Order of Book Series
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Jack Gantos Books in Order

Jack Gantos has written 50 books, published between 1975 and 2019. The first book is Rotten Ralph (1975) and the newest is A Pain in the Pigza (2019). Publication order is the reading order below.

Books
50
Published
1975–2019
Pages on record
3,888 in 35 of 50 books
Reading time
65–97 hours

Reading time is an estimate, not a recorded figure: 3,888 pages at 300 words a page, read at 200–300 words a minute, covering the 35 of 50 titles with a page count on record.

See all 50 books in order Printable Jack Gantos checklist

Jack Gantos is an American children's author, born in 1951, known for two creations. Rotten Ralph is a cat who starred in twenty picture books between 1976 and 2014, illustrated by Nicole Rubel; Joey Pigza is a boy with attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder, featured in five novels between 1998 and 2014. Gantos took the 2012 Newbery Medal for Dead End in Norvelt. The catalogue records 50 titles from Rotten Ralph (1975) onward, written for grades 3 to 5, with a median length of 48 pages.

How many Jack Gantos books are there?

Jack Gantos has 50 books, released between 1975 and 2019. They include 5 series and 15 titles listed outside any series.

Jack Gantos Books in Publication Order

The table lists all 50 Jack Gantos 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 Rotten Ralph by Jack Gantos, book 1 of the Rotten Ralph series (1975)
  2. Cover of Sleepy Ronald by Jack Gantos (1976)
  3. Cover of Aunt Bernice by Jack Gantos (1978)
  4. Cover of Greedy Greeny by Jack Gantos (1979)
  5. Cover of Rotten Ralph Helps Out by Jack Gantos, book 3 of the Rotten Ralph series (1980)
  6. Cover of The Werewolf Family by Jack Gantos (1980)
  7. Cover of Rotten Ralph's Rotten Christmas by Jack Gantos, book 4 of the Rotten Ralph series (1984)
  8. Cover of Rotten Ralph's Trick or Treat by Jack Gantos, book 5 of the Rotten Ralph series (1986)
  9. Cover of Rotten Ralph's Show and Tell by Jack Gantos, book 6 of the Rotten Ralph series (1989)
  10. Cover of Happy Birthday Rotten Ralph by Jack Gantos, book 7 of the Rotten Ralph series (1990)
  11. Cover of Heads or Tails by Jack Gantos, book 1 of the Jack Henry series (1994)
  12. Cover of Not So Rotten Ralph by Jack Gantos, book 8 of the Rotten Ralph series (1994)
  13. Cover of Zip Six by Jack Gantos (1996)
  14. Cover of Desire Lines by Jack Gantos (1997)
  15. Cover of Jack's Black Book by Jack Gantos, book 3 of the Jack Henry series (1997)
  16. Cover of Rotten Ralph's Rotten Romance by Jack Gantos, book 9 of the Rotten Ralph series (1997)
  17. Cover of Joey Pigza Swallowed the Key by Jack Gantos, book 1 of the Joey Pigza series (1998)
  18. Cover of Back to School for Rotten Ralph by Jack Gantos, book 11 of the Rotten Ralph series (1998)
  19. Cover of Best in Show for Rotten Ralph by Jack Gantos, book 12 of the Rotten Ralph series (1998)
  20. Cover of The Christmas Spirit Strikes Rotten Ralph by Jack Gantos, book 13 of the Rotten Ralph series (1998)
  21. Cover of Jack on the Tracks by Jack Gantos, book 4 of the Jack Henry series (1999)
  22. Cover of Wedding Bells for Rotten Ralph by Jack Gantos, book 14 of the Rotten Ralph series (1999)
  23. Cover of Rotten Ralph's Thanksgiving Wish by Jack Gantos, book 15 of the Rotten Ralph series (1999)
  24. Cover of Joey Pigza Loses Control by Jack Gantos, book 2 of the Joey Pigza series (2000)
  1. 1
    Rotten RalphRotten Ralph #11975 · 48 pages · confirmed 1/4
    197548
    Buy at Amazon USAmazon UK
  2. 2
    Sleepy Ronald1976 · 30 pages · confirmed 1/4
    197630
    Buy at Amazon USAmazon UK
  3. 3
    Fair-Weather Friends1977 · 32 pages · confirmed 1/4
    197732
    Buy at Amazon USAmazon UK
  4. 4
    Worse Than Rotten, RalphRotten Ralph #21977 · 32 pages · confirmed 1/4
    197732
    Buy at Amazon USAmazon UK
  5. 5
    Aunt Bernice1978 · 32 pages · confirmed 1/4
    197832
    Buy at Amazon USAmazon UK
  6. 6
    The Perfect Pal1979 · 30 pages · confirmed 1/4
    197930
    Buy at Amazon USAmazon UK
  7. 7
    Greedy Greeny1979 · 32 pages · confirmed 1/4
    197932
    Buy at Amazon USAmazon UK
  8. 8
    Willy's Raiders1980 · 33 pages · confirmed 1/4
    198033
    Buy at Amazon USAmazon UK
  9. 9
    Rotten Ralph Helps OutRotten Ralph #31980 · 47 pages · confirmed 1/4
    198047
    Buy at Amazon USAmazon UK
  10. 10
    Swampy Alligator1980 · 32 pages · confirmed 1/4
    198032
    Buy at Amazon USAmazon UK
  11. 11
    The Werewolf Family1980 · 32 pages · confirmed 1/4
    198032
    Buy at Amazon USAmazon UK
  12. 12
    Rotten Ralph's Rotten ChristmasRotten Ralph #41984 · 32 pages · confirmed 1/4
    198432
    Buy at Amazon USAmazon UK
  13. 13
    Rotten Ralph's Trick or TreatRotten Ralph #51986 · 30 pages · confirmed 1/4
    198630
    Buy at Amazon USAmazon UK
  14. 14
    Rotten Ralph's Show and TellRotten Ralph #61989 · confirmed 1/4
    1989–
    Buy at Amazon USAmazon UK
  15. 15
    Happy Birthday Rotten RalphRotten Ralph #71990 · confirmed 1/4
    1990–
    Buy at Amazon USAmazon UK
  16. 16
    Heads or TailsJack Henry #11994 · 160 pages · confirmed 1/4
    1994160
    Buy at Amazon USAmazon UK
  17. 17
    Not So Rotten RalphRotten Ralph #81994 · 32 pages · confirmed 1/4
    199432
    Buy at Amazon USAmazon UK
  18. 18
    Jack's New PowerJack Henry #21995 · 214 pages · confirmed 1/4
    1995214
    Buy at Amazon USAmazon UK
  19. 19
    Zip Six1996 · 281 pages · confirmed 1/4
    1996281
    Buy at Amazon USAmazon UK
  20. 20
    Desire Lines1997 · 144 pages · confirmed 1/4
    1997144
    Buy at Amazon USAmazon UK
  21. 21
    Jack's Black BookJack Henry #31997 · 176 pages · confirmed 1/4
    1997176
    Buy at Amazon USAmazon UK
  22. 22
    Rotten Ralph's Rotten RomanceRotten Ralph #91997 · 30 pages · confirmed 1/4
    199730
    Buy at Amazon USAmazon UK
  23. 23
    Joey Pigza Swallowed the KeyJoey Pigza #11998 · 160 pages · confirmed 1/4
    1998160
    Buy at Amazon USAmazon UK
  24. 24
    Rotten Ralph's Halloween HowlRotten Ralph #101998 · confirmed 1/4
    1998–
    Buy at Amazon USAmazon UK
  25. 25
    Back to School for Rotten RalphRotten Ralph #111998 · confirmed 1/4
    1998–
    Buy at Amazon USAmazon UK
  26. 26
    Best in Show for Rotten RalphRotten Ralph #121998 · 46 pages · confirmed 1/4
    199846
    Buy at Amazon USAmazon UK
  27. 27
    The Christmas Spirit Strikes Rotten RalphRotten Ralph #131998 · confirmed 1/4
    1998–
    Buy at Amazon USAmazon UK
  28. 28
    Jack on the TracksJack Henry #41999 · 192 pages · confirmed 1/4
    1999192
    Buy at Amazon USAmazon UK
  29. 29
    Wedding Bells for Rotten RalphRotten Ralph #141999 · confirmed 1/4
    1999–
    Buy at Amazon USAmazon UK
  30. 30
    Rotten Ralph's Thanksgiving WishRotten Ralph #151999 · confirmed 1/4
    1999–
    Buy at Amazon USAmazon UK

Jack Gantos series in order

Each series linked below has its own reading-order page.

Jack Gantos 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.

Jack Henry in order

5 books
  1. 1. Heads or Tails
  2. 2. Jack's New Power
  3. 3. Jack's Black Book
  4. 4. Jack on the Tracks
  5. 5. Jack Adrift

Norvelt in order

2 books
  1. 1. Dead End in Norvelt
  2. 2. From Norvelt to Nowhere

Hidden Files of Joey Pigza in order

2 books
  1. 1. The Dented Head of Joey Pigza
  2. 2. A Pain in the Pigza

Standalone books

15 books

15 Jack Gantos titles here are not listed as part of any series.

Do you have to read Jack Gantos books in order?

You only need to read Jack Gantos books in order within each series: the books listed here span 5 separate series, and each series has its own publication order.

Where to start with Jack Gantos

Start with the first book of the Jack Gantos series you want to read: Joey Pigza starts with Joey Pigza Swallowed the Key (1998) and Rotten Ralph starts with Rotten Ralph (1975). The earliest catalogued title overall is Rotten Ralph (1975).

What is the newest Jack Gantos book?

A Pain in the Pigza (2019) is the newest Jack Gantos book released so far.

Is there a new Jack Gantos book coming?

No next Jack Gantos 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 Jack Gantos has won

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

Jack Gantos at a glance

No recent titles
The newest Jack Gantos title on record dates from 2019, 7 years ago. No later title is catalogued.
Release pace
Jack Gantos books have appeared about one a year on average.
Length
3,888 pages across the 35 of 50 books with a recorded length, a median of 48 pages each.
Busiest decade
Most Jack Gantos books, 16 of 50, were published in the 1990s.

What the Jack Gantos books are about

43 of the 50 Jack Gantos books carry subject tags in Open Library's catalogue. The subjects below are the ones that recur across them, most frequent first: children's fiction is tagged on 28 of 43. The subjects are cataloguers’ headings, not a plot summary.