Order of Book Series
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Tennessee Williams Books in Order

67 books are credited to Tennessee Williams, published between 1936 and 2023; 17 of them appeared after Tennessee Williams's death in 1983. The first book is Candles to the Sun (1936) and the newest is Caterpillar Dogs (2023). Publication order is the reading order below.

Books
67
Published
1936–2023
Pages on record
11,343 in 52 of 67 books
Reading time
189–284 hours

Reading time is an estimate, not a recorded figure: 11,343 pages at 300 words a page, read at 200–300 words a minute, covering the 52 of 67 titles with a page count on record.

See all 67 books in order Printable Tennessee Williams checklist
Photo of Tennessee Williams, author of the Collection of Plays series

Tennessee Williams was the pen name of Thomas Lanier Williams III (26 March 1911 to 25 February 1983), an American playwright and screenwriter. Williams is considered, with Eugene O'Neill and Arthur Miller, one of the three foremost American playwrights of the 20th century. After a first play in 1930, Williams gained wide attention in 1944 with The Glass Menagerie, followed by A Streetcar Named Desire (1947), Cat on a Hot Tin Roof (1955), Sweet Bird of Youth (1959) and The Night of the Iguana (1961). The catalogue holds 67 books, from Candles to the Sun (1936) through Battle of Angels (1940) and 27 Wagons Full of Cotton and Other Plays (1945). Subjects include American drama and short stories.

How many Tennessee Williams books are there?

Tennessee Williams has 67 books, released between 1936 and 2023. 17 of them were published after Tennessee Williams's death in 1983.

Tennessee Williams Books in Publication Order

The table lists all 67 Tennessee Williams 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 Candles to the Sun by Tennessee Williams, book 1 of the Collection of Plays series (1936)
  2. Cover of The Magic Tower by Tennessee Williams, book 2 of the Collection of Plays series (1936)
  3. Cover of Fugitive Kind by Tennessee Williams, book 3 of the Collection of Plays series (1937)
  4. Cover of Spring Storm by Tennessee Williams, book 5 of the Collection of Plays series (1937)
  5. Cover of Battle of Angels by Tennessee Williams, book 6 of the Collection of Plays series (1940)
  6. Cover of 27 Wagons Full of Cotton and Other Plays by Tennessee Williams (1945)
  7. Cover of The Glass Menagerie by Tennessee Williams, book 7 of the Collection of Plays series (1945)
  8. Cover of A Streetcar Named Desire by Tennessee Williams, book 8 of the Collection of Plays series (1947)
  9. Cover of One Arm and Other Stories by Tennessee Williams (1948)
  10. Cover of Summer and Smoke by Tennessee Williams, book 9 of the Collection of Plays series (1948)
  11. Cover of Camino Real by Tennessee Williams, book 10 of the Collection of Plays series (1948)
  12. Cover of The Roman Spring of Mrs. Stone by Tennessee Williams (1950)
  13. Cover of Hard Candy by Tennessee Williams (1954)
  14. Cover of Cat on a Hot Tin Roof by Tennessee Williams, book 12 of the Collection of Plays series (1955)
  15. Cover of The Rose Tattoo and Other Plays by Tennessee Williams (1957)
  16. Cover of Orpheus Descending by Tennessee Williams, book 14 of the Collection of Plays series (1957)
  17. Cover of Baby Doll and Other Plays by Tennessee Williams (1958)
  18. Cover of A Perfect Analysis Given By a Parrot. by Tennessee Williams, book 15 of the Collection of Plays series (1958)
  19. Cover of Suddenly Last Summer by Tennessee Williams, book 16 of the Collection of Plays series (1958)
  20. Cover of Sweet Bird of Youth by Tennessee Williams, book 17 of the Collection of Plays series (1959)
  21. Cover of Three Players Of A Summer Game, And Other Stories by Tennessee Williams (1960)
  22. Cover of The Night of the Iguana by Tennessee Williams, book 18 of the Collection of Plays series (1961)
  23. Cover of Period of Adjustment by Tennessee Williams, book 19 of the Collection of Plays series (1961)
  24. Cover of The Milk Train Doesn't Stop Here Anymore by Tennessee Williams, book 20 of the Collection of Plays series (1963)
  1. 1
    Candles to the SunCollection of Plays #11936 · 117 pages · confirmed 1/4
    1936117
    Buy at Amazon USAmazon UK
  2. 2
    The Magic TowerCollection of Plays #21936 · 286 pages · confirmed 1/4
    1936286
    Buy at Amazon USAmazon UK
  3. 3
    Fugitive KindCollection of Plays #31937 · 147 pages · confirmed 1/4
    1937147
    Buy at Amazon USAmazon UK
  4. 4
    The PalookaCollection of Plays #41937 · confirmed 1/4
    1937–
    Buy at Amazon USAmazon UK
  5. 5
    Spring StormCollection of Plays #51937 · 166 pages · confirmed 1/4
    1937166
    Buy at Amazon USAmazon UK
  6. 6
    Battle of AngelsCollection of Plays #61940 · 76 pages · confirmed 1/4
    194076
    Buy at Amazon USAmazon UK
  7. 7
    27 Wagons Full of Cotton and Other Plays1945 · 238 pages · confirmed 1/4
    1945238
    Buy at Amazon USAmazon UK
  8. 8
    The Glass MenagerieCollection of Plays #71945 · 105 pages · confirmed 1/4
    1945105
    Buy at Amazon USAmazon UK
  9. 9
    A Streetcar Named DesireCollection of Plays #81947 · 192 pages · confirmed 1/4
    1947192
    Buy at Amazon USAmazon UK
  10. 11
    Summer and SmokeCollection of Plays #91948 · 72 pages · confirmed 1/4
    194872
    Buy at Amazon USAmazon UK
  11. 12
    Camino RealCollection of Plays #101948 · 170 pages · confirmed 1/4
    1948170
    Buy at Amazon USAmazon UK
  12. 13
    The Roman Spring of Mrs. Stone1950 · 111 pages · confirmed 1/4
    1950111
    Buy at Amazon USAmazon UK
  13. 14
    The Rose TattooCollection of Plays #111951 · confirmed 1/4
    1951–
    Buy at Amazon USAmazon UK
  14. 15
    Hard Candy1954 · 220 pages · confirmed 1/4
    1954220
    Buy at Amazon USAmazon UK
  15. 16
    Cat on a Hot Tin RoofCollection of Plays #121955 · 206 pages · confirmed 1/4
    1955206
    Buy at Amazon USAmazon UK
  16. 17
    Four Plays1956 · 491 pages · confirmed 1/4
    1956491
    Buy at Amazon USAmazon UK
  17. 18
    Baby DollCollection of Plays #131956 · confirmed 1/4
    1956–
    Buy at Amazon USAmazon UK
  18. 19
    The Rose Tattoo and Other Plays1957 · 352 pages · confirmed 1/4
    1957352
    Buy at Amazon USAmazon UK
  19. 20
    Orpheus DescendingCollection of Plays #141957 · 82 pages · confirmed 1/4
    195782
    Buy at Amazon USAmazon UK
  20. 21
    Baby Doll and Other Plays1958 · 160 pages · confirmed 1/4
    1958160
    Buy at Amazon USAmazon UK
  21. 22
    A Perfect Analysis Given By a Parrot.Collection of Plays #151958 · confirmed 1/4
    1958–
    Buy at Amazon USAmazon UK
  22. 23
    Suddenly Last SummerCollection of Plays #161958 · 45 pages · confirmed 1/4
    195845
    Buy at Amazon USAmazon UK
  23. 24
    Sweet Bird of YouthCollection of Plays #171959 · 126 pages · confirmed 1/4
    1959126
    Buy at Amazon USAmazon UK
  24. 25
    The Dark At The Top Of The StairsWilliam Inge's Plays #41960 · confirmed 1/4
    1960–
    Buy at Amazon USAmazon UK
  25. 27
    The Night of the IguanaCollection of Plays #181961 · confirmed 1/4
    1961–
    Buy at Amazon USAmazon UK
  26. 28
    Period of AdjustmentCollection of Plays #191961 · 72 pages · confirmed 1/4
    196172
    Buy at Amazon USAmazon UK
  27. 29
    Five Plays1962 · 392 pages · confirmed 1/4
    1962392
    Buy at Amazon USAmazon UK
  28. 30
    The Milk Train Doesn't Stop Here AnymoreCollection of Plays #201963 · 90 pages · confirmed 1/4
    196390
    Buy at Amazon USAmazon UK

Tennessee Williams series in order

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

Tennessee Williams 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.

William Inge's Plays in order

1 book
  1. 4. The Dark At The Top Of The Stairs

Standalone books

29 books

29 Tennessee Williams titles here are not listed as part of any series.

Do you have to read Tennessee Williams books in order?

No. No source lists any of the 67 Tennessee Williams books here as part of a series. The numbered table above gives them by publication date.

Where to start with Tennessee Williams

Start with Candles to the Sun (1936), the first Collection of Plays book. It is also the earliest catalogued title.

What is the newest Tennessee Williams book?

Caterpillar Dogs (2023) is the newest Tennessee Williams book released so far.

Is there a new Tennessee Williams book coming?

No next Tennessee Williams 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 Tennessee Williams has won

Wikidata records 3 awards and 1 nomination for Tennessee Williams. Each row states whether the title won or was shortlisted, and the year the award was given.

Tennessee Williams at a glance

Died
Tennessee Williams died in 1983, according to Wikidata.
After death
Books credited to Tennessee Williams are still being published after Tennessee Williams's death in 1983; the newest appeared in 2023.
Release pace
Tennessee Williams books have appeared about one a year on average.
Length
11,343 pages across the 52 of 67 books with a recorded length, a median of 168 pages each.
Busiest decade
Most Tennessee Williams books, 12 of 67, were published in the 1970s.

What the Tennessee Williams books are about

54 of the 67 Tennessee Williams books carry subject tags in Open Library's catalogue. The subjects below are the ones that recur across them, most frequent first: american drama is tagged on 23 of 54. The subjects are cataloguers’ headings, not a plot summary.

  • American drama 23 of 54 books
  • Drama 19 of 54 books
  • American Dramatists 6 of 54 books
  • Williams, tennessee, 1914-1983 5 of 54 books
  • Man-woman relationships 4 of 54 books
  • Short stories 4 of 54 books
  • Social life and customs 4 of 54 books
  • Correspondence 3 of 54 books
  • Gay dramatists 3 of 54 books
  • History 3 of 54 books
  • Marriage 3 of 54 books