Order of Book Series
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John Boyne Books in Order

John Boyne has written 30 books, published between 2000 and 2026. The first book is The Thief of Time (2000) and the newest is The Elements (2026). Publication order is the reading order below.

Books
30
Published
2000–2026
Confirmed
22 of 30 titles
Pages on record
5,691 in 16 of 30 books
Reading time
95–142 hours

Reading time is an estimate, not a recorded figure: 5,691 pages at 300 words a page, read at 200–300 words a minute, covering the 16 of 30 titles with a page count on record.

See all 30 books in order Printable John Boyne checklist
Photo of John Boyne, author of the Elements series

John Boyne is an Irish novelist born in 1971. The Boy in the Striped Pyjamas (2006), a historical novel, became a 2008 film, has sold more than 11 million copies and appears in over 58 languages; All the Broken Places (2022) is its sequel. Boyne's work spans novels for adults and younger readers, novellas and short stories. The catalogue lists 30 books from The Thief of Time (2000) to The Elements (2026), including Crippen (2004), Mutiny on the Bounty (2008) and Noah Barleywater Runs Away (2010).

How many John Boyne books are there?

John Boyne has 30 books, released between 2000 and 2026. 4 of them belong to the Elements series.

John Boyne Books in Publication Order

The table lists all 30 John Boyne 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 The Thief of Time by John Boyne (2000)
  2. Cover of The Congress of Rough Riders by John Boyne (2001)
  3. Cover of Crippen by John Boyne (2004)
  4. Cover of Next of Kin by John Boyne (2006)
  5. Cover of The Boy in the Striped Pyjamas by John Boyne (2006)
  6. Cover of Mutiny on the Bounty by John Boyne (2008)
  7. Cover of The Dare by John Boyne (2009)
  8. Cover of The House of Special Purpose by John Boyne (2009)
  9. Cover of This House Is Haunted by John Boyne (2013)
  10. Cover of Stay Where You Are and Then Leave by John Boyne (2013)
  11. Cover of A History of Loneliness by John Boyne (2014)
  12. Cover of Beneath the Earth by John Boyne (2015)
  13. Cover of The Boy at the Top of the Mountain by John Boyne (2015)
  14. Cover of The Heart's Invisible Furies by John Boyne (2017)
  15. Cover of A Ladder to the Sky by John Boyne (2018)
  16. Cover of My Brother's Name is Jessica by John Boyne (2019)
  17. Cover of A Traveler at the Gates of Wisdom by John Boyne (2020)
  18. Cover of The Echo Chamber by John Boyne (2021)
  19. Cover of All the Broken Places by John Boyne (2022)
  20. Cover of Fire by John Boyne, book 3 of the Elements series (2024)
  1. 1
    The Thief of Time2000 · 384 pages · confirmed 3/4
    2000384
    Buy at Amazon USAmazon UK
  2. 2
    The Congress of Rough Riders2001 · 336 pages · confirmed 3/4
    2001336
    Buy at Amazon USAmazon UK
  3. 3
    Crippen2004 · confirmed 3/4
    2004–
    Buy at Amazon USAmazon UK
  4. 4
    Next of Kin2006 · 368 pages · confirmed 3/4
    2006368
    Buy at Amazon USAmazon UK
  5. 5
    The Boy in the Striped Pyjamas2006 · confirmed 3/4
    2006–
    Buy at Amazon USAmazon UK
  6. 6
    The Second ChildOpen Door 6 #22008 · confirmed 2/4
    2008–
    Buy at Amazon USAmazon UK
  7. 7
    Mutiny on the Bounty2008 · 496 pages · confirmed 3/4
    2008496
    Buy at Amazon USAmazon UK
  8. 8
    The Dare2009 · 299 pages · confirmed 2/4
    2009299
    Buy at Amazon USAmazon UK
  9. 9
    The House of Special Purpose2009 · 432 pages · confirmed 3/4
    2009432
    Buy at Amazon USAmazon UK
  10. 10
    Noah Barleywater Runs Away2010 · confirmed 2/4
    2010–
    Buy at Amazon USAmazon UK
  11. 11
    The Absolutist2011 · confirmed 3/4
    2011–
    Buy at Amazon USAmazon UK
  12. 12
    The Terrible Thing That Happened to Barnaby Brocket2012 · confirmed 3/4
    2012–
    Buy at Amazon USAmazon UK
  13. 13
    This House Is Haunted2013 · 304 pages · confirmed 3/4
    2013304
    Buy at Amazon USAmazon UK
  14. 14
    Stay Where You Are and Then Leave2013 · 256 pages · confirmed 3/4
    2013256
    Buy at Amazon USAmazon UK
  15. 15
    A History of Loneliness2014 · 337 pages · confirmed 3/4
    2014337
    Buy at Amazon USAmazon UK
  16. 16
    Beneath the Earth2015 · 272 pages · confirmed 2/4
    2015272
    Buy at Amazon USAmazon UK
  17. 17
    The Boy at the Top of the Mountain2015 · 288 pages · confirmed 3/4
    2015288
    Buy at Amazon USAmazon UK
  18. 18
    The Heart's Invisible Furies2017 · 575 pages · confirmed 3/4
    2017575
    Buy at Amazon USAmazon UK
  19. 19
    A Ladder to the Sky2018 · confirmed 3/4
    2018–
    Buy at Amazon USAmazon UK
  20. 20
    My Brother's Name is Jessica2019 · 256 pages · confirmed 3/4
    2019256
    Buy at Amazon USAmazon UK
  21. 21
    A Traveler at the Gates of Wisdom2020 · 480 pages · confirmed 3/4
    2020480
    Buy at Amazon USAmazon UK
  22. 22
    The Echo Chamber2021 · 432 pages · confirmed 3/4
    2021432
    Buy at Amazon USAmazon UK
  23. 23
    All the Broken Places2022 · confirmed 3/4
    2022–
    Buy at Amazon USAmazon UK
  24. 24
    WaterElements #12023 · confirmed 2/4
    2023–
    Buy at Amazon USAmazon UK
  25. 25
    The Dog Who Danced on the Moon2024 · confirmed 3/4
    2024–
    Buy at Amazon USAmazon UK
  26. 26
    EarthElements #22024 · confirmed 3/4
    2024–
    Buy at Amazon USAmazon UK
  27. 27
    FireElements #32024 · confirmed 2/4
    2024–
    Buy at Amazon USAmazon UK
  28. 28
    AirElements #42025 · 176 pages · confirmed 3/4
    2025176
    Buy at Amazon USAmazon UK
  29. 29
    The Weight of Angels2026 · confirmed 2/4
    2026–
    Buy at Amazon USAmazon UK
  30. 30
    The Elements2026 · confirmed 1/4
    2026–
    Buy at Amazon USAmazon UK

John Boyne 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.

Elements in order

4 books
  1. 1. Water
  2. 2. Earth
  3. 3. Fire
  4. 4. Air

Open Door 6 in order

1 book
  1. 2. The Second Child

Standalone books

25 books

25 John Boyne titles here are not listed as part of any series.

Do you have to read John Boyne books in order?

You only need to read John Boyne books in order within the Elements series, which holds 4 of the 30 John Boyne books listed here. The numbered table above gives every book in publication order.

Where to start with John Boyne

Start with The Thief of Time (2000), the earliest published title.

What is the newest John Boyne book?

The Elements (2026) is the newest John Boyne book released so far.

Is there a new John Boyne book coming?

No next John Boyne 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 John Boyne has won

Wikidata records 3 awards for John Boyne. Each row states whether the title won or was shortlisted, and the year the award was given.

  • Prix du roman Fnac2025Won
  • Prix Femina étranger2025Won
  • Gustav-Heinemann-Friedenspreis für Kinder- und Jugendbücher2007Won

John Boyne at a glance

Still publishing
John Boyne published a book as recently as 2026.
Release pace
John Boyne books have appeared about one a year on average.
Length
5,691 pages across the 16 of 30 books with a recorded length, a median of 336 pages each.
Busiest decade
Most John Boyne books, 11 of 30, were published in the 2010s.

What the John Boyne books are about

19 of the 30 John Boyne 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 4 of 19. The subjects are cataloguers’ headings, not a plot summary.