It's no secret that we love female writers around here at Sugar HQ, but according to Publishers Weekly, no book written by a woman was good enough to make the list of the top 10 titles of 2009. Maybe it's time for women to start taking masculine pen names again.
In response to the disappointing list, the group Women in Letters and Literary Arts (WILLA) has put together a list of books that were overlooked, written by authors like Lorrie Moore, Rita Dove, Margaret Atwood, Alice Munro, Mavis Gallant, and Alicia Ostriker.
I thought it could be fun to make our own list of amazing female authors. So tell me: who is your favorite author, who also happens to be a woman? (And if you're looking for books written by either sex, check out our list of November must reads.)
Source: Flickr User netsella
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Nica
Don't judge me, but I freaking love Meg Cabot novels! She is SO funny! She wrote the YA Princess Diaries Novels, which are a million times better than the awful Disney movie. She also wrote several chick lit novels for Adults, the best of which is "Boy Meets Girl." They all take place over IMs and emails.
I also like Candice Bushnell quite a bit. I think "Four Blondes" is the best novel she's written - "Trading Up," the sequel to it, just wasn't as good.
So, yes, I do love Chick Lit, especially of the YA variety. It's juvenile, yes, but I still get a thrill hearing about how Princess Mia just desperately wants to go to the prom with Michael Moskovitz!
1Ellen Hopkins is my favorite. She writes her books in verse form. At first I had to get used to it, but then I really began to appreciate her writing style. She writes about a lot of intense things such as drug addiction, self harm, etc.
2Janet Evanovich, Sue Grafton, Candace Bushnell, Jeanette Walls
3For me, it has to be Jane Yolen (from my childhood). I enjoyed every piece of her work. She's the only author I could say that about. I think she's a gifted, gifted storyteller.
4Spacekatgal, I'm going to have to look into Meg Cabot. I loved the Princess Diaries movies and if you say the books were even better than I really do need to read them. I love YA fiction. It helps of course that my 12 year old likes to read as well and we often read books and discuss them.
I am usually not partial to an author, I don't tend to read many books by the same author, I just like to read books that sound interesting to me. That being said, I've read a few of Philippa Gregory's books and like them. I also do like Nora Roberts, they are good light, filler books between "heavier" reads.
The couple of books I've read by Tracy Chevalier (Girl with a Pearl Earring and Falling Angels) I've liked as well. Another YA female auther is Cassandra Clare (she wrote the Mortal Instruments series).
And finally some authors that I've only read one book (so far) of theirs that I like are Kathleen McGowan (The Expected One) and Tasha Alexander (And Only to Deceive).
5Among current writers: Janet Evanovich. As for classics, love Jane Austen
6better than the movies.. come on Kim finish a thought lol
7Lisa See and Jodi Picoult come to mind for good books in 2009.
8good lord, please excuse my typos in my post. auther? seriously? I do read and I can write
9I love Margaret Atwood and Barbara Kingsolver.
10I'm surprised (and relieved) that nobody has said Stephenie Meyer yet.
11Sophie Kinsella - just finished reading her new book twenties girl...i wasn't expecting it to be so great!
12Sarah Dunant (The Birth of Venus) and Anita Diamant (The Red Tent) just came to my mind as well.
I've only read two of Jodi Picoults books (At Second Glance and Plain Truth), I loved them both. But I can't read her more "controversial" books.
13Classic-wise, definitely Jane Austen, Charlotte and Emily Bronte.
14Then, Nella Larsen, Virginia Woolf.
More 'current' ones are Amy Tan.
I'm sure many are escaping my mind right now (since my son is practically screaming at me right now LOL)...but this is fun. I wish I could read in quiet again, haven't been able to, for years.
oh yes I like Sophie too. I read her Shopaholic series but the books I really liked by her are stand alones, Can You Keep a Secret and my very favorite, The Undomestic Goddess.
15nevaeh the day will come I promise! I've been where you are, it's only temporary
16Jane Green.
17Well, Kim - I mean the movies are cute - but beyond unfaithful to the books.
Mia's grandmother, Grandmere, is probably the character I hate the most in all of literature. She's horrible, she's selfish, she lies, and she's an alcoholic. There is nothing redeeming at all about her.
So, who does Disney get to play her? The chick that played Mary Poppins. And they make her all nice. I asked Meg Cabot about this when I met her - it was about 40 six-year-old girls that day and me. Her response was, "Eh. They paid me."
18oh wow I can't imagine Mia's Grandmother being mean. I do hate it when authors take money for movies and give up all say in how the movie is portrayed.
19Joyce Carol Oates. Always. =)
20Sophie Kinsella, Emily Griffin, Jodi Picoult
21True, Kim. But Meg Cabot also wrote Disney's "Ice Princess" as part of the deal - which was excellent. It was funny, it had a lot of truth in it. So - I'm willing to forgive her.
Anyway, I am seriously geeking up this conversation. My apologies.
22MARGARET ATWOOD WAS LEFT OFF OF THIS LIST?!?!?!?!
23JK Rowling. I can't help it. The writing is iffy good, but the story and characters are pretty intense.
And I mostly read more non-fiction type books (like philosophy, political theory, text books...).
24Ooo, Sophie Kinsella, for sure. And my guilty pleasure...Charlaine Harris.
25Carole Matthews and Patricia Cornwell
26and I agree about JK Rowling
Emily Giffin (read Something Borrowed and Something Blue, they are amazing!), Sophie Kinsella (my fav is also the Undomestic Goddess! and she is just not as good when writing as Madeleine Wickham), and i also like most Candace Bushnell and Meg Cabot (but watch out cuz some Meg Cabot isn't that good)...and Jodi Picoult is a good writer but her stories are often very monopolized by legal jargon/court scenes
27Isabel Allende is probably my all-time favorite female author, followed by Toni Morrison. As far as classics go, I love Emily and Charlotte Bronte, and Kate Chopin.
Also, Chelsea Handler's books are hilarious and made me laugh until I had tears in my eyes.
28Just got back into fiction, after being on a non-fiction kick for the past few years.
I am currently reading Diana Gabaldon so I have to put in a vote for her!
29Mary Gaitskill
30I love Marian Keyes. Her novels are "chick lit" on the surface, but she deals with some serious issues with an air of hurmor; one example would be Rachel's Holiday which dealt with a woman's denial of her drug addiction.
31Let's see for sci fi fantasy: Charlaine Harris (Dead Until Dark etc.), Kim Harrison (Dead Witch Walking), Kelly Armstrong (Bitten), Patricia Briggs (Ironkissed). . .
Other: Barbara Kingsolver (Bean Trees), Elizabeth Kostova (The Historian), Amy Tan (Joy Luck Club), JK Rowling (Harry Potter duh!)and Toni Morrison
Classic: Mary Shelly (Frankenstein), Edna St. Vincent Millay (poet), Emily Dickinson. . .
32Oh and Lynda Barry though she does illustrated novels. I read her book Cruddy when I was deleriously sick with pneumonia and it just touched a nerve in a strange way to make me like it
33Stephenie Meyer .. teehee whiplash
(I find the books amusing and entertaining, but
don't find her to be a great author)
34Judy Blume.
35Jacqueline Carey and Kim Harrison are just fantastic, I love them. J.K. Rowling is great too.
36I second Judy Blume. Also, Phyllis Reynolds Naylor for my childhood love of the Alice books.
As an adult I like Willa Cather
37Patricia Cornwell
38I love Dr.Scarpetta
Lots of good ones have already been mentioned (esp Jane Auston and JK Rowling), but I'll add a good light writer...Charlaine Harris.
39Zora Neale Hurston.
40V.C. Andrews
41Diana Gabaldon, for sure. JK Rowling, Jane Austen, and I do love me some Nora Roberts! Frankly, there's very few male authors that I really love. The main exception would be Michael Chabon, who is seriously awesome.
42Anita Shreve
43My all time favorite is Maria De Los Santos, who wrote "Love Walked In" and "Belong to Me." Ok, ok, the titles are bad,but the writing is goshdarn amazing! It will bring tears to your eyes with it's great warm characters. Buy them, they are perfect winter reads!
44*I wanted to add that De Los Santos writing reminds me of Tori Amos's singing. Same graceful, haunting momentum.
45Djuna Barnes. Her book Nightwood is one of my favorite books in the world.
46Lucy Maud Montgomery. Love all her books. I read Anne of Green Gables at least once a year.
47Kate Chopin, Jane Austen, Emily Bronte, Anita Shreve, Isabel Gillies, and Emily Giffin.
48Lisa Gardner,Janet Evanovich,Tess Gerritsen,Mary Higgins Clark,Patricia Cornwell,Nora Roberts.... so many I love!!
49One of my new favs are Alice Sebold (The Lovely Bones and Almost Moon, which is what I'm currently reading) and Audrey Niffenegger (The Time Traveler's Wife and Her Fearful Symmetry). I do have a few, but uhm, yeah, I can't think of any other new ones right now.
I like Meyer's newest book, The Host. It's pretty fantasticaing.
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