1. William Shakespeare
William Shakespeare (1564-1616), who has now been dead for more than 500 years, is the undisputed leader of the (probably) most widely read writers in the world. Hamlet, Macbeth, A Midsummer Night's Dream, and of course Romeo and Juliet are the Englishman's most important works, known even in the furthest corners of the world. However, it must also be said that many did not read his works voluntarily. But in school, you were practically forced to do it and struggled through many a cumbersome page. But sometimes it has to hurt, doesn't it?
Most important work:
Romeo and Juliet – the classic about the unhappy love between, well, Romeo and Juliet, which doesn't end well.
2. Agatha Christie
The runner-up on this list is also from England: Agatha Christie. However, the successful crime book author lived much later, namely from 1890 to 1976. Measured against this, the 2 billion books that she is said to have sold to date are actually a lot higher than those of Shakespeare, but: It should be about the bare numbers. The main characters she has created are the Belgian detective Hercule Poirot and the amateur detective Miss Marple, whom Agatha Christie was inspired to create by her own grandmother. Christie has written a total of 66 crime novels, including classics such as Murder on the Orient Express, 4:50 PM from Paddington, and Death on the Nile (recently remade into a film with Gal Gadot).
Most important work:
Is Murder on the Orient Express – the crime classic in which Hercule Poirot tries to solve the eponymous murder of an American fellow passenger.
3. Barbara Cartland
Barbara Cartland, that much is certain, has an absolute place of honor in this list and would without question receive the badge of diligence. Because the self-proclaimed expert on romance is said to have written 724 (!) books during her lifetime (1901-2000, her first novel appeared in 1923) and mostly even painted the accompanying covers. Unbelievable! At her peak, she wrote a novel every fortnight. In one year she wrote 20 books - an absolute record that got her an entry in the Guinness Book of Records. Whereby one has to say: Cartland was knitted rather one-dimensionally thematically. Her books, which have titles such as Just a Touch of Love or Love under the Tropical Moon, it was always about the kitschy and glamorous world of the nobility. Maybe that's why, in keeping with the kitsch in her novels, she always wore only pink.
Most important work:
Probably her first: Jig-saw – because that was the cornerstone for the flood of romance novels that followed.
4. Harold Robbins
It was anything but foreseeable in his youth that Harold Robbins would one day become a writer and then also one of the most widely read. Born in Brooklyn, New York City, to Jewish immigrants in 1916, he dropped out of school in his late 20s and supported himself with part-time jobs. His life changed when he decided to move to Los Angeles and started working at Universal Studios. Working on film shaped him and he started writing. Already his first novel Die Wilden from 1948 was a success - and was the beginning of a sensational career. Although he never really got the literary critics enthusiastic about himself, he did inspire his readers. And: Hollywood. A total of 9 of his books, which often deal with American economics and finance, have been filmed over the years.
Most important work:
The Merciless is considered his most challenging work, in which Robbins tells the story of a boy growing up during the Depression. It became known in particular through the film adaptation from 1958 under the title My Life is the Rhythm. Starring:
5. Enid Blyton
She is clearly the most successful and most widely read children's book author of all time: the British author Enid Blyton (1897-1968), whose fascination for storytelling stems from the fact that as a child she always dreamed up stories for her siblings. The Hanni and Nanni author is said to have managed up to 12,000 words per day at peak times. So it's hardly surprising that Blyton wrote more than 750 novels in the course of her life.
Walter Matthau and then 23-year-old Elvis Presley.
Most important work:
Probably the book series Five Friends, which is still regularly reissued and filmed. Every second adult over 30 can still sing along to the title song of the radio play series, for which Blyton is of course not responsible: “We are the five friends, Julian and Dick, Anne and George. And Timmy the dog…!”
6. Danielle Steel
Danielle Steel, who is now 74 years old, was born in New York, grew up in France, and later attended various European schools. Her mother was Portuguese, her father a German Jew - so you can safely call her a cosmopolitan. Before National Socialism, the Löwenbräu brewery was family-owned, as was the Munich bank J. Schühlein and Sons. Steel began writing in 1977 and her debut novel Farewell to St. Petersburg was a success and brought her international recognition. Since then she has written more than 60 novels, each of which has made it to the top of the bestseller lists.
600 mi
Most important work:
His radiant light. My Son's Story. The book is her only biographical work. It is about her son Nick Traina, one of 9 children. Traina was the lead singer of the punk rock band Link 80, suffered from bipolar disorder, and died at the age of 19 from a morphine overdose.
7. Georges Simenon
Belgian writer Georges Simenon was someone who couldn't stop writing. If you look at what the author, who died in Lausanne in 1989, has written, you could get dizzy. Especially since he not only wrote under his real name but also under a pseudonym. Simenon started writing as a journalist at the age of 16, then became an author of trivial literature and invented the character of Inspector Maigret in the 30s, which made him a successful author. Under his real name alone, Simenon published almost 200 novels (including 75 about Commissioner Maigret) and 167 short stories, not to mention numerous reports, essays, etc. Simenon is undoubtedly one of the most widely-read authors of the 20th century.
Most important work:
Maigret and Pietr der Lette – the first Maigret novel from 1929. And with it the starting shot of one of the most successful series of novels of all time
8. JK Rowling
Okay, J.K. Rowling certainly needs no introduction. Tag: Harry Potter. In fact, the Harry Potter books were the first she published. Previously, Rowling had apparently worked on two different books for adults, with which she was not satisfied and whose manuscripts she is said to have later destroyed. Before her success with the world-famous magician, she worked in various clerical jobs, including two years at Amnesty International. When she was working on the first Harry Potter book, Rowling was a single mother living on welfare. When the first volume was finished, she found a literary agent who offered the book to various publishers, but all of them initially turned them down. To this day, the publishers concerned are likely to be annoyed about it. After 1997 When Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone was published with an initial print run of just 500 copies, the US publisher Shcoolastic bought the US rights for $100,000, of which Rowling was entitled to 80%. The fact that an unknown children's book author was paid such a large sum was unusual and brought Rowling to the media for the first time - from which it was impossible to imagine life without her. Hardly any other cultural product has triggered such a big hype in recent decades.
Most important work:
Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone - the first book in a 7-part series about the now world-famous wizard, who meant the beginning of an incredible world career for Rowling and made her from a welfare recipient to a millionaire.
9. Sidney Sheldon
What is remarkable about author Sidney Sheldon and his more than 300 million books sold worldwide is the fact that he only started writing his debut novel at the age of 50. It was titled The Naked Face, and for that, it won the prestigious Edgar Allen Poe Award straight away. By the time he died in 2007 at the age of 89, Sheldon had written a total of 21 novels and held the Guinness World Records title of the most translated contemporary writer. What did Sheldon do before his career as a successful novelist? He worked as a playwright and screenwriter in Hollywood. In 1947 he received an Oscar for his screenplay for the film Love isn't that Simple. He also wrote hit TV series such as Jeannie Bewitching and Hart But Heartily. Despite these impressive successes, life was not easy for Sheldon. He suffered from manic depression since he was 17 years old.
Most important work:
For Sheldon himself, this should be his award-winning debut novel The Naked Face, because it laid the foundation for his late career as a novelist. One of his best books, however, is The Third Face from 2001. Perhaps he should have written more "face" novels overall…
10. Dr. Seuss
He is considered one of the most successful children's book authors in the world: Dr. Seuss He is best known for books like The Cat in the Hat and How the Grinch Stole Christmas, the basis for the classic comedy starring Jim Carrey. The reason that Seuss has sold so many books is primarily due to his Beginner Books, in which he tells stories for a young audience - with no more than 250 different words.
Most important work
Hard to say: How the Grinch stole Christmas, The cat with the hat or hoard hears a who!
