Authors · NYT Hardcover Fiction

James A. Michener

Charting Feb 27, 1949 → Jan 31, 1993 · 478 weeks with chart power

Peak Power: 14.45%; week of Mar 19, 1961
Career Power: 4,537; share-weeks
Weeks at #1: 132; weeks as the top author

Peak Year: 731; January 1960 – January 1961
Peak Five Years: 1,432; November 1978 – November 1983
Top-five weeks: 299; weeks ranked 1–5
Longevity: 478; weeks with chart power
Dominance: 14.72%; week of Nov 17, 1985
Comebacks: 10; May 1951, August 1953, December 1959, September 1971, November 1978, November 1980, October 1982, November 1985, July 1988, December 1992

Comebacks (thresholds from `config/scoring.json`)
Kind	Trough began	Returned	Trough weeks	Longest absence	Prior peak	Return share
After decline	Aug 28, 1949	May 20, 1951	90	88	2.25%	1.71%
After decline	Jan 6, 1952	Aug 30, 1953	86	82	9.02%	3.38%
After absence	Sep 12, 1954	Dec 20, 1959	273	269	9.67%	3.65%
After absence	Oct 1, 1961	Sep 5, 1971	514	503	14.45%	5.33%
After absence	Dec 26, 1971	Nov 12, 1978	346	343	14.45%	5.17%
After decline	Oct 7, 1979	Nov 23, 1980	59	55	14.45%	5.76%
After decline	Sep 13, 1981	Oct 31, 1982	59	55	14.45%	5.95%
After decline	Jun 24, 1984	Nov 3, 1985	71	68	14.45%	5.38%
After decline	Jun 1, 1986	Jul 24, 1988	112	66	14.45%	5.50%
After decline	May 13, 1990	Dec 27, 1992	137	70	14.45%	5.63%

Ranked by weekly Power Share, part of the ChartReign Power model — not the list's own positions (config version 4, Sep 22, 2026). How it works →

Exponentially smoothed share of the week's total power (the primary metric).

Titles on the NYT Hardcover Fiction

16 books · 4,537 share-weeks of Career Power

Power contributed is what each book earned this author: their weekly Power Share, split across their books (a featured credit takes its reduced share). Book Power is the book's own figure, the same for every author on it. Bar length compares books within this list.

Title	Peak	Weeks	On chart	Power contributedPower	Book Power
Hawaii	#1January 1960	94	November 1959 – September 1961	1,112.3	1,112.3
Chesapeake	#1July 1978	47	July 1978 – September 1979	470.5	470.5
The Covenant	#1November 1980	41	October 1980 – August 1981	464.8	464.8
Space	#1October 1982	39	October 1982 – July 1983	409.2	409.2
Poland	#1September 1983	38	September 1983 – May 1984	404.2	404.0
Alaska	#1July 1988	33	July 1988 – February 1989	297.7	297.7
Texas	#1October 1985	29	October 1985 – April 1986	277.0	276.6
Return to Paradise	#3June 1951	26	May 1951 – October 1951	222.5	222.5
Sayonara	#2March 1954	21	February 1954 – July 1954	202.3	202.3
Caribbean	#2January 1990	22	November 1989 – April 1990	167.9	167.9
The Drifters	#4July 1971	22	June 1971 – November 1971	157.1	157.1
Mexico	#3November 1992	13	November 1992 – January 1993	104.0	101.4
Legacy	#3September 1987	18	September 1987 – January 1988	91.3	91.2
The Bridges at Toko-Ri	#5August 1953	12	August 1953 – October 1953	70.8	70.8
The Fires of Spring	#8March 1949	14	February 1949 – June 1949	43.7	43.7
The Novel	#5May 1991	9	April 1991 – June 1991	41.9	41.9