Mary Oliver Books in Order
37 books are credited to Mary Oliver, published between 1972 and 2026; 2 of them appeared after Mary Oliver's death in 2019. The first book is The River Styx, Ohio, and Other Poems (1972) and the newest is Goldfinches (2026). Publication order is the reading order below.
- Books
- 37
- Published
- 1972–2026
- Pages on record
- 2,481 in 26 of 37 books
- Reading time
- 41–62 hours
Reading time is an estimate, not a recorded figure: 2,481 pages at 300 words a page, read at 200–300 words a minute, covering the 26 of 37 titles with a page count on record.
Mary Oliver (1935-2019) was an American poet whose subject was the natural world. The Pulitzer Prize came to Oliver in 1984, and the National Book Award followed in 1992. The catalogue holds 37 titles dated 1972 to 2026, from The River Styx, Ohio, and Other Poems to Goldfinches, taking in American Primitive (1983), Dream Work (1986), House of Light (1990) and A Poetry Handbook (1994). The volumes are short, around 80 pages at the median, and essay collections sit beside the poetry.
How many Mary Oliver books are there?
Mary Oliver has 37 books, released between 1972 and 2026. 2 of them were published after Mary Oliver's death in 2019.
Mary Oliver Books in Publication Order
The table lists all 37 Mary Oliver 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.
- 1The River Styx, Ohio, and Other Poems1972 · 55 pages · confirmed 1/41972551/4
- 2Twelve Moons1979 · confirmed 1/41979–1/4
- 3American Primitive1983 · confirmed 1/41983–1/4
- 4Dream Work1986 · 90 pages · confirmed 1/41986901/4
- 5Provincetown1987 · confirmed 1/41987–1/4
- 6House of Light1990 · 80 pages · confirmed 1/41990801/4
- 7New and Selected Poems, Volume One1992 · confirmed 1/41992–1/4
- 8A Poetry Handbook1994 · confirmed 1/41994–1/4
- 9New and Selected Poems1994 · 255 pages · confirmed 1/419942551/4
- 10White Pine1994 · 55 pages · confirmed 1/41994551/4
- 11Blue Pastures1995 · 122 pages · confirmed 1/419951221/4
- 12West Wind1997 · 80 pages · confirmed 1/41997801/4
- 13Rules for the Dance1998 · 194 pages · confirmed 1/419981941/4
- 14Winter Hours1999 · confirmed 1/41999–1/4
- 15The Leaf and the Cloud2000 · 72 pages · confirmed 1/42000721/4
- 16What Do We Know2002 · 68 pages · confirmed 1/42002681/4
- 17Owls and Other Fantasies2003 · 67 pages · confirmed 1/42003671/4
- 18Long Life2004 · 101 pages · confirmed 1/420041011/4
- 19Why I Wake Early2004 · 71 pages · confirmed 1/42004711/4
- 20Blue Iris2004 · 75 pages · confirmed 1/42004751/4
- 21Wild Geese2004 · 160 pages · confirmed 1/420041601/4
- 22Thirst2006 · 71 pages · confirmed 1/42006711/4
- 23At Blackwater Pond2006 · confirmed 1/42006–1/4
- 24Our World2007 · 86 pages · confirmed 1/42007861/4
- 25Red Bird2008 · 96 pages · confirmed 1/42008961/4
- 26The Truro Bear and Other Adventures2008 · 80 pages · confirmed 1/42008801/4
- 27Evidence: Poems2009 · confirmed 1/42009–1/4
- 28Swan2010 · 59 pages · confirmed 1/42010591/4
- 29Many Miles2010 · 2 pages · confirmed 1/4201021/4
- 30A Thousand Mornings2012 · 77 pages · confirmed 1/42012771/4
- 31Dog Songs: Poems2013 · 127 pages · confirmed 1/420131271/4
- 32Blue Horses2014 · 79 pages · confirmed 1/42014791/4
- 33Felicity2015 · 81 pages · confirmed 1/42015811/4
- 34Upstream: Selected Essays2016 · 178 pages · confirmed 1/420161781/4
- 35Devotions2019 · confirmed 1/42019–1/4
- 36Little Alleluias2025 · confirmed 1/42025–1/4
- 37Goldfinches2026 · confirmed 1/42026–1/4
Mary Oliver 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
37 books37 Mary Oliver titles here are not listed as part of any series.
Mary Oliver Books in Chronological Order
By publication date, the Mary Oliver books run from The River Styx, Ohio, and Other Poems (1972) to Goldfinches (2026), the sequence in the table above. No separate story order is recorded for Mary Oliver in the book listings this catalogue merges, so publication order is the only order on record.
Do you have to read Mary Oliver books in order?
No. No source lists any of the 37 Mary Oliver books here as part of a series. The numbered table above gives them by publication date.
Where to start with Mary Oliver
Start with The River Styx, Ohio, and Other Poems (1972), the earliest published title.
What is the newest Mary Oliver book?
Goldfinches (2026) is the newest Mary Oliver book released so far.
Is there a new Mary Oliver book coming?
No next Mary Oliver 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 Mary Oliver has won
Wikidata records 3 awards for Mary Oliver. Each row states whether the title won or was shortlisted, and the year the award was given.
- National Book Award1992Won
- Pulitzer Prize for Poetry1984Wonfor American primitive
- Shelley Memorial Award1970Won
Mary Oliver at a glance
- Died
- Mary Oliver died in 2019, according to Wikidata.
- After death
- Books credited to Mary Oliver are still being published after Mary Oliver's death in 2019; the newest appeared in 2026.
- Release pace
- Mary Oliver books have appeared about one every 2 years on average.
- Length
- 2,481 pages across the 26 of 37 books with a recorded length, a median of 80 pages each.
- Busiest decade
- Most Mary Oliver books, 13 of 37, were published in the 2000s.
What the Mary Oliver books are about
27 of the 37 Mary Oliver books carry subject tags in Open Library's catalogue. The subjects below are the ones that recur across them, most frequent first: poetry is tagged on 17 of 27. The subjects are cataloguers’ headings, not a plot summary.
- Poetry 17 of 27 books
- Women authors 6 of 27 books
- Collected works (single author, multi-form) 4 of 27 books
- Essays 3 of 27 books
- Nature 2 of 27 books
- POETRY / American / General 2 of 27 books