Lensman Books in Order
There are 10 Lensman books, published between 1937 and 1983. The first book is Galatic Patrol (1937) and the newest is Z-Lensman (1983). Publication order is the reading order below.
- Books
- 10
- Published
- 1937–1983
- Pages on record
- 1,313 in 5 of 10 books
- Reading time
- 22–33 hours
Reading time is an estimate, not a recorded figure: 1,313 pages at 300 words a page, read at 200–300 words a minute, covering the 5 of 10 titles with a page count on record.
Lensman names the space opera sequence that runs across 10 books published between 1937 and 1983. Recorded subjects include space warfare, human-alien encounters, imaginary wars and scientists. E.E. “Doc” Smith is credited on 7 of the books, among them Children of the Lens (1947), Triplanetary (1948), First Lensman (1950), Gray Lensman (1951), Second Stage Lensman (1953) and Masters of the Vortex (1960). David A. Kyle carries the other 3: The Dragon Lensman (1980), Lensman from Rigel (1982) and Z-Lensman (1983).
How many Lensman books are there?
Lensman has 10 books, released between 1937 and 1983.
Lensman Books in Publication Order
The table lists all 10 Lensman 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.
- 119372372/4
- 21947–2/4
- 319483522/4
- 419502562/4
- 51951–2/4
- 61953–2/4
- 71960–2/4
- 81980–2/4
- 919822122/4
- 1019832562/4
Do you have to read Lensman books in order?
You should read the Lensman books in publication order, the order of the numbered table above. The catalogue does not record whether each Lensman book also stands alone.
Where to start with Lensman
Start with Galatic Patrol (1937), the earliest published title.
What is the newest Lensman book?
Z-Lensman (1983) is the newest Lensman book released so far.
Is there a new Lensman book coming?
No next Lensman book is announced in the catalogue, which is a gap in the listings it merges rather than a sign that the run has ended.
Lensman at a glance
- No recent titles
- The newest Lensman title on record dates from 1983, 43 years ago. No later title is catalogued.
- Release pace
- Lensman books have appeared about one every 5 years on average.
- Length
- 1,313 pages across the 5 of 10 books with a recorded length, a median of 256 pages each.
- Busiest decade
- Most Lensman books, 3 of 10, were published in the 1980s.
- Attribution
- Of the 10 titles, 7 are credited to E.E. “Doc” Smith and 3 to David A. Kyle.
What the Lensman books are about
7 of the 10 Lensman books carry subject tags in Open Library's catalogue. The subjects below are the ones that recur across them, most frequent first: science fiction is tagged on 5 of 7. The subjects are cataloguers’ headings, not a plot summary.
- Science fiction 5 of 7 books
- Space opera 4 of 7 books
- Science fiction, action & adventure 2 of 7 books