Order of Book Series
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Old Man’s War Books in Order

John Scalzi has written 10 Old Man’s War books, published between 2005 and 2025: 7 in the Old Man's War series and 3 related titles. The first book is Old Man's War (2005) and the newest main-line book is The Shattering Peace (2025). Publication order is the reading order below.

Books
10
Published
2005–2025
Confirmed
10 of 10 titles
Pages on record
1,939 in 6 of 10 books
Reading time
32–48 hours

Reading time is an estimate, not a recorded figure: 1,939 pages at 300 words a page, read at 200–300 words a minute, covering the 6 of 10 titles with a page count on record.

See all 10 books in order Printable Old Man’s War checklist

Old Man's War is a military science fiction series by John Scalzi, credited on all 10 catalogued entries. Catalogue subjects record space warfare, space colonies, life on other planets, older men and soldiers, special forces, cloning and genetic engineering. The run opens with Old Man's War (2005) and reaches The Shattering Peace (2025), taking in The Ghost Brigades (2006), The Last Colony (2007), Zoe's Tale (2008), The Human Division (2013) and The End of All Things (2015), alongside shorter pieces including Questions for a Soldier (2005), The Sagan Diary (2007) and After the Coup (2008).

How many Old Man’s War books are there?

Old Man’s War has 10 books, released between 2005 and 2025. 7 of them belong to the Old Man's War series, and 3 related titles sit outside it: short stories and novellas.

Old Man’s War Books in Publication Order

The table lists all 10 Old Man’s War 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 Old Man's War by John Scalzi, book 1 of the Old Man's War series (2005)
  2. Cover of The Ghost Brigades by John Scalzi, book 2 of the Old Man's War series (2006)
  3. Cover of The Sagan Diary by John Scalzi, book 2 of the Old Man's War Short Stories/Novellas series (2007)
  4. Cover of The Last Colony by John Scalzi, book 3 of the Old Man's War series (2007)
  5. Cover of Zoe's Tale by John Scalzi, book 4 of the Old Man's War series (2008)
  6. Cover of The Human Division by John Scalzi, book 5 of the Old Man's War series (2013)
  7. Cover of The End of All Things by John Scalzi, book 6 of the Old Man's War series (2015)
  1. 1
    Old Man's WarOld Man's War #12005 · confirmed 3/4
    2005–
    Buy at Amazon USAmazon UK
  2. 2
    Questions for a SoldierOld Man's War Short Stories/Novellas #12005 · confirmed 3/4
    2005–
    Buy at Amazon USAmazon UK
  3. 3
    The Ghost BrigadesOld Man's War #22006 · 384 pages · confirmed 3/4
    2006384
    Buy at Amazon USAmazon UK
  4. 4
    The Sagan DiaryOld Man's War Short Stories/Novellas #22007 · 100 pages · confirmed 3/4
    2007100
    Buy at Amazon USAmazon UK
  5. 5
    The Last ColonyOld Man's War #32007 · 320 pages · confirmed 3/4
    2007320
    Buy at Amazon USAmazon UK
  6. 6
    After the CoupOld Man's War Short Stories/Novellas #32008 · confirmed 3/4
    2008–
    Buy at Amazon USAmazon UK
  7. 7
    Zoe's TaleOld Man's War #42008 · 320 pages · confirmed 3/4
    2008320
    Buy at Amazon USAmazon UK
  8. 8
    The Human DivisionOld Man's War #52013 · 431 pages · confirmed 3/4
    2013431
    Buy at Amazon USAmazon UK
  9. 9
    The End of All ThingsOld Man's War #62015 · 384 pages · confirmed 3/4
    2015384
    Buy at Amazon USAmazon UK
  10. 10
    The Shattering PeaceOld Man's War #72025 · confirmed 4/4
    2025–
    Buy at Amazon USAmazon UK

Do you have to read Old Man’s War books in order?

You should read the Old Man's War series in publication order, the order of the numbered table above; the 3 related titles (short stories and novellas) sit outside that sequence. The catalogue does not record whether each Old Man’s War book also stands alone.

Where to start with Old Man’s War

Start with Old Man's War (2005), the earliest published book in the Old Man's War series.

What is the newest Old Man’s War book?

The Shattering Peace (2025) is the newest book in the Old Man's War series.

Is there a new Old Man’s War book coming?

No next Old Man’s War 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 Old Man’s War has won

Wikidata records 2 awards and 10 nominations for Old Man’s War. Each row states whether the title won or was shortlisted, and the year the award was given.

Old Man’s War at a glance

Still running
Old Man’s War is still running, with a main-line title published as recently as 2025.
Release pace
Old Man’s War books have appeared about one every 2 years on average.
Length
1,939 pages across the 6 of 10 books with a recorded length, a median of 352 pages each.
Busiest decade
Most Old Man’s War books, 7 of 10, were published in the 2000s.
Corroboration
1 of the 10 titles appear in all four independent book listings, and every one of them in at least three.

What the Old Man’s War books are about

7 of the 10 Old Man’s War books carry subject tags in Open Library's catalogue. The subjects below are the ones that recur across them, most frequent first: space warfare is tagged on 5 of 7. The subjects are cataloguers’ headings, not a plot summary.

More books by John Scalzi

The author page linked below lists every book in publication order.

Series that include Old Man’s War books

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