I tend to be interested in particular people and timeframes:

Abraham Lincoln and Mary Todd Lincoln

Roosevelts (Teddy, Franklin, Eleanor, in particular, although I have a WL biography of Alice Longworth Roosevelt on its way)

Also, in general, books related to American presidents, the Civil War, and American Indians

Great topic.

Mine are:

1. Col. Aaron Burr

2. Benj. Franklin

3. Wm. Penn

4. Jonathan Edwards

5. Powhatan

Great question, yes! :)

But I actually enjoy reading about everyday people of certain eras, such as ancient Rome, the Viking age, and the American and French revolutions.

Jack the Ripper

Founding Fathers

Albert Einstein

Custer

Oppenheimer

Richard, your top 5 made me do a double-take! Very interesting combination.

I'm hard pressed to choose 5. I tend to read about events rather than books about this person or that person. That said, these are the folks that my imagination keeps coming back to...

Ulysses S. Grant

Abraham Lincoln

Malcolm X

Emma Goldman

I love U.S. presidential history, but to pick one,  Abraham Lincoln

Also on the list:

Elizabeth I

The Romanovs

Alexander the Great

Martin Luther King

anne boleyn

marilyn monroe

cleopatra

Princess Diana

marie antoinette

My 5 favorite historical figures are:

1. Winston Churchill

2. Dwight Eisenhower

3. Franklin D. Roosevelt

4. Gandhi

5. Abraham Lincoln

Abraham Lincoln - It is said that the only person who had more books written about him than Lincoln was Jesus Christ. And like Christ, God sent him to us just when we needed him. The number of 'coincidences' that occurred to make Lincoln president in 1861 overwhelms the imagination.

Hiram Ulysses Grant - One of the greatest generals America ever produced. What a shame he picked the wrong men to serve him as president. Still, his record on protecting the rights of Afro Americans and Native Indians is probably better than any other president, and he did it long before it was popular or politically 'correct.'

Winston Spencer Churchill - For all his faults, Winnie was a great historical figure. Did you know that when W.S. Churchill was writing many of his books around the turn of the century, a very popular American novelist was also named Winston Churchill. As their books were often confused as to authorship, the British Churchill agreed to always include his middle name (Spencer) on the cover of his books.

great guerrilla leaders - Especially those Americans who stayed behind in the Philippines and fought the Japanese. But I treasure the stories of the British, Australian and Filipino guerrilla leaders and coast watchers also.

Douglas MacArthur - Especially those books that show he was a fraud. This guy had a bigger ego than George McClellan and was a bigger liar than all the politicans we elect to office combined.