I have been slacking off on participating in the Top Ten so far this year, partly because of lack of time and partly because I’ve found some of the topics really hard to answer, some of them because they were not really relevant for the types of books I read. But I think it is fun to participate and I’m trying to get back in the game with this week’s theme, authors you automatically buy whenever they publish something new.
As always, the Top Ten Tuesday is hosted by The Broke and the Bookish.
- John Irving. I love John Irving’s books. I always buy him. I have almost everything he’s published, only lacking his movie memoir, two of his early books and a short story collection. I haven’t read all his works yet because I’m savoring them and I can’t imagine having no new Irving novels to read. He is a definite auto-buy author!
- Haruki Murakami. Murakami is another of my favorite authors where I have a no-questions-asked policy and just buy whatever he writes. I love both his magical realism books and the realistic ones – it’s just all good.
- Donna Tartt. I’m not going broke it anything by promising to auto-buy all if Donna Tartt’s future books. So far, she has published two (both of which are in my collection) and has one coming out this year. She published her first book back in 1992 so that’s 3 books in 21 years. I’ve really loved her first two novels so I’m so so excited about a third. Definitely a must-buy!
- Joyce Carol Oates. I really try to buy all Joyce Carol Oates’ books when they come out or soon after but it is so hard when we’re talking about a so extremely fast-writing author as Oates. She usually has more than one book coming out each year so I mostly limit myself to her novels. And a novelette. And her diaries. Ideally, I want to own everything she has written but … It’s close to impossible!
- Stephen King. So here we have another prolific writer whom I am desperately trying to keep up with. Again, I’m only buying the novels although I am reconsidering this because King writes excellent short stories. But yeah, I buy him even though he sometimes misses.
- Terry Pratchett. I buy the Discworld novels. I don’t buy the Discworld companion books and I haven’t (yet) bought any of his other novels or books. I don’t buy the books immediately after publication, though, since when I began buying them I could only get the paperbacks and so I have continued with this format. He never disappoints!
- Jonathan Franzen. After The Corrections, I’m buying Franzen’s novels. I loved The Corrections so so much. Again, this is not an author who is going to make me broke. He is not exactly a fast writer.
- Jeffrey Eugenides. I really liked Middlesex and so I have bought whatever he has published since. Which is one book, The Marriage Plot. So again, easy to promise to buy all his novels!
- Neil Gaiman. He can publish his grocery list for all I care. I’m buying! Even though he is a difficult author to have on the auto-buy list, since he writes in so many different genres and formats. Still, I am so looking forward to his next novel, I desperately want to get Chu’s Day, his children’s book, and translate it to my daughters and he’s also publishing a prologue to Sandman, the graphic novel series, this year, I think. I want it all!!! More, more, more!
- J.K. Rowling. I debated with myself whether I should put her on the list since I haven’t bought and have no intention of buying the various companion books to the Harry Potter series. Still, right now, I’m buying any novel she puts out there so on the list she goes.
Related posts:
The Literary Bunny 
This could have been my list, naturally I think it’s excellent. I didn’t include Donna Tartt on my list, though I’m glad her latest finally received a publication date (hopefully they don’t push it back).
I’ve always hand good luck with Irving, with the exception of In One Person and The Fourth Hand…not his best work.
Thanks! I need to reread The Fourth Hand. I am vey unclear on what it was about. Except something with hands. And several of them. You didn’t like In One Person? I haven’t read it yet but I have high hopes for it so a bit sad to hear you disliked it.
You and I have these in common:
Haruki Murakami (was there any doubt?)
Stephen King
Jeffrey Eugenides
John Irving
You should also read Eugenides’ first novel ‘The Virgin Suicides’ – like Donna Tartt, he is not a fast writer so it won’t take long to complete that collection! I have also read pretty much everything by Murakami.
Yes, I need to buy and read it. I have had it on my wish list for a long time, just haven’t gotten around to buying it yet. And Murakami is so good!
I second “The Virgin Suicides.” The writing is careful and beautiful and expansive. Worth more than a few reads. Eugenides does not publish frequently, but what he writes really lasts.
–JW
I think that you can exclude spinoffs like from JK. I don’t think its necessary to buy Tales of Beedle the Bard and all the others, but you can still include her on your list because it’s about buying her ACTUAL novels. Like HP and The Casual Vacancy.
I’ve also been skipping some of the top tens this year, Christina – some of them are a lot more relevant to those with YA blogs. But this auto-buy list is a good one. And I like your list a lot. Jonathan Franzen also made it onto my list: http://annabelsmith.tumblr.com/post/44035136791/top-10-tuesday-authors-whose-books-are-impossible-to
A few years ago Murakami would also have been up there but I lost faith a little with Kafka on the Shore, although I suspect that may have had something to do with the translation. As a result I have not yet read IQ. But I should get back on the horse!