Boxcar Children Books in Order
There are 182 Boxcar Children books, published between 1942 and 2023: 168 in the 4 main-line series and 14 related titles. The first book is The Boxcar Children (1942) and the newest main-line book is The Raptor Rescue (2023). Publication order is the reading order below.
Also searched as The Boxcar Children.
- Books
- 182
- Published
- 1942–2023
- Confirmed
- 117 of 182 titles
- Pages on record
- 18,738 in 137 of 182 books
- Reading time
- 312–468 hours
Reading time is an estimate, not a recorded figure: 18,738 pages at 300 words a page, read at 200–300 words a minute, covering the 137 of 182 titles with a page count on record.
The Boxcar Children are orphaned brothers and sisters at the centre of 182 books catalogued from 1942 to 2023. Gertrude Chandler Warner is credited on 175 of them and Joeming W. Dunn on 3. The Boxcar Children (1942) opens the run, followed by titles such as Surprise Island (1949), The Yellow House Mystery (1952), Mystery Ranch (1957) and The Lighthouse Mystery (1962). Subjects mark the books as children's mystery and detective stories about family life. The Raptor Rescue (2023) is the newest, and the run is now dormant. Related listings include Boxcar Children Special, Boxcar Children Great Adventure and Jessie Files.
How many Boxcar Children books are there?
Boxcar Children has 182 books, released between 1942 and 2023. 168 of them belong to the 4 main-line series (Boxcar Children, Boxcar Children Special, Boxcar Children Great Adventure and others), and 14 related titles sit outside it: graphic novels.
Boxcar Children Books in Publication Order
The table lists all 182 Boxcar Children 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.
- 119421543/4
- 219481193/4
- 319491813/4
- 419521913/4
- 519571273/4
- 619601283/4
- 719611573/4
- 819621593/4
- 919621283/4
- 101964–3/4
- 1119651283/4
- 121966–3/4
- 1319671283/4
- 141968–3/4
- 1519691273/4
- 1619701273/4
- 171971–3/4
- 181973–3/4
- 1919741273/4
- 2019761283/4
- 2119911213/4
- 2219911213/4
- 2319911213/4
- 2419911213/4
- 2519911213/4
- 2619921213/4
- 2719921193/4
- 2919921193/4
- 301992–3/4
- 3119921203/4
- 3219921183/4
- 3319921213/4
- 341993–2/4
- 3519931213/4
- 3619931213/4
- 3719931213/4
- 3819931213/4
- 3919931213/4
- 4019941102/4
- 4119941002/4
- 4219941202/4
- 431994–3/4
- 441994–3/4
- 4619941193/4
- 4719941213/4
- 4819951242/4
- 491995–2/4
- 5019951213/4
- 5119951183/4
- 5219951203/4
- 5319951203/4
- 5419951202/4
- 5519951163/4
- 5619951213/4
- 5719961202/4
- 5819961212/4
- 5919961212/4
- 6019961212/4
- 6119961213/4
- 6219961133/4
- 6319961183/4
- 64199617602/4
- 6519971132/4
- 6619971212/4
- 6719971193/4
- 6819971213/4
- 6919971213/4
- 7019971213/4
- 7119971162/4
- 7219971213/4
- 7319981202/4
- 7419981212/4
- 751998–3/4
- 7619981213/4
- 7719981213/4
- 7819981212/4
- 7919981123/4
- 8019981213/4
- 8119991212/4
- 8219991332/4
- 8319991153/4
- 8419991353/4
- 8519991322/4
- 8619991213/4
- 8719991213/4
- 8820001202/4
- 8920001352/4
- 9020001353/4
- 9120001203/4
- 9220001123/4
- 9320001303/4
- 9420001153/4
- 952000–3/4
- 9620001353/4
- 9720011212/4
- 9820011172/4
- 9920011373/4
- 10020011123/4
- 10120011123/4
- 10220011443/4
- 10320011153/4
- 10420021282/4
- 10520021142/4
- 10620021282/4
- 10720021283/4
- 10820021342/4
- 10920021213/4
- 11020021203/4
- 11120021202/4
- 11220031442/4
- 11320031302/4
- 11420031283/4
- 11520031283/4
- 11620031283/4
- 1172003–3/4
- 11820031283/4
- 11920031283/4
- 12020041263/4
- 12120041223/4
- 12220041283/4
- 12320041283/4
- 1242005–3/4
- 1252005–3/4
- 12620051313/4
- 12720051282/4
- 12820061232/4
- 12920061283/4
- 1302006973/4
- 13120061023/4
- 13220071133/4
- 13320071093/4
- 13420071113/4
- 13520071203/4
- 1362008–3/4
- 1372008–3/4
- 13820081143/4
- 13920081153/4
- 1402009–2/4
- 1412009–2/4
- 1422009–2/4
- 1432009–2/4
- 1442009–2/4
- 1452009–2/4
- 1462009–2/4
- 1472009–2/4
- 1482009–3/4
- 1492009–3/4
- 1502009–3/4
- 1512009–3/4
- 1522010–2/4
- 1532010–2/4
- 1542010–2/4
- 1552010–2/4
- 1562010–3/4
- 1572010–2/4
- 1582010–3/4
- 1592010953/4
- 1602011–2/4
- 1612011–2/4
- 1622011322/4
- 1632011–3/4
- 1642011–2/4
- 1652011–3/4
- 16620141092/4
- 1672015–2/4
- 1682016942/4
- 1692016–2/4
- 17020171602/4
- 17120171602/4
- 17220171442/4
- 17320171602/4
- 17420171442/4
- 17520191283/4
- 17620201283/4
- 17720201282/4
- 17820201442/4
- 17920221922/4
- 18020221922/4
- 1812023–2/4
- 1822023–3/4
Do you have to read Boxcar Children books in order?
You should read the 4 main-line series in publication order, the order of the numbered table above; the 14 related titles (graphic novels) sit outside that sequence. The catalogue does not record whether each Boxcar Children book also stands alone.
Where to start with Boxcar Children
Start with The Boxcar Children (1942), the earliest published book in the 4 main-line series.
What is the newest Boxcar Children book?
The Raptor Rescue (2023) is the newest book in the 4 main-line series.
Is there a new Boxcar Children book coming?
No next Boxcar Children book is announced in the catalogue, which is a gap in the listings it merges rather than a sign that the run has ended.
Printable Boxcar Children Books in Order Checklist
A printable checklist of all 182 books in publication order is on the Boxcar Children reading checklist, with a tick box beside each title.
Boxcar Children at a glance
- Paused
- No new main-line Boxcar Children title has appeared for 3 years. The last was The Raptor Rescue (2023).
- Release pace
- Boxcar Children books have appeared more than one a year on average.
- Length
- 18,738 pages across the 137 of 182 books with a recorded length, a median of 121 pages each.
- Busiest decade
- Most Boxcar Children books, 67 of 182, were published in the 1990s.
- Attribution
- Of the 182 titles, 175 are credited to Gertrude Chandler Warner and 3 to Joeming W. Dunn. 4 titles carry no credit.
What the Boxcar Children books are about
176 of the 182 Boxcar Children books carry subject tags in Open Library's catalogue. The subjects below are the ones that recur across them, most frequent first: orphans is tagged on 157 of 176. The subjects are cataloguers’ headings, not a plot summary.
- Orphans 157 of 176 books
- Brothers and sisters 151 of 176 books
- Mystery & detective 131 of 176 books
- Children's fiction 112 of 176 books
- Family life 25 of 176 books
- Brothers and sisters in fiction 21 of 176 books
- Orphans in fiction 15 of 176 books
- Adventure stories 12 of 176 books
- Ghosts 10 of 176 books
Series that include Boxcar Children books
Each series linked below has its own reading-order page.