Top 5 Tuesday: Authors

Welcome to my blog! Since this is my first ever post on this blog, I figured I would do something quick and easy as well as something that allows you to get to know me a bit more. This post is going to be about my top 5 favorite authors with brief explanations as to why they are so well loved by me. I am also hoping to publish a top 5 sort of post every Tuesday as long as I can come up with a topic every week. I'm going to start with #5 and work my way up to my absolute favorite, so let's get started.

5. F. Scott Fizgerald

Starting this off at number five is F. Scott Fitzgerald. If you are unfamiliar with his work, he is the author of The Great Gatsby, The Curious Case of Benjamin Button, The Beautiful and Damned, and others. Despite all that he has written, I have only read one of his books and that would be The Great Gatsby, but I immediately fell in love with his writing. I loved the sheer timelessness of his writing and how someone a hundred years from now could pick up his book and still understand the story. I also admired his ability to capture the setting and allow the reader to get a sense of the era. Basically I just thought that the way he crafted his story was effortless and beautiful and I look forward to picking up some of his other books in the near future.

4. Jodi Picoult

Next up I have Jodi Picoult who is the author of My Sister's Keeper, The Storyteller, and Nineteen Minutes to just name a few. The books that I previously mentioned are the only ones that I have read of hers thus far, however I look forward to reading more of her work. If you have read a Jodi Picoult book, then you know that she is the master of writing from various perspectives in order to form her story and make everything blend together beautifully. She takes every character and gives them such vivid and distinct personalities so that it makes the reader feel connected to each one of them, but also makes it so that each character is equally as interesting to read about. She also tackles tough topics (such as cancer, WWII, suicide, ect.) in a way that causes the reader to empathize without getting hit over the head with the theme. 

3. Markus Zusak

I fell in love with Markus Zusak before I ever read any of his books just based on what I had heard about The Book Thief. If you didn't already know, The Book Thief was written from the perspective of Death... need I say more? When I first heard that  I was blown away and once I started the book I surrendered my love to Markus Zusak because of how beautifully written it is. I also have read I Am the Messenger, which was also flawless and highly underrated. Both of these books exceeded my expectations and I look forward to reading more from Zusak in the future.

2. J. K. Rowling

Many many many people might be appalled that J. K. Rowling is only #2 on this list and not at the top, but I'm not even sorry. J. K. Rowling is forever the queen of writing in my book, but there is still one person who tops her. If you have been living under a rock for the past decade, J. K. Rowling is the author of the beloved Harry Potter series and also wrote The Casual Vacancy, followed by The Cuckoo's Calling and The Silkworm under a pseudonym. I have yet to read The Cuckoo's Calling or The Silkworm, but I have read all the rest and they are much loved. Harry Potter is by far the most well crafted series I have ever read. The world Rowling created feels so real that I actually feel like I am at Hogwarts with Harry and they are all just perfect. When The Casual Vacancy came out I was super excited for something new and it blew my expectations and it was so wonderful to read something for adults by Rowling.

1. Jonathan Safran Foer

The god of writing. Jonathan Safran Foer is the author of Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close, Everything is Illuminated, Tree of Codes, and Eating Animals. Out of those, Eating Animals is the only one that I have not read, but nonetheless he is still my favorite author. He reminded me that writing is a work of art, a form of expression, and a platform for creativity. Foer's novels are a breath of fresh air and always finds new and innovative ways to share his stories. Not only are his books a work of art themselves, but the stories told within their pages are simply breathtaking. I remember having to take breaks while reading Everything is Illuminated because I was tearing up because of the beauty in his words. Jonathan Safran Foer reminded me why I love reading and I will be forever thankful.

There you have it: my top 5 favorite authors. I hope you enjoyed reading this and are looking forward to more Top 5 Tuesday posts in the future. Much love to everyone who took the time to read this and I hope this was a good beginning to a blog I see myself continuing for a long time to come.