Order of Book Series
0

Ian Buruma Books in Order

Ian Buruma has written 24 books, published between 1980 and 2026. The first book is Japanese Tattoo (1980) and the newest is Stay Alive: Berlin, 1939-1945 (2026). Publication order is the reading order below.

Books
24
Published
1980–2026
Pages on record
5,250 in 19 of 24 books
Reading time
88–131 hours

Reading time is an estimate, not a recorded figure: 5,250 pages at 300 words a page, read at 200–300 words a minute, covering the 19 of 24 titles with a page count on record.

See all 24 books in order Printable Ian Buruma checklist
Photo of Ian Buruma, author

Ian Buruma is a Dutch writer and editor, born in 1951, who lives and works in the United States. Much of Buruma's writing addresses the culture of Asia, particularly China and 20th-century Japan. The catalogue holds 24 books published between 1980 and 2026, from Japanese Tattoo (1980) to Stay Alive: Berlin, 1939-1945 (2026), with The Wages of Guilt (1994), Inventing Japan (1999) and Bad Elements (2001) among them. Buruma edited The New York Review of Books from 2017 to 2018 and holds the Paul W. Williams professorship of human rights and journalism at Bard College.

How many Ian Buruma books are there?

Ian Buruma has 24 books, released between 1980 and 2026.

Ian Buruma Books in Publication Order

The table lists all 24 Ian Buruma 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.

  1. Cover of Japanese Tattoo by Ian Buruma (1980)
  2. Cover of Behind the Mask / A Japanese Mirror by Ian Buruma (1984)
  3. Cover of God's Dust by Ian Buruma (1989)
  4. Cover of The Wages of Guilt by Ian Buruma (1994)
  5. Cover of The Missionary And The Libertine by Ian Buruma (1996)
  6. Cover of Inventing Japan by Ian Buruma (1999)
  7. Cover of Voltaire's Coconuts / Anglomania In Europe by Ian Buruma (1999)
  8. Cover of Bad Elements by Ian Buruma (2001)
  9. Cover of Inventing Japan, 1853-1964 by Ian Buruma (2003)
  10. Cover of Inventing Japan by Ian Buruma, book 11 of the Modern Library Chronicles (2003)
  11. Cover of Occidentalism by Ian Buruma (2004)
  12. Cover of Conversations with John Schlesinger by Ian Buruma (2006)
  13. Cover of Murder in Amsterdam by Ian Buruma (2006)
  14. Cover of The China Lover by Ian Buruma (2008)
  15. Cover of Theater of Cruelty by Ian Buruma (2014)
  16. Cover of A Tokyo Romance by Ian Buruma (2018)
  17. Cover of The Collaborators by Ian Buruma (2023)
  1. 1
    Japanese Tattoo1980 · 115 pages · confirmed 1/4
    1980115
    Buy at Amazon USAmazon UK
  2. 2
    Behind the Mask / A Japanese Mirror1984 · 256 pages · confirmed 1/4
    1984256
    Buy at Amazon USAmazon UK
  3. 3
    God's Dust1989 · 267 pages · confirmed 1/4
    1989267
    Buy at Amazon USAmazon UK
  4. 4
    Playing the Game1991 · 234 pages · confirmed 1/4
    1991234
    Buy at Amazon USAmazon UK
  5. 5
    The Wages of Guilt1994 · confirmed 1/4
    1994–
    Buy at Amazon USAmazon UK
  6. 6
    The Missionary And The Libertine1996 · 308 pages · confirmed 1/4
    1996308
    Buy at Amazon USAmazon UK
  7. 7
    Inventing Japan1999 · 208 pages · confirmed 1/4
    1999208
    Buy at Amazon USAmazon UK
  8. 8
    Voltaire's Coconuts / Anglomania In Europe1999 · 336 pages · confirmed 1/4
    1999336
    Buy at Amazon USAmazon UK
  9. 9
    Bad Elements2001 · 384 pages · confirmed 1/4
    2001384
    Buy at Amazon USAmazon UK
  10. 10
    Inventing Japan, 1853-19642003 · 208 pages · confirmed 1/4
    2003208
    Buy at Amazon USAmazon UK
  11. 11
    Inventing JapanModern Library Chronicles #112003 · confirmed 1/4
    2003–
    Buy at Amazon USAmazon UK
  12. 12
    Occidentalism2004 · 176 pages · confirmed 1/4
    2004176
    Buy at Amazon USAmazon UK
  13. 13
    Conversations with John Schlesinger2006 · 177 pages · confirmed 1/4
    2006177
    Buy at Amazon USAmazon UK
  14. 14
    Murder in Amsterdam2006 · 278 pages · confirmed 1/4
    2006278
    Buy at Amazon USAmazon UK
  15. 15
    The China Lover2008 · 392 pages · confirmed 1/4
    2008392
    Buy at Amazon USAmazon UK
  16. 16
    Taming the Gods2010 · 144 pages · confirmed 1/4
    2010144
    Buy at Amazon USAmazon UK
  17. 17
    Year Zero2013 · 384 pages · confirmed 1/4
    2013384
    Buy at Amazon USAmazon UK
  18. 18
    Theater of Cruelty2014 · 423 pages · confirmed 1/4
    2014423
    Buy at Amazon USAmazon UK
  19. 19
    Their Promised Land2016 · 320 pages · confirmed 1/4
    2016320
    Buy at Amazon USAmazon UK
  20. 20
    A Tokyo Romance2018 · confirmed 1/4
    2018–
    Buy at Amazon USAmazon UK
  21. 21
    The Churchill Complex2020 · 320 pages · confirmed 1/4
    2020320
    Buy at Amazon USAmazon UK
  22. 22
    The Collaborators2023 · 320 pages · confirmed 1/4
    2023320
    Buy at Amazon USAmazon UK
  23. 23
    SpinozaJewish Lives #662024 · confirmed 1/4
    2024–
    Buy at Amazon USAmazon UK
  24. 24
    Stay Alive: Berlin, 1939-19452026 · confirmed 1/4
    2026–
    Buy at Amazon USAmazon UK

Ian Buruma 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.

Modern Library Chronicles in order

1 book
  1. 11. Inventing Japan

Jewish Lives in order

1 book
  1. 66. Spinoza

Standalone books

22 books

22 Ian Buruma titles here are not listed as part of any series.

Do you have to read Ian Buruma books in order?

No. No source lists any of the 24 Ian Buruma books here as part of a series. The numbered table above gives them by publication date.

Where to start with Ian Buruma

Start with Japanese Tattoo (1980), the earliest published title.

What is the newest Ian Buruma book?

Stay Alive: Berlin, 1939-1945 (2026) is the newest Ian Buruma book released so far.

Is there a new Ian Buruma book coming?

No next Ian Buruma book is announced in the catalogue, which is a gap in the listings it merges rather than a sign that the run has ended.

Awards Ian Buruma has won

Wikidata records 1 award for Ian Buruma. Each row states whether the title won or was shortlisted, and the year the award was given.

  • De Gouden Ganzenveer2019Won

Ian Buruma at a glance

Still publishing
Ian Buruma published a book as recently as 2026.
Release pace
Ian Buruma books have appeared about one every 2 years on average.
Length
5,250 pages across the 19 of 24 books with a recorded length, a median of 278 pages each.
Busiest decade
Most Ian Buruma books, 7 of 24, were published in the 2000s.

What the Ian Buruma books are about

21 of the 24 Ian Buruma books carry subject tags in Open Library's catalogue. The subjects below are the ones that recur across them, most frequent first: history is tagged on 4 of 21. The subjects are cataloguers’ headings, not a plot summary.