Ringworld Books in Order
Larry Niven has written 20 Ringworld books, published between 1966 and 2015: 18 in the 3 main-line series and 2 related titles. The first book is World of Ptavvs (1966) and the newest main-line book is Fate of Worlds (2012). Publication order is the reading order below.
- Books
- 20
- Published
- 1966–2015
- Confirmed
- 20 of 20 titles
- Pages on record
- 4,047 in 13 of 20 books
- Reading time
- 67–101 hours
Reading time is an estimate, not a recorded figure: 4,047 pages at 300 words a page, read at 200–300 words a minute, covering the 13 of 20 titles with a page count on record.
Ringworld is the imaginary world at the centre of Larry Niven's Known Space stories, and the novel Ringworld (1970) gives it its name. The Ringworld Engineers (1979) follows. The wider listing gathers 20 titles from World of Ptavvs (1966) to a graphic novel adaptation in 2015, taking in Protector, Neutron Star, the Beowulf Shaeffer stories and the Fleet of the Worlds prequels. Space warfare, space colonies and life on other planets run through the sequence.
How many Ringworld books are there?
Ringworld has 20 books, released between 1966 and 2015. 18 of them belong to the 3 main-line series (Known Space, Ringworld Prequel / Fleet of the Worlds, Ringworld), and 2 related titles sit outside it: graphic novels.
Ringworld Books in Publication Order
The table lists all 20 Ringworld 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.
- 11966–3/4
- 21968–3/4
- 319681133/4
- 41969–3/4
- 519703423/4
- 619732243/4
- 719752403/4
- 819793683/4
- 91980–3/4
- 1019942883/4
- 1119953683/4
- 1219963523/4
- 1320042843/4
- 1420073043/4
- 1520084483/4
- 162009–3/4
- 1720104003/4
- 1820123163/4
- 192014–3/4
- 202015–3/4
Do you have to read Ringworld books in order?
You should read the 3 main-line series in publication order, the order of the numbered table above; the 2 related titles (graphic novels) sit outside that sequence. The catalogue does not record whether each Ringworld book also stands alone.
Where to start with Ringworld
Start with World of Ptavvs (1966), the earliest published book in the 3 main-line series.
What is the newest Ringworld book?
Fate of Worlds (2012) is the newest book in the 3 main-line series. The newest related title is Ringworld: The Graphic Novel, Part Two (2015).
Is there a new Ringworld book coming?
No next Ringworld 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 Ringworld has won
Wikidata records 5 awards and 7 nominations for Ringworld. Each row states whether the title won or was shortlisted, and the year the award was given.
- Seiun Award for Best Translated Long Work1979Wonfor Ringworld
- Nebula Award for Best Novel1971Wonfor Ringworld
- Locus Award for Best Novel1971Wonfor Ringworld
- Hugo Award for Best Novel1971Wonfor Ringworld
- Hugo Award for Best Short Story1967Wonfor Neutron Star
- Locus Award for Best Science Fiction Novel1997Shortlistedfor The Ringworld Throne
- Locus Award for Best Collection1995Shortlistedfor Crashlander
- Locus Award for Best Novella1981Shortlistedfor The Patchwork Girl
- Hugo Award for Best Novel1981Shortlistedfor The Ringworld Engineers
- Locus Award for Best Science Fiction Novel1981Shortlistedfor The Ringworld Engineers
- Locus Award for Best Science Fiction Novel1980Shortlistedfor The Ringworld Engineers
- Locus Award for Best Collection1976Shortlistedfor Tales of Known Space
Ringworld at a glance
- No recent titles
- The newest main-line Ringworld title on record is Fate of Worlds (2012), 14 years ago. Related titles have appeared since.
- Release pace
- Ringworld books have appeared about one every 3 years on average.
- Length
- 4,047 pages across the 13 of 20 books with a recorded length, a median of 316 pages each.
- Busiest decade
- Most Ringworld books, 4 of 20, were published in the 2010s.
What the Ringworld books are about
17 of the 20 Ringworld 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 15 of 17. The subjects are cataloguers’ headings, not a plot summary.
- Science fiction 15 of 17 books
- Life on other planets 4 of 17 books
- Space opera 3 of 17 books
- Space warfare 3 of 17 books
- Beowulf Shaeffer (Fictitious character) 2 of 17 books
- Short stories 2 of 17 books
- Fiction in English 2 of 17 books
More books by Larry Niven
The author page linked below lists every book in publication order.
- Larry Niven books in order 93 books