List of contemporary Authors

Don't despair, however; in celebration of HuffPost's 9th birthday, we've compiled a list of 9 truly brilliant contemporary authors who shouldn't be missed. Each of these authors has a book out this spring, but many have a larger oeuvre to explore, and all are must-reads for literature lovers today.

Leslie Jamison
If you haven’t noticed, essay collections are having a bit of a moment. Jamison’s debut collection, The Empathy Exams, exploded onto the literary scene this spring and has been receiving rave reviews for its nuanced exploration of human pain and empathy. Jamison weaves philosophical contemplations and literary references in with personal observation and experience to create a deeply insightful work. With her career just beginning, she seems poised for greatness; don’t miss out.

Helen Oyeyemi
In her new book, Boy, Snow, Bird, Oyeyemi once again flaunts her ability to seamlessly blend fairy tale and reality. Her deft, graceful prose and strikingly imaginative narratives set her novels apart from the pack, and make the reading experience both escapist and intellectually engrossing. Few authors writing today are publishing more intriguing and delightful work than Oyeyemi. At only 29, she has already published five remarkable novels - we can’t wait to see what she’ll write next.

Akhil Sharma
Sharma’s second novel, Family Life, is a slender book that holds a wealth of literary treasure. He spent over 12 years honing the novel, and the effort clearly paid off; the precise, elegant language is a joy to read. Sharma plumbs the emotional depths of the immigrant experience and of growing up and salvages heartbreaking and life-affirming insights. And with so much packed into relatively few pages, there’s no excuse to miss this one.

Molly Antopol
Antopol’s new book of short stories, The Un-Americans, might not be entirely perfect, but it is her debut - and a very promising one at that. Contemporary literary fiction swarms with hip Brooklyn moms and packs of urban intellectuals, so it’s refreshing to see a young writer undaunted by the prospect of writing outside of her direct experience. Thoughtful, perceptive, and often darkly humorous, Antopol’s first collection marks her as one to watch.