1985 in books
Who ruled 1985? Stephen King was Author of the Year on the NYT Hardcover Fiction list. Every #1 bestseller of 1985, the biggest books and the top authors.
NYT Hardcover Fiction
| # | Author | Era Power | Crowns | Top-five weeks |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Stephen King | 330 | 10 | 19 |
| 2 | Sidney Sheldon | 330 | 9 | 18 |
| 3 | Tom Clancy | 266 | 0 | 19 |
| 4 | Danielle Steel | 266 | 4 | 19 |
| 5 | Garrison Keillor | 231 | 5 | 17 |
| 6 | Richard Bachman | 191 | 4 | 10 |
| 7 | John Irving | 177 | 1 | 12 |
| 8 | Jackie Collins | 154 | 2 | 9 |
| 9 | James A. Michener | 153 | 6 | 12 |
| 10 | Louis L'Amour | 148 | 1 | 9 |
| First week at #1 | Title | Author | Weeks at #1 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Jan 6, 1985 | The Talisman | Stephen King & Peter Straub | 2 |
| Jan 20, 1985 | The Sicilian | Mario Puzo | 2 |
| Feb 3, 1985 | If Tomorrow Comes | Sidney Sheldon | 9 |
| Mar 31, 1985 | Family Album | Danielle Steel | 4 |
| Apr 28, 1985 | Thinner | Richard Bachman | 4 |
| Jun 2, 1985 | Jubal Sackett | Louis L'Amour | 1 |
| Jun 9, 1985 | Hold the Dream | Barbara Taylor Bradford | 1 |
| Jun 16, 1985 | The Cider House Rules | John Irving | 1 |
| Jun 23, 1985 | Skeleton Crew | Stephen King | 10 |
| Sep 1, 1985 | Lucky | Jackie Collins | 2 |
| Sep 15, 1985 | Lake Wobegon Days | Garrison Keillor | 5 |
| Oct 13, 1985 | Texas | James A. Michener | 6 |
| Nov 24, 1985 | The Mammoth Hunters | Jean M. Auel | 5 |
| # | Title | Author | Peak | Weeks | Book Power |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Lake Wobegon Days | Garrison Keillor | #1 | 48 | 510.9 |
| 2 | The Mammoth Hunters | Jean M. Auel | #1 | 47 | 391.3 |
| 3 | If Tomorrow Comes | Sidney Sheldon | #1 | 36 | 329.7 |
| 4 | Skeleton Crew | Stephen King | #1 | 32 | 284.8 |
| 5 | Texas | James A. Michener | #1 | 29 | 276.6 |
| 6 | The Hunt for Red October | Tom Clancy | #2 | 29 | 266.4 |
| 7 | The Polar Express | Chris Van Allsburg | #3 | 34 | 247.0 |
| 8 | Contact | Carl Sagan | #3 | 24 | 195.7 |
| 9 | Thinner | Richard Bachman | #1 | 25 | 191.4 |
| 10 | The Cider House Rules | John Irving | #1 | 21 | 177.0 |
Author of the Year and the rankings are the ChartReign Power model: the author with the most chart power over the year, not the most #1s. Crowns are weeks crowned Author of the Week. How it works