I'm a high school English teacher getting my MA in English right now, so I read a ton. So while I could talk about things ranging from the Gothic novel to the Harlem Renaissance, I'll stick slightly more in the pop vein and promote anything by John Irving. Some of his more notable works include The World According to Garp, Cider House Rules, The Hotel New Hampshire, A Widow for one year (became the movie The Door in the Floor), Until I Find You, and A Prayer for Owen Meany (became the movie, Simon Birch).
His novels are full of rich, eclectic, and sometimes hyperbolic characters that often in ****ensian manner end up interweaving their diverse lives by the end of the novel.