Ten of the top writers presently producing contemporary literature are included in this list. This is the genre for you if you like well-written books that balance engrossing topical plots with beautiful writing and structure. While current literature may be character-driven, the events that occur during the course of the book have an impact on and mold the characters. What makes it “modern,” then? because the tales deal with real-world situations and are situated in the actual world during periods that are contemporaneous with the publication date. While keeping that in mind, let’s go through the list of top 10 authors alive in the UK as of now.
Haruki Murakami
Japanese novelist Haruki Murakami is well-known around the world. Despite the fact that Murakami’s books are predominantly set in Japan, the author addresses the human condition in a manner that is universal. Murakami’s books have been translated into more than 50 different languages, which is not surprising. If you have the time and are willing to put in more effort, 1Q84, which takes just under 47 hours to complete, is a really satisfying experience. The audiobook won the AudioFile Earphones Award and includes a supplementary interview with the book’s translators, Jay Rubin, and Philip Gabriel. It is narrated by Allison Hiroto, Marc Vietor, and Mark Boyett. Want something a little shorter? One of Murakami’s most well-known works is Norwegian Wood, and with good reason. It is really memorable.
Colson Whitehead
American author Colson Whitehead often addresses issues of racial injustice in his works of fiction. For his 2019 book The Nickel Boys, he most recently received the Pulitzer Prize. The book, which is set in the 1960s and the immediate present, is based on the true account of the Dozier School in Florida, a reform school that gained notoriety when authorities discovered proof of the staff’s horrifying mistreatment of kids. This is Whitehead’s second Pulitzer Prize for Fiction victory; his first came in 2017 for his book The Underground Railroad, which chronicles the escape of a child slave. JD Jackson narrates The Nickel Boys, and Bahni Turpin narrates The Underground Railroad in the audiobooks for these two award-winning works. It would be a mistake to skip this pairing of two of the most accomplished audiobook narrators of our time reading two of the most significant pieces of hard-hitting fiction published today.
Donna Tartt
American novelist Donna Tartt has three books to her credit. Her writing is renowned for its masterful linguistic usage, gripping stories, and well-developed characters. She essentially has the trifecta of exceptional writing down. And those who adore her art do so intensely. Everyone was talking about The Goldfinch when it was released in 2013, and for good reason: Tartt would later get the Pulitzer Prize for it. To find out what all the excitement is about, listen to David Pittu’s narration of The Goldfinch in audio format. Afterward, reread Tartt’s first book, The Secret History, which she skillfully narrated with an endearing Mississippi accent.
Hanya Yanagihara
The People in the Trees, Hanya Yanagihara’s first book, is partially based on the true account of virologist Daniel Carleton Gajdusek, who was found guilty of child molestation. As you may have imagined, Yanagihara’s works examine serious subjects. Four friends are the central characters in her second book, A Little Life, which focuses on their traumas (addiction, self-harm, and abuse, to mention a few) and how they overcame them. (Such as abuse, addiction, and self-harm, to mention a few) and their healing from such traumas. A Little Life is recommended reading despite its difficult subject matter (thus its selection in the Audible Editors’ Best of the Decade list). Oliver Wyman, a renowned narrator with 19 Earphones Awards and five Audie Awards, reads the audiobook.
Ann Patchett
With an Ann Patchett book, you never know what type of tale you’re going to receive. The Japanese embassy hostage situation in Lima, Peru, between 1996 and 1997 served as the inspiration for her 2001 book Bel Canto, a tale of unexpected love and friendship. Rare Books – Shapero noted that the long-term effects of a tragedy on two families that are both ripped apart and brought together by an affair are examined in Commonwealth, her 2016 book. Ann Patchett, however, thinks that her work has a unifying theme: the kindness of mankind, regardless of the subject. You’re in for a treat if you haven’t read Ann Patchett’s most recent book, The Dutch House. The audiobook is expertly narrated by Tom Hanks, the father of the United States.
Ngozi Adichie
We Should All Be Feminists, an audiobook recorded by the author and based on Adichie’s TED presentation of the same name, is where I first heard of her. Nigerian author Adichie has had more than 30 languages translate her works. Her literature is infused with feminist principles. In her most recent book, Americanah, a young couple named Ifemelu and Obinze are followed as they go from military-run Nigeria to the West, deal with separation, learn what it means to be Black in the West, and attempt to get back together. The audiobook’s gifted narrator is Adjoa Andoh.
Arundhati Roy
Indian novelist Arundhati Roy is renowned for her poetic language. Her book The God of Small Things, which has been translated into more than 40 languages, received the Booker Prize in 1997. The Ministry of Utmost Happiness, Roy’s follow-up to her enormously popular debut book, was released in 2017. The audiobook, which is narrated by Roy herself, tells a tangled tale that touches on some of the most trying and bloody periods in modern Indian history. Contemporary political and social challenges in India are addressed in both of Roy’s writings.
Zachary Smith
British novelist Zadie Smith has residences in Northwest London, New York, and other cities. Smith examines human differences via a multi-generational tale of two families in her highly praised and best-selling first book White Teeth. Lenny Henry, Pippa Bennett-Warner, Ray Panthaki, and Arya Sagar all narrate the audiobook. Swing Time, a tale about two kids who share a desire of becoming dancers but whose paths diverge as they become older and make different choices, is also narrated by Pippa Bennett-Warner.
Ishiguro Kazuo
Born in Japan but moving to the UK when he was five, Kazuo Ishiguro is a novelist, screenwriter, and short story writer. Ishiguro’s work reflects the blending of his British background and Japanese ancestry. Although Ishiguro’s first two books are set in Japan, he has acknowledged that this is just an imagined representation of the nation that he is attempting to imprint in his mind. Apart from those recurring themes of identity and memory, Ishiguro’s books take quite diverse turns. Some are situated in the present while others are in the past, others in Japan and some in the United Kingdom. Ishiguro’s books deal with real-world concerns in some that are wholly genuine and fantastical in others. For instance, Ishiguro employs sci-fi themes in his book Never Let Me Go, which is told by Rosalyn Landor with just the perfect amount of sorrow, to explore the essence of mankind and grief.
- Ian McEwan
The writing of British author Ian McEwan is often praised for its exquisite words and powerful imagery. Perhaps you’ve seen the famed film version of Ian McEwan’s novel Atonement a million times and feel like you already know the plot too well. However, just for the prose alone, McEwan’s book on guilt and the loss of innocence is worth reading or listening to. Listen to On Chesil Beach next. It’s a beautiful novella about a newlywed couple who are both nervous about their wedding night. The suspense in the author’s narration is exactly perfect.
Final words
These are the top 10 authors alive in the UK as of now. If you are a person who loves books, we strongly encourage you to read some of their books, and you will be good to go ahead.
