Favorite Authors by Country

Books are a great way to explore the world. While most of the books listed below are fiction and were read for entertainment, I soon discovered that I was learning about cultures from around the world. Soon, I began selecting a country and researching its authors. What a wonderful journey!

I have not read all the books written by the authors listed, so don’t stop with my suggestions. Explore the literary world and find your favorites.

Spain

Spain was the first country I chose when I decided to read novels by authors from other countries. I could not have made a better choice. The novels I read, some of which are listed below, inspired me to continue my reading journey.

The authors are listed in no particular order of preference. I read Arturo Perez-Reverte’s The Club Dumas after seeing the title in the credits of the Johnny Depp movie, “The Ninth Gate.” In all honesty, I loved all of Perez-Reverte’s standalone books. I was less enamored with the Captain Alatriste series, but that was a matter of taste and had nothing to do with the writing style or quality.

When I began my search for Spanish authors, Carlos Ruiz Zafón’s series caught my interest with the Series Title, The Cemetery of Forgotten Books. I planned to read only one, but once I devoured The Shadow of the Wind, there was no turning back.

Ildefonso Falcone’s Cathedral of the Sea captured me from the first page, and there were nights I lost sleep as I turned the pages.

Admittedly, the Spanish authors hold a very special place on my bookshelf and in my heart.

The authors listed below, and the books I have chosen, are a sampling of the rich literary world of Spain.

.

As an Amazon associate, this site earns a commission from qualifying purchases.

Norway

Norway has produced so many celebrated writers, it is hard to know where to begin. For a country with a population barely above five and a half million, Norway has produced some of the world’s finest authors, from Ibsen to Fosse and beyond.

I will jump right into my favorites, starting with a name familiar to most readers — Jo Nesbo, author of the Harry Hole series. I have read the entire series and enjoyed every page. If you want a flawed character who manages to make life work, even when the bad guys are on the move, this is a series for you. Action-packed while dealing with life’s ups and downs. Jo Nesbo is an easy read.

Karl Ove Knausgaard is another kettle of fish. I will admit that his writing is not for everyone. I have recommended the My Struggles (Mein Kampf) series to several of my friends. The reaction is they either love every slow-moving word of it, or they hate it and close the cover after ten pages. Personally, I loved the series, all five struggles. I read the first two, then listened to the audiobooks for the third and fourth. Eduardo Ballerini is one of my all-time favorite narrators and brought the story to life as only he can. For the fifth installment, I read along as Ballerini narrated.

Knausgaard’s other works are equally complicated and equally enjoyable. For those who may have read any of the Jon Fosse books, you should know that Fosse (Nobel Laureate) was one of Knausgaard’s teachers. While Knausgaard, in my opinion, is more straightforward than Fosse, the reader can see his influence.

The books listed below are only a sampling of the works by these impressive authors. They are the ones I have read. There are many more to read.

Switzerland

Most of the authors I have read from Switzerland seem to be on a philosophical quest, with stories of individuals searching for their identities.

Hermann Hesse was awarded the 1946 Nobel Prize for Literature and was prolific until his death in 1962. He often wrote about individuals searching for their true identity, trying to find their authentic selves. His books are interesting, enlightening, and enjoyable, and not too long.

I was introduced to the works of Hermann Hesse in college. Back during the hippie years, everyone seemed to find an interest in the ideas of Buddha. Some have even said that Siddhartha was the Buddha he was looking for. I will leave that to the reader to decide.

And Steppenwolf… in the late 1960s and early 70s, a Canadian band named Steppenwolf recorded hits like “Born to Be Wild” and “The Magic Carpet Ride.” Need I say more?

Pascal Mercier wrote one of my favorite books about a man who was a teacher, having a chance encounter that set him on a journey to find an author and perhaps himself. Night Train to Lisbon is one of those books that I loved, but there seems to be no middle ground in readers’ reactions. They either love it or they hate it.

There are many Swiss authors on my reading list that I have yet to read. This is a beginning.

Denmark

Denmark has offered some of the most prolific and well-known authors in the literary world. Hans Christian Andersen, Sara Blaedel, Soren Kierkegaard, to name a few.

Two of my favorites include Isak Dinesen and Jussi Adler-Olsen.

More recently, the world has been introduced to the Dept. Q Series, written by Jussi Adler-Olsen, starring Matthew Goode as DCI Carl Morck.

Dinesen’s Out of Africa recounts her experiences while living in Kenya between 1914 and 1931, when the country was known as British East Africa. During that turbulent time under British rule, Dinesen learned to appreciate and respect the culture of the people with whom she worked and lived. Her memoir is considered one of the top 100 modern non-fiction works.

Dept. Q is a series of crime thrillers filled with wonderfully developed eccentric characters that only could come from the mind of Adler-Olsen. In 2024, the tenth book of the series was published. When I turned to the last page and saw “The End,” I felt as if it was the end not of an exceptionally told story, but of a series. Morck had decided to retire, but… not quite yet.