Irish Readers discussion

Always knew I read more male authors than female.
But just noticed all my favourite authors and the top 20 of my most read authors are men

Any recommendations for authors not burdened with a Y chromosome?

Heh, I'm having the same problem so I'm looking forward to seeing the replies. :) I can suggest a few female writers, but not too many. If you haven't read Doris Lessing, she's a beautiful writer. Same with Willa Cather. And for historical fiction I love Sigrid Undset.

I really liked Water for Elephants by Sara Gruen. And I absolutely love How Audrey Niffenegger and Prep by Curtis Sittenfeld is great, but not to everyone's liking.
I also think that Cassandra Clare, Suzanne Collins, Maggie Stievfater and others are phenomenal writers. Although they write in the YA genre, their writing style is fantastic and their ideas fresh and exciting.

A.M. Homes, Donna Tartt (a controversial choice :p), Banana Yoshimoto, and give the Irish ladies a chance!
Anne Enright
Claire Keegan
Christine Dwyer Hickey
Edna O Brien

That's the extent of what I can think of on my shelves. Ignoring the obvious ofc - (Room by Emma Donoghue, the Brontes, TKAM,)

I'm sure if you check out the lists section there will be a females writers list.

Ooh, Margaret Atwoodis a brilliant writer, who wrote The Handmaid's Tale is great. :)

Mairead wrote: "Ooh, Margaret Atwoodis a brilliant writer, who wrote The Handmaid's Tale is great. :)"

I absolutely love Margaret Atwood. I've read the Robber Bride, The Blind assassin, and am now reading Cat's Eye.

I'm enjoying the recommendations here. I've noticed a similar problem with my own bookshelf.

Marry Rennault and her novels on ancient Greece. Elizabethy Geogre's novels on the Tudors; she writes well as I recall, although God knows it's been a while. If you like fantasy, Patricia McKillip's "The Forgotten Beasts of Eld" and Lian Hearn's books of the Otori. There are the usual women's classic writers like Virginia Wolfe of course.

I haven't listened to it yet, but there's a podcast on Guardian that looks interesting:

http://www.guardian.co.uk/books/audio...

thanks all - have read some Atwood Margaret which didn't inspire me to read more from her, and some Anne Enright and Audrey Niffenegger which do

What about Lionel Shriver (Author)... I am currently reading her We Need to Talk About Kevin and it is excellent. :)

Azar Nafisi's "Reading Lolita in Tehran" or "Things I've been silent about"

Toni Morrison's 'Beloved' or the 'The Song of Solomon' are some the finest books I've ever read. They're not to everybody's taste but there is no denying the quality of the writing. Strongly recommended.

Victorian Britain is full of great female writers btw, George Eliot, the Brontes, Elizabeth Gaskell ...

Id recommend.Jodi Picoult I started reading her books way before My Sisters Keeper became a film. and James Patterson

Oh read : Angels Crest couldnt put it down! the author is very talented!

Picoroco wrote: "Toni Morrison's 'Beloved' or the 'The Song of Solomon' are some the finest books I've ever read. They're not to everybody's taste but there is no denying the quality of the writing. Strongly recomm..."

I echo the sentiment. Beloved got to the very heart of what is to be female.

If you like political memoirs, Madeleine Albright's biography as U.S. Secretary of State demonstrates her depth of understanding of international issues.

There are few Authors I've read who I have enjoyed so much that it is my goal to read everything they have written. In fact the only three currently on that list are Virginia Woolf Mary Shelley and Sarah Waters

FYI, Mary Shelley is Virginia Woolf's daughter.

Kim wrote: "FYI, Mary Shelley is Virginia Woolf's daughter."

Woolf wasn't born until 1882, 31 years after Shelley passed in 1851... at least that is according to the Goodreads author profiles. To my knowledge, Woolf never had any children.

Caitlin wrote: "Kim wrote: "FYI, Mary Shelley is Virginia Woolf's daughter."

Woolf wasn't born until 1882, 31 years after Shelley passed in 1851... at least that is according to the Goodreads author profiles. To ..."

My memory failed, then. I read somewhere recently about a mother-daughter pair of writers that surprised me. I guess I've forgotten who it was!