dissecting the issues of a young girl defined by the sacrifices she makes to keep her sister alive, Picoult manages to put us inside each of the family members equally.

Poetic Prose
- These writers can turn a phrase with the best of them. You don't so much read the descriptions as fall right into them. They provide full-color and surround sound in such a way that you often don't even realize they're doing it.

Margaret Atwood
I just lent my friend my copy of The Blind Assassin, telling her to pay extra attention to the beautiful language contained therein. Several times, I paused my reading just to enjoy a particularly enthusiastic metaphor or apt simile.

Khaled Hossseini
His story, The Kite Runner, puts you in Afghanistan as revolution tears it apart. His descriptions, like Amy Tan's characters, give you insight to a culture many fear, but few understand.

Ursula Hegi
Although I initially thought she would be one of those pompous writers of my previous post, I am glad I gave her a chance. Her descriptions in Stones From the River of life in Germany, both before and during the rise of Hitler, are quite haunting. She has a tendency to drift from topic to topic, but it seems appropriate for the narrative style of the main character.

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That seems to be all I can think of at the moment. Perhaps another day I will discuss my favorite "brain candy"...or humorous books...or young adult books. There are so many good books to read out there! Please share your thoughts, either on the books I have mentioned or the ones I should have mentioned in these categories.