Over the last 15 years I’ve shared reviews or ratings of more than 1,000 recently published books I’ve read. Each year, the best of the best are featured on a top 10 books of the year list.
Five years ago this month, I wrote Top 12 Authors: 2009-2019 sharing the dozen authors who had appeared on more than one top 10 list. This group has since grown to 16. The links for each year mentioned take you to that year’s top 10 list.
- Diana Butler Bass, 2012, 2015, 2018, 2021
- Marcus Borg, 2010, 2011, 2012, 2014, 2017
- Joan Chittister, 2011, 2017
- John Dominic Crossan, 2010, 2012, 2015
- Lillian Daniel, 2013, 2016
- Tenzin Gyatso (the 14th Dalai Lama), 2012, 2016
- Eric Klinenberg, 2012, 2018
- Robert P. Jones, 2016, 2020
- Scot McKnight, 2010, 2011
- Brian McLaren, 2016, 2021
- Derek Penwell, 2014, 2019
- Stephen Prothero, 2010, 2016
- Alan J. Roxburgh, 2011, 2015
- John Shelby Spong, 2011, 2013, 2016
- Barbara Brown Taylor, 2014, 2019
- Jim Wallis, 2013, 2016, 2019
Best of the Best
Only five of the top 16 authors have appeared on three or more top 10 lists:
- Marcus Borg – 5
- Diana Butler Bass – 4
- John Dominic Crossan, John Shelby Spong, Jim Wallis – 3
Sadly, there will be no more additions to this list from Marcus Borg (d. 2015) or John Shelby Spong (d. 2021). And, I’m mindful that the remainder are all now at least 65 years of age: Diana Butler Bass (65), Jim Wallis (75), and John Dominic Crossan (90).
Close Misses
Seven of these authors have written other books that I reviewed and appreciated, but that did not make that year’s top 10 list, including four who wrote two or more such works. The link for each year mentioned takes you to a monthly post that contains the rating for the book (or, for those from long ago, to a review post) that didn’t make that year’s top 10 list.
- Barbara Brown Taylor, 2020
- Joan Chittister, 2019, 2021, 2022
- John Dominic Crossan, 2022
- Eric Klinenberg, 2024
- Scot McKnight, 2014, 2018, 2019, 2021
- Brian McLaren, 2012, 2014, 2022
- Stephen Prothero, 2012, 2023
- John Shelby Spong, 2018
So What?
When I started this blog in 2009, I never imagined I would still be publishing new content 15 years later nor did I imagine that I would review or rate more than 1,000 books. As I think back about the authors appearing in this best of the best post, I’m grateful for the ways their writing has challenged, informed, and inspired me.
What authors have most influenced your understanding and practice of Christianity?