J.M. Coetzee Books in Order
J.M. Coetzee has written 32 books, published between 1976 and 2025. The first book is In the Heart of the Country (1976) and the newest is Speaking in Tongues (2025). Publication order is the reading order below.
- Books
- 32
- Published
- 1976–2025
- Pages on record
- 6,072 in 27 of 32 books
- Reading time
- 101–152 hours
Reading time is an estimate, not a recorded figure: 6,072 pages at 300 words a page, read at 200–300 words a minute, covering the 27 of 32 titles with a page count on record.
In the Heart of the Country (1976) opens the catalogue of J.M. Coetzee, a novelist, essayist and translator born in South Africa in 1940 and an Australian citizen since 2006. Waiting for the Barbarians (1980), Life and Times of Michael K (1983), Foe (1986), Age Of Iron (1990) and The Master of Petersburg (1994) follow it, and Scenes from Provincial Life and the Jesus Trilogy are the two series inside the 32 books, which reach Speaking in Tongues (2025). Coetzee took the Nobel Prize in Literature in 2003 and the Booker Prize twice, along with three Central News Agency Literary Awards, the Jerusalem Prize and The Irish Times International Fiction Prize. Coetzee lives in Adelaide.
How many J.M. Coetzee books are there?
J.M. Coetzee has 32 books, released between 1976 and 2025. They include 2 series and 25 titles listed outside any series.
J.M. Coetzee Books in Publication Order
The table lists all 32 J.M. Coetzee 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.
- 1In the Heart of the Country1976 · 160 pages · confirmed 2/419761602/4
- 2The Lives of Animals1977 · 134 pages · confirmed 2/419771342/4
- 3Waiting for the Barbarians1980 · 176 pages · confirmed 2/419801762/4
- 4Life and Times of Michael K1983 · 192 pages · confirmed 2/419831922/4
- 5Dusklands1985 · 160 pages · confirmed 2/419851602/4
- 6Foe1986 · 160 pages · confirmed 2/419861602/4
- 7White Writing1988 · 208 pages · confirmed 2/419882082/4
- 8Age Of Iron1990 · 192 pages · confirmed 2/419901922/4
- 9Doubling the Point1992 · 438 pages · confirmed 2/419924382/4
- 10The Master of Petersburg1994 · 256 pages · confirmed 2/419942562/4
- 11Giving Offense1996 · 297 pages · confirmed 2/419962972/4
- 1219971762/4
- 13Disgrace1999 · 220 pages · confirmed 2/419992202/4
- 14Stranger Shores2001 · 384 pages · confirmed 2/420013842/4
- 15Elizabeth Costello2001 · 224 pages · confirmed 2/420012242/4
- 1620021692/4
- 17The Nobel Lecture in Literature, 20032003 · 26 pages · confirmed 2/42003262/4
- 18Slow Man2005 · confirmed 2/42005–2/4
- 19Inner Workings2007 · 256 pages · confirmed 2/420072562/4
- 20Diary of a Bad Year2007 · 240 pages · confirmed 2/420072402/4
- 2120092242/4
- 2220114842/4
- 23Here and Now2012 · 256 pages · confirmed 2/420122562/4
- 2420132882/4
- 25Three Stories2014 · 80 pages · confirmed 2/42014802/4
- 26The Good Story2015 · confirmed 2/42015–2/4
- 2720162722/4
- 28Late Essays2017 · confirmed 2/42017–2/4
- 2920192082/4
- 30J.M. Coetzee - Photographs from Boyhood2020 · 192 pages · confirmed 2/420201922/4
- 31The Pole2023 · confirmed 2/42023–2/4
- 32Speaking in Tongues2025 · confirmed 2/42025–2/4
J.M. Coetzee 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.
Scenes from Provincial Life in order
4 booksJesus Trilogy in order
3 booksStandalone books
25 books25 J.M. Coetzee titles here are not listed as part of any series.
Do you have to read J.M. Coetzee books in order?
You only need to read J.M. Coetzee books in order within each series: the books listed here span 2 separate series, and each series has its own publication order.
Where to start with J.M. Coetzee
Start with In the Heart of the Country (1976), the earliest published title.
What is the newest J.M. Coetzee book?
Speaking in Tongues (2025) is the newest J.M. Coetzee book released so far.
Is there a new J.M. Coetzee book coming?
No next J.M. Coetzee 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 J.M. Coetzee has won
Wikidata records 8 awards and 5 nominations for J.M. Coetzee. The most recent 12 are listed here. Each row states whether the title won or was shortlisted, and the year the award was given.
- Christina Stead Prize for Fiction2010Won
- Nobel Prize in Literature2003Won
- Booker Prize1999Wonfor Disgrace
- Jerusalem Prize1987Won
- Prix Femina étranger1985Won
- Booker Prize1983Wonfor Life & Times of Michael K
- Geoffrey Faber Memorial Prize1981Won
- James Tait Black Memorial Prize1980Won
- Booker Prize2016Shortlistedfor The Schooldays of Jesus
- Booker Prize2009Shortlistedfor Summertime
- Booker Prize2005Shortlistedfor Slow Man
- Booker Prize2003Shortlistedfor Elizabeth Costello
J.M. Coetzee at a glance
- Still publishing
- J.M. Coetzee published a book as recently as 2025.
- Release pace
- J.M. Coetzee books have appeared about one every 2 years on average.
- Length
- 6,072 pages across the 27 of 32 books with a recorded length, a median of 208 pages each.
- Busiest decade
- Most J.M. Coetzee books, 8 of 32, were published in the 2010s.
What the J.M. Coetzee books are about
29 of the 32 J.M. Coetzee books carry subject tags in Open Library's catalogue. The subjects below are the ones that recur across them, most frequent first: fiction (fictional works by one author) is tagged on 6 of 29. The subjects are cataloguers’ headings, not a plot summary.
- Fiction (fictional works by one author) 6 of 29 books
- South Africa 5 of 29 books
- Biography 4 of 29 books
- History and criticism 4 of 29 books
- South African Authors 4 of 29 books
- Authors 3 of 29 books
- South Africans 3 of 29 books
- Children 2 of 29 books
- English literature 2 of 29 books
- Essays 2 of 29 books
- Family life 2 of 29 books