Which authors’ books have you read the most? I checked my spreadsheet, which records my reading since 2002, and searched for the number of books by authors I know I’ve read a lot. I here present to you a list of my top 10 most-read authors! Since my records began, that is…
10. Philip Pullman – 20 books. The majority of these would be re-reads of His Dark Materials, but I have also read the Sally Lockhart series, some standalone books and, much more recently, The Secret Commonwealth.
9. H G Wells – 21 books. Obviously some of these are re-reads (such as The Time Machine) – I couldn’t name 21 books Wells wrote, although I know he was very prolific and that only a small number of his works are famous today.
8. Christopher Pike – 21 books. This is a tie with H G Wells but I have given him 8th place because I used to have a Point Horror short story collection which included Pike and which I read 3 times. The best Pike book is, I think, Remember Me.
7. Daphne du Maurier – 24 books. We had an almost-complete set of her works at home and so I felt qualified enough to write a ‘recommended author’ post on her. I’ve re-read a few, most notably Rebecca, which I studied in comparison to Jane Eyre.
6. Arthur C Clarke – 26 books. I was quite surprised at how many of his books turned up when I searched my records. However, I’ve re-read the ‘Odyssey’ series and some short story collections several times, plus a few other novels, and they all added up.
5. J K Rowling – 27 books. This number would be higher if my pre-2002 reading was included – I was hooked on the first 3 books and was extremely excited when the 4th was published! As you might expect, nearly all of the reads were Harry Potter books or from the same world, such as Fantastic Beasts. The exception is The Casual Vacancy.
4. Paul Stewart – 27 books. Considering how many books there are in the Edge Chronicles series – for which he collaborated with Chris Riddell and which I’m re-reading again – this number of reads isn’t surprising. Others by him I’ve read are Muddle Earth and The Weather Witch. Although he is tying with J K Rowling, he is placed here on the list because the number of reads will soon be higher, as I still have several more of the Edge books to re-read.
3. Sue Townsend – 28 books. Most of these are the Adrian Mole series – my favourite being The Secret Diary – but as demonstrated in my ‘recommended author’ post, she wrote a variety of things. I’m sad that there won’t be any more.
2. Anthony Horowitz – 38 books. I love the Diamond Brothers, Alex Rider and Groosham Grange series and have read several of his standalone works too, most recently two of his novels for adults, featuring himself as a character. One of my favourite books at my secondary school library was his Horowitz Horror short story collection.
And at number 1, my most-read author is…
Terry Pratchett! I’ve read 52 of his books (including re-reads) so far. I haven’t read all of the Discworld series – probably three quarters of them, though. I’m starting to re-read the few I own, such as The Witches Trilogy. I’ve also read some of his non-Discworld books, such as the Bromeliad trilogy, Johnny Maxwell trilogy, Long Earth series (with Stephen Baxter), Strata, Good Omens (with Neil Gaiman) and The Dark Side of the Sun. I did guess that Terry Pratchett would be my most-read author but I didn’t realise how far ahead of the others he would be!
Who’s your most-read author? Let me know!
There is a definite theme in your preferred genre!
Prior to blogging, L.M. Montgomery, Stephen King, Neville Shute and Georgette Heyer. Since starting my blog I don’t know. I’m off to check my lists.
Yes, that’s for sure! L M Montgomery would probably feature in the top 50 if my records went back further, I think. I read several King novels before I went off him. Our reading tastes tend to change over time, so whether certain author s are the most-read would depend how far back the records go.
I only started to register my reading quite recently, so I’ve no idea who my most read author would be (I am impressed by your recording skills). It might be Agatha Christie or some other crime author. J.K. Rowling could be relatively high on the list, since I’ve read the Potter books as well as the series about Strike & Robin. Interesting list!
If my records went even further back, then no doubt authors such as Jacqueline Wilson, R L Stine, Ann M Martin (Babysitters Club), Anne Fine and Lucy Daniels (Animal Ark) would be on the list! Of course the more books an author wrote, the more chance they’ll be on the list. Thanks for reading!
I loved the Edge Chronicles and Anthony Horowitz books when I was younger!
Is there a book that you found yourself rereading the most?
I still do, they are fantastic series! 🙂 I don’t know exactly which book I’ve re-read the most, but since 2002 it might be To Kill A Mockingbird, Harry Potter & the Philosopher’s Stone, The Time Machine, The Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy or The Catcher in the Rye.
Off the top of my head I imagine that at the top would be Neil Gaiman, Margaret Atwood, Michael Crichton, and Terry Pratchett but not sure in which order…
The more prolific an author is, the more likely they’ll be on your most-read list. I have read several Atwoods but she’s not one of my favourites so maybe she’d be in the top 100!
I have yet to delve into Terry Pratchett’s work though I hear his Discworld series is good. I’ve read Good Omens and a nonfiction collection, A Slip of the Keyboard, but nothing else just yet. I plan on getting around to reading more of his books.
Discworld is definitely worth trying! They do follow different characters – I prefer the ones about the witches. I think some of the early books can be hit and miss, I guess because he was still finding the tone and building the world.
My most read is James Herbert in the late 80’s. Sarah Waters is my all time favourite now and I await with bated breath for her next novel. It’s been a long time coming!
I have not even read any James Herbert or Sarah Waters! Am I missing out?! There are so many authors I haven’t tried yet, I just keep returning to my favourites.
Herbert, maybe not so much, they are dated and probably offensive to many these days lol. Sarah’s are historical fiction and honestly, they are absolutely superb. So I’d say Waters over Herbert for sure 👍🏻
Thanks, your enthusiasm is great! *adds Sarah Waters to list of authors to check out*
Mine would certainly be Agatha Christie! not only was she ridiculously prolific but I’ve re-read most of them a few times, and a few of them many times.
Indeed yes, she wrote so many! I’ve got to admit I still haven’t read any of her books, but then I’m not so keen on detective mysteries. I’m sure she’d be the most-read author for many fans of the genre!
Sir Terry Pratchett is by far my most read author, largely because I re-read the 41 Discworld novels over the last few years. Every one is a joy! Apart from STP, I think Ian McEwan and Evelyn Waugh are the next closest, both fewer than 10 novels each though.
Few authors have been as prolific I think! I have only re-read a few of Sir Terry’s but he wrote so many that he is way ahead of the others on my reading record! Probably the next read authors, if I was doing a top 20, would be Stella Gibbons, Jane Austen and maybe Charlotte Bronte.