My Favorite Authors
- Briana Azar
- Apr 14
- 5 min read
There are a few conditions that are required for me to call an author a 'favorite.' First, series do not count, they have to be one-off books. In my mind, it's much easier to write a series than it is to write successful individual stories. Coming up with an extraordinary story and then continuing it is a feat of its own, but to continuously write books with unique and engaging storylines is remarkable.
Second, I have to love at least two of their books. I've learned over the years that just because I love one book by an author does not mean I will love their others (which is quite upsetting considering how hard it can be to find a new favorite book anyways). Once I love a second book by the same author, I am pretty confident I will enjoy most of the others they write.
And third, the distinction of 'favorite' is awarded when I am excited to recommend the author's entire library of work to others. There's something special about finding an author with consistent writing on topics that are universally compelling ---- I literally want to run around and scream for everyone to read these books (which, if you know me at all, I've actually done).
I have such a soft spot for Sarah Dessen. I read The Truth About Forever when I was a freshman in high school and I was immediately in love.
Not only does Dessen write YA stories beautifully and maturely enough for adults, she also handles romance in her books really well. I've realized in the last year that I don't typically love stories where the main plot point is romance. I enjoy romance as a side quest, but I need a separate arc to drive the book. Dessen does an incredible job at creating relatable and flawed adolescent characters that are struggling with some issue other than a romantic relationship. Across her books, she's tackled death, grief, rape, domestic violence, abandonment, foster care, anxiety, depression. But the stories show that people are much more than the trauma they've been through, and hope and joy can be found in the darkest of places. Her side characters are incredible, tangible, and memorable. My favorite book boyfriend of all time is still Wes from The Truth About Forever. Every time I've read one of her books, I'm dropped into a warm bath of nostalgia, helping me remember and nurture my teenage self, who saw herself in so many of Dessen's main characters.
If you can't tell, my favorite of her books is The Truth About Forever. I adored this book when I read it at age 14, but it became even more part of my soul when I reread it after my dad died. For anyone struggling with the grief of losing a parent, this story helped heal me the tiniest bit.
For me, Emily Henry writes the adult Sarah Dessen stories. She may not be winning any Pulitzer Prizes any time soon, but every time it's announced she's releasing a book, I immediately pre-order it (which almost never happens).
Henry writes romance in a way that feels more down to earth than typical of the genre. Like Dessen, her characters are flawed and relatable, and usually going through some kind of personal issue outside of their romantic endeavors. Her dialogue is superb, and I consistently find myself laughing out loud, especially at the banter between the main character and the book boyfriend. For the last 3 years, I have read an Emily Henry book on my annual Memorial Day beach trip with my best friends, and the vibe is unmatched. It may be why I have such an affinity for Henry, but I'm not complaining.
My favorite book of hers is People We Meet on Vacation. It was the first of her books I read, and I devoured it on my annual BFF beach trip a few months after my dad died. The romance story was a true friends to lovers (my favorite romance trope), and it made me appreciate how lucky I am to have the friends I do.
Now, if we want to talk about Pulitzer Prize winners, I will yap about Jon Krakauer until I've lost my voice. Technically, he's never won the prize, but he has been a finalist for Into Thin Air, and I feel he should have been nominated for Under the Banner of Heaven.
Krakauer is one of the most talented writers I've ever encountered. He is able to take real-life events and turn them into page-turning stories. But the thing he does that is unique to the narrative nonfiction genre is the way he weaves his own experiences into his books. It's not the main point, it's not in your face, but it grounds the events he's reporting on into a more emotional reality. I especially love the way he does it in Under the Banner of Heaven. While the book is an account of a horrific killing committed by two Mormon brothers and details the religious sect as a whole, Krakauer interlaces his own personal battle with spirituality and modernity in a way that helped me process my own. For me, the highest feat of writing is achieved when an author can present you with an engaging real life story while also making you feel seen and heard.
I highly recommend any of his books, but especially Under the Banner of Heaven, which is still to this day one of my favorite books of all time.
There's a misguided reputation John Green has gained over the last decade --- you probably know him as a YA author who writes sad stories about teenagers. And while that's not incorrect, it severely downgrades his talents and ability to connect with people in many different ways.
My first encounter with Green was Looking for Alaska. It was his first novel and I read it when I was 16 and in the throes of teenage angst. That book hit me like a damn train, and it still means so much to me after all of these years.
He wrote a few more YA novels, most notably The Fault in Our Stars, but none were able to get under my skin the way his first one did. That is, until he wrote The Anthropocene Reviewed, his first nonfiction book.
The fact that he is able to bring incredible depth and emotion to his fiction and nonfiction writing is unprecedented to me. I personally have not yet come across another author who is able to do both so well. His writing is some of my favorite writing of all time ---- beautiful, poetic, direct, accessible, and soulful. I laugh out loud many times. I cry many times. I feel seen, heard, understood. I feel less alone. And that to me is the greatest part about books.
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Happy reading, y'all.
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