The Broke and the Bookish ask us for ten authors that deserve more attention, as opposed to people like JK Rowling and her pseudonym. Anyway, bear in mind that these are authors that aren't necessarily being placed in the front window displays of Barnes or hanging out on the top of Amazon's bestsellers lists. Hopefully some of you may know a few of them!
1. Kristopher Jansma- I read The Unchangeable Spots of Leopards as an ARC and thought that it would do better than it did. It received glowing reviews, but never earned the recognition it deserved.
2. Victor LaValle- LaValle has a few books out and a small following, but given what I've read in Big Machine and The Devil in Silver he should have an even larger one.
3. Mark Dunn- I've only read one of Dunn's books, Ella Minnow Pea, but hadn't heard about it at all until a friend mentioned it. It was so fun and quirky I don't know why I haven't picked up his other books.
4. Reif Larsen- Larsen is the author of one of my favorites, The Selected Works of TS Spivet (soon to be a movie), his first book. If you add one book from this list to your wish list this should be the one. I'm sure it will blow up once the movie is released, but at least this way you can say you read it back when it wasn't popular.
5. Maggie O'Farrell- I picked up The Vanishing Acts of Esme Lennox several years ago and then read it last year. I felt a little sheepish about waiting so long considering it was so good (and she has a few other books out too).
6. Peter Bognanni- Bognanni has only written one book, The House of Tomorrow (one all you YA readers might like!) but it was well-written and heart-warming without being corny.
7. Carolyn See- See was one of my professors at UCLA and her daughter, Lisa See, has received quite a bit of recognition, but Mother See is just as bit as talented (I remember her book Golden Days fondly).
8. Sunshine O'Donnell- Open Me came out six years ago and I was definitely moved moved by the story about professional mourners. Unfortunately she hasn't written a new book, nor did this one get much attention whatsoever.
9. Rodes Fishburne- Going to See the Elephant was a well-written, fun novel that received very little publicity at all.
10. Dominic Smith- I thoroughly enjoyed Beautiful Miscellaneous and his most recent novel Bright and Distant Shores got great reviews, and yet his name is still not really out there.
Who do you think needs some more credit?
I remember requesting for a galley copy of Kristopher Jansma's novel but I guess I didn't get it, lol. Glad to hear it was a really good book! :)
ReplyDeleteMy TTT
I really enjoyed Victor LaValle's books. I always thought he had a fairly large following, but now that I think of it, it likely only seems that way because that is the type of fiction I follow!
ReplyDeleteRief Larsen just got added to my list.
I am definitely adding a few of these to my list. Both the Jansma and the Larsen sound really interesting. Great list!
ReplyDeleteGreat list. I'll have to check out some of these authors!
ReplyDeleteI've not read any of these authors, so I'll definitely have to check them out. Thanks for the suggestions :)
ReplyDeleteMy TTT: http://suchanovelidea.com/2013/07/16/top-ten-tuesday-7/
Jess @ Such A Novel Idea!
Great list! I am always on the lookout for new authors.
ReplyDeleteWhat a great list! I don't know any of these authors and it sounds like a I need to check them out.
ReplyDeleteOh yes, I really enjoyed Ella Minnow Pea! It was v clever.
ReplyDeleteLarsen sounds good, and nice to be able to say you've read it before the film... I certainly will add that to my wish list, thanks!
ReplyDeleteThis settles it, I'm going to need a new name if I ever plan to publish anything. All of these writers have fantastic names! (Bonus points to Reif and Sunshine.) "Amy" just doesn't hold up by comparison.
ReplyDeleteThis list definitely has some of my meaning-to-reads. I am interested in Victor LaVelle and Maggie O'Farrell. I have books by both of them, so maybe one of these days.
ReplyDeleteThese are all new to me! Thanks for sharing!
ReplyDeleteHere was my Top Ten.