John Green names Morrison, Vonnegut and Chabon as life-changing authors
In a Guardian interview tied to his new book Hollywood, Ending, Green said The Mysteries of Pittsburgh made him want to become a writer.
John Green named Toni Morrison, Kurt Vonnegut and Michael Chabon as the authors who changed his life in a "The Books Of My Life" interview with The Guardian, given while he was promoting his new book Hollywood, Ending.
Green said he read several Toni Morrison books in a short period when he was 16, and that the experience taught him books could be transformative.
He credited Michael Chabon's novel The Mysteries of Pittsburgh with making him want to be a writer, saying he valued its queer main characters and its sense of contemporary youth.
Green's new book, Hollywood, Ending, is his first adult novel. Since Looking for Alaska in 2005 he has become one of the most popular YA authors, with six solo books, one co-written novel, a novella and contributions to an anthology, plus two nonfiction books since 2020.
Morrison has been a recurring presence in Green's work and comments: in an August 13, 2019 Vlogbrothers YouTube video he said her books helped him pass 11th-grade English and feel the cruelty of the world, and he has often listed her novel Sula as a favorite. Vonnegut has also surfaced in his writing, with Cat's Cradle mentioned in Looking for Alaska and Vonnegut's views referenced in the Indianapolis chapter of The Anthropocene Reviewed.
Quick answers
Which authors did John Green name in his Guardian interview?
Toni Morrison, Kurt Vonnegut and Michael Chabon.
Which book made John Green want to be a writer?
Michael Chabon's The Mysteries of Pittsburgh.
What is John Green's new book?
Hollywood, Ending, his first adult book.