A somewhat analytical approach to finding the one you love the most.

There are probably as many different methods to deciding your favourite author as there are types of readers or types of stories. I am sure for many people it is more about an unquantifiable ‘feel’ than the result of a more analytical approach such as the one that follows. For others, the possible contenders may be so numerous it seems impossible to narrow the field.

For someone to be my favourite author they would be required to meet three criteria. So, here is how I decided my favourite author in three steps.

I should also add that I am restricting myself to authors of novels not poetry, short stories, plays, non-fiction or other forms of writing.

First, I would need to have read several (at least three) of their novels

I don’t think you can call someone your favourite author based on a single much-loved novel. You would need to have read more than that. Not necessarily their entire oeuvre but at least have an appreciation of their greatest hits.

Combined with the fact that I am only considering novels here, this criteria means some writers are disqualified from being considered my favourite. Sylvia Plath (The Bell Jar) and Mary Shelley (Frankenstein) only wrote the one novel each. Other authors of favourites of mine – Charlotte Bronte (Jane Eyre), George Orwell (Nineteen Eighty-Four) and Joseph Heller (Catch-22) – were not exactly prolific.

I think it is fair to say that for most of my reading history I tried to be a diverse reader. Even if I discovered an author whose work I enjoyed, I would move on to read something different rather than read more of them. It is something I am now making an effort to change.

As a result, there are several books on my favourites list where I have not read any more of their author’s work – Life of Pi by Yann Martel, The Good Earth by Pearl S Buck, We Need to Talk About Kevin by Lionel Shriver, Dune by Frank Herbert. Until I read more of them I can’t consider these as contenders.

Second, they would have had to have written a novel I consider among my favourites

This may seem an obvious criterion, but it can be tempting to name a ‘favourite author’ as someone who may not have delivered a novel you could name as a favourite, but who nevertheless has delivered several you have enjoyed. Especially if they have also never disappointed you. Requiring them to meet this mark narrows the field and avoids confusion.

Amitav Ghosh has never let me down. I have read four of his novels and have enjoyed all of them. His Ibis Trilogy is the novel series I have enjoyed the most so far. But I would not call any of his books a favourite.

I have read six Thomas Hardy novels. I can’t say I had a strong dislike for any. Of them I would say I liked Far From the Madding Crowd and Tess of the D’Urbervilles the best. But they did not crack my favourites list.

I have read seven novels by Mary Beard and am currently reading my eighth. I quite liked The King Must Die and The Mask of Apollo. While I don’t think The Bull from the Sea was at the same level as her other novels I would not say it is disqualifying. She too has not made my favourites list.

Third, they can’t have written a novel I have a strong dislike for.

I am sure for some fans, their favourite author can do no wrong. For other authors it is a difficult ask to never disappoint their readers. You can’t expect every book of theirs to become one you love but I don’t think you can call someone a ‘favourite’ author if they have severely disappointed even once.

Misery by Stephen King is pretty close to being a favourite of mine. I also quite enjoyed The Stand. But I could not stand Needful Things and could not feel much interest for Salem’s Lot.

So, does anyone I have read pass this test?

I have read three novels of Haruki Murakami (not counting The Strange Library) and one of them is a favourite – Norwegian Wood. I also quite enjoyed 1Q84 which I finished just a couple of months ago. I did not enjoy South of the Border, West of the Sun quite as much but it is not disqualifying. I have not yet read his other much-praised works such as The Wind-Up Bird Chronicle, Kafka on the Shore or A Wild Sheep Chase.

I have read four Salman Rushdie novels. Midnight’s Children is one of my favourites. I also enjoyed The Moor’s Last Sigh. I did not enjoy Shame quite as much and I did not like The Satanic Verses, though I have it listed as a book I should read again expecting to enjoy it more on a second look.

I have read six Jane Austen novels. Pride and Prejudice is one of my favourites. The others I liked are ones you might expect – Sense and Sensibility and Emma. Perhaps when I read these again I will like them more and I might find myself saying Austen is my favourite author!

But I think the author who comes closest to being my favourite is John Steinbeck. Of Mice and Men is a powerful story, though its experimental style means it is not without its issues of format. The Grapes of Wrath is a great novel, an understandable staple for English and literature students. Arguably, some writers have been considered great on the back of weaker novels than The Grapes of Wrath but I think Steinbeck did even better with East of Eden.

Might anyone else emerge to overtake Steinbeck as my favourite?

Several authors I have already mentioned could theoretically challenge Steinbeck if I were to read and reread more of them – Austen, Murakami, Buck, Herbert, Rushdie, Shriver.

Tolstoy is the author of another of my favourites – Anna Karenina. I also enjoyed War and Peace. But I have read no more of him. Similarly, Dostoyevsky’s Crime and Punishment is a favourite. I did not like The Brothers Karamazov so much but, like The Satanic Verses, I have it listed as something worth reading again expecting to enjoy it more a second time. Part of my effort to reverse the diverse aspect of my early reading has been to stock more Tolstoy and Dostoyevsky on my shelves.

Similarly, The Blind Assassin by Margaret Atwood is one of my favourites. Though, I read it a long time ago and am unsure how it would stack up after a reread. I also like The Handmaid’s Tale though possibly not as much as its many fans. She is a prolific author and I have a lot more Atwood to read and my shelves are already well stocked.

Then there are the authors I yet to read but have high expectations of. I have not read any Chimamanda Ngozi Adiche. Nor have I read any Barbara Kingsolver even though she is a reason I met my wife. PG Wodehouse is another I might find myself unable to resist.

The world’s library is so massive it is difficult to consider anyone, let alone yourself, as ‘well read’. I feel I have reached a point where I can name a favourite author and back up that title with sufficient thoughts and comparisons. But my reading has been mostly aimed at literary fiction and I have always intended to broaden this to other genres like young adult and fantasy. So, who knows, I might find Patrick Ness, Leigh Bardugo, Robert Jordan, Brandon Sanderson or George RR Martin presenting serious challenges to my list. It may take two years or ten years but the day will come where I will have to revise these thoughts.