Order of Book Series
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James Alexander Thom Books in Order

James Alexander Thom has written 16 books, published between 1976 and 2017. The first book is Let the Sunshine In (1976) and the newest is Once Upon a Time It Was Now (2017). Publication order is the reading order below.

Books
16
Published
1976–2017
Pages on record
3,635 in 8 of 16 books
Reading time
61–91 hours

Reading time is an estimate, not a recorded figure: 3,635 pages at 300 words a page, read at 200–300 words a minute, covering the 8 of 16 titles with a page count on record.

See all 16 books in order Printable James Alexander Thom checklist

James Alexander Thom (1933-2023) was an American novelist of the frontier and of colonial American history, working from heavy documentary research. Follow the River (1981), drawn from the Draper's Meadow massacre of 1755, is Thom's best-known book. Long Knife (1979), From Sea to Shining Sea (1984), Panther in the Sky (1989) and The Children of First Man (1994) stand beside it, with the Shawnee, western exploration and Clark's 1778-1779 Illinois expedition among the subjects. Sixteen titles are catalogued, from Let the Sunshine In (1976) to Once Upon a Time It Was Now (2017). Thom served in the Marine Corps in Korea and taught journalism at Indiana University.

How many James Alexander Thom books are there?

James Alexander Thom has 16 books, released between 1976 and 2017.

James Alexander Thom Books in Publication Order

The table lists all 16 James Alexander Thom 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 Follow the River by James Alexander Thom (1981)
  2. Cover of From Sea to Shining Sea by James Alexander Thom (1984)
  3. Cover of Staying Out of Hell by James Alexander Thom (1985)
  4. Cover of The Spirit of the Place by James Alexander Thom (1995)
  5. Cover of Warrior Woman by James Alexander Thom (2003)
  6. Cover of Saint Patrick's Battalion by James Alexander Thom (2006)
  7. Cover of Fire in the Water by James Alexander Thom (2015)
  1. 1
    Let the Sunshine In1976 · 88 pages · confirmed 1/4
    197688
    Buy at Amazon USAmazon UK
  2. 2
    Spectator Sport1978 · confirmed 1/4
    1978–
    Buy at Amazon USAmazon UK
  3. 3
    Long Knife1979 · 528 pages · confirmed 1/4
    1979528
    Buy at Amazon USAmazon UK
  4. 4
    Follow the River1981 · confirmed 1/4
    1981–
    Buy at Amazon USAmazon UK
  5. 5
    From Sea to Shining Sea1984 · 879 pages · confirmed 1/4
    1984879
    Buy at Amazon USAmazon UK
  6. 6
    Staying Out of Hell1985 · confirmed 1/4
    1985–
    Buy at Amazon USAmazon UK
  7. 7
    Panther in the Sky1989 · confirmed 1/4
    1989–
    Buy at Amazon USAmazon UK
  8. 8
    The Children of First Man1994 · 595 pages · confirmed 1/4
    1994595
    Buy at Amazon USAmazon UK
  9. 9
    The Spirit of the Place1995 · confirmed 1/4
    1995–
    Buy at Amazon USAmazon UK
  10. 10
    Red Heart1997 · confirmed 1/4
    1997–
    Buy at Amazon USAmazon UK
  11. 11
    Sign-Talker2000 · 560 pages · confirmed 1/4
    2000560
    Buy at Amazon USAmazon UK
  12. 12
    Warrior Woman2003 · 450 pages · confirmed 1/4
    2003450
    Buy at Amazon USAmazon UK
  13. 13
    Saint Patrick's Battalion2006 · 279 pages · confirmed 1/4
    2006279
    Buy at Amazon USAmazon UK
  14. 14
    The Art and Craft of Writing Historical Fiction2010 · confirmed 1/4
    2010–
    Buy at Amazon USAmazon UK
  15. 15
    Fire in the Water2015 · confirmed 1/4
    2015–
    Buy at Amazon USAmazon UK
  16. 16
    Once Upon a Time It Was Now2017 · 256 pages · confirmed 1/4
    2017256
    Buy at Amazon USAmazon UK

James Alexander Thom 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.

Standalone books

16 books

16 James Alexander Thom titles here are not listed as part of any series.

Do you have to read James Alexander Thom books in order?

No. No source lists any of the 16 James Alexander Thom books here as part of a series. The numbered table above gives them by publication date.

Where to start with James Alexander Thom

Start with Let the Sunshine In (1976), the earliest published title.

What is the newest James Alexander Thom book?

Once Upon a Time It Was Now (2017) is the newest James Alexander Thom book released so far.

Is there a new James Alexander Thom book coming?

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

James Alexander Thom at a glance

Died
James Alexander Thom died in 2023, according to Wikidata.
Last book
The newest book credited to James Alexander Thom on record dates from 2017.
Release pace
James Alexander Thom books have appeared about one every 3 years on average.
Length
3,635 pages across the 8 of 16 books with a recorded length, a median of 489 pages each.
Busiest decade
Most James Alexander Thom books, 4 of 16, were published in the 1980s.

What the James Alexander Thom books are about

14 of the 16 James Alexander Thom books carry subject tags in Open Library's catalogue. The subjects below are the ones that recur across them, most frequent first: historical fiction is tagged on 7 of 14. The subjects are cataloguers’ headings, not a plot summary.