Derek Robinson Books in Order
Derek Robinson has written 33 books, published between 1964 and 2018. The first book is Rugger (1964) and the newest is Holy Smoke (2018). Publication order is the reading order below.
- Books
- 33
- Published
- 1964–2018
- Pages on record
- 6,676 in 26 of 33 books
- Reading time
- 111–167 hours
Reading time is an estimate, not a recorded figure: 6,676 pages at 300 words a page, read at 200–300 words a minute, covering the 26 of 33 titles with a page count on record.
Derek Robinson writes military aviation novels shot through with black humour, alongside books on the seedier history of Bristol, his home town, and guides to rugby. Goshawk Squadron, published in 1971, was nominated for the Booker Prize. Robinson served in the Royal Air Force as a fighter plotter during National Service, read history at Downing College, Cambridge, worked in advertising in Britain and the United States, and later broadcast on radio and television. The RFC and RAF sequences cover the two world wars in the air. 33 titles are catalogued from Rugger (1964) to Holy Smoke (2018).
How many Derek Robinson books are there?
Derek Robinson has 33 books, released between 1964 and 2018. They include 3 series and 22 titles listed outside any series.
Derek Robinson Books in Publication Order
The table lists all 33 Derek Robinson books in the order they were published, with the release year, the page count where one is on record, and how many independent book listings confirm each title. Catalogue data as of September 2026.
- 1Rugger1964 · confirmed 1/41964–1/4
- 2Rugby: Success Starts Here1969 · 147 pages · confirmed 1/419691471/4
- 319713201/4
- 4Son Of Bristle1971 · 31 pages · confirmed 1/41971311/4
- 5Bristle Rides Again1972 · 30 pages · confirmed 1/41972301/4
- 6Stand by for Blasting1972 · confirmed 1/41972–1/4
- 7A Shocking History Of Bristol1973 · 120 pages · confirmed 1/419731201/4
- 8Rotten with Honor1976 · 258 pages · confirmed 1/419762581/4
- 9Kramer's War1977 · 319 pages · confirmed 1/419773191/4
- 1019804091/4
- 1119835691/4
- 12Run with the Ball!1984 · 160 pages · confirmed 1/419841601/4
- 13Just Testing1985 · 204 pages · confirmed 1/419852041/4
- 14The Combination1986 · confirmed 1/41986–1/4
- 1519873441/4
- 16Bristle with Pride!1987 · 96 pages · confirmed 1/41987961/4
- 1719913081/4
- 1819935761/4
- 19The Best Green Walks in Bristol1994 · 88 pages · confirmed 1/41994881/4
- 20Bloody Bristol: Shocking Histories1998 · confirmed 1/41998–1/4
- 21Pure Bristle1998 · 28 pages · confirmed 1/41998281/4
- 2219994051/4
- 2320023161/4
- 24Kentucky Blues2002 · 520 pages · confirmed 1/420025201/4
- 25A Load of Old Bristle2002 · 64 pages · confirmed 1/42002641/4
- 26Sick Sentries of Bristle2004 · confirmed 1/42004–1/4
- 2720053171/4
- 28A Darker History Of Bristol2005 · 128 pages · confirmed 1/420051281/4
- 2920063201/4
- 30Hullo Russia, Goodbye England2008 · 284 pages · confirmed 1/420082841/4
- 312010–1/4
- 32A Splendid Little War2012 · 315 pages · confirmed 1/420123151/4
- 33Holy Smoke2018 · confirmed 1/42018–1/4
Derek Robinson books grouped by series
Each title below is a row in the publication-order table above. None of these groups has a reading-order page of its own on this site.
Double Agent in order
4 booksRAF in order
4 booksRFC in order
3 booksStandalone books
22 books22 Derek Robinson titles here are not listed as part of any series.
Do you have to read Derek Robinson books in order?
You only need to read Derek Robinson books in order within each series: the books listed here span 3 separate series, and each series has its own publication order.
Where to start with Derek Robinson
Start with Rugger (1964), the earliest published title.
What is the newest Derek Robinson book?
Holy Smoke (2018) is the newest Derek Robinson book released so far.
Is there a new Derek Robinson book coming?
No next Derek Robinson book is announced in the catalogue, which is a gap in the listings it merges rather than a sign that the run has ended.
Derek Robinson at a glance
- No recent titles
- The newest Derek Robinson title on record dates from 2018, 8 years ago. No later title is catalogued.
- Release pace
- Derek Robinson books have appeared about one every 2 years on average.
- Length
- 6,676 pages across the 26 of 33 books with a recorded length, a median of 296 pages each.
- Busiest decade
- Most Derek Robinson books, 8 of 33, were published in the 2000s.
What the Derek Robinson books are about
20 of the 33 Derek Robinson books carry subject tags in Open Library's catalogue. The subjects below are the ones that recur across them, most frequent first: british aerial operations is tagged on 5 of 20. The subjects are cataloguers’ headings, not a plot summary.
- British Aerial operations 5 of 20 books
- History 5 of 20 books
- Military Air pilots 5 of 20 books
- World War, 1939-1945 5 of 20 books
- Great Britain 4 of 20 books
- British 3 of 20 books
- War & military 3 of 20 books
- World War, 1914-1918 3 of 20 books
- Britain, Battle of, Great Britain, 1940 2 of 20 books
- Dialects 2 of 20 books
- English language 2 of 20 books
- Rugby football 2 of 20 books