Star Wars Books in Order

How many Star Wars books are there?

Star Wars has 251 books, released between 1976 and 2013. 215 of them belong to the 41 main-line series (Jedi Apprentice, New Jedi Order, Young Jedi Knights and others), and 36 related titles sit outside it: other titles.

Who wrote Star Wars?

The Star Wars books have more than one credited writer. Of the 251 titles, 32 are credited to Jude Watson, 20 to Kevin J. Anderson, 12 to Troy Denning and 11 to Rebecca Moesta. A further 39 writers are credited. 60 titles carry no credit.

Star Wars Books in Publication Order

The table lists all 251 Star Wars books in the order they were released, 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.

Star Wars Books in Chronological Order

By publication date, the books of the 41 main-line series run from Star Wars Episode IV: A New Hope (1976) to Scoundrels (2013), the sequence in the table above. No separate story order is recorded for Star Wars in the book listings this catalogue merges, so publication order is the only order on record.

What order should you read Star Wars books in?

Read them in publication order, starting with Star Wars Episode IV: A New Hope (1976), the earliest published book in the 41 main-line series. After it come Star Wars Episode VI: Return of the Jedi (1983), Heir to the Empire (1991), The Glove of Darth Vader (1992) and Dark Force Rising (1992); the numbered table above continues from there.

What is the first Star Wars book?

Star Wars Episode IV: A New Hope (1976) is the first main-line Star Wars book, and the numbered table above starts with it.

When did the first Star Wars book come out?

Star Wars Episode IV: A New Hope, the first main-line Star Wars book, was published in 1976. The newest main-line book, Scoundrels (2013), came out 37 years later.

What is the newest Star Wars book?

Scoundrels (2013) is the newest book in the 41 main-line series.

Is there a new Star Wars book coming?

No next Star Wars book is announced in the catalogue, which is a gap in the listings it merges rather than a sign that the run has ended.

Star Wars at a glance

No recent titles

The newest main-line Star Wars title on record is Scoundrels (2013), 13 years ago.

Release pace

Star Wars books have appeared more than one a year on average.

Length

59,840 pages across the 211 of 251 books with a recorded length, a median of 301 pages each.

Busiest decade

Most Star Wars books, 120 of 251, were published in the 2000s.

Attribution

Of the 251 titles, 32 are credited to Jude Watson, 20 to Kevin J. Anderson, 12 to Troy Denning and 11 to Rebecca Moesta. A further 39 writers are credited. 60 titles carry no credit.

What the Star Wars books are about

245 of the 251 Star Wars 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 184 of 245. The subjects are cataloguers’ headings, not a plot summary.

• Science fiction 184 of 245 books
• Children's fiction 82 of 245 books
• Space opera 66 of 245 books
• Science fiction, action & adventure 54 of 245 books
• Life on other planets 52 of 245 books
• Luke Skywalker (Fictitious character) 48 of 245 books
• Space warfare 38 of 245 books
• Princess Leia (Fictitious character) 35 of 245 books
• Skywalker, luke (fictitious character) 34 of 245 books
• Han Solo (Fictitious character) 30 of 245 books
• CollectionID:swROTEj 27 of 245 books

Series that include Star Wars books

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

• Star Wars Legends books in order 64 books
• Star Wars: The New Jedi Order books in order 25 books
• Jedi Apprentice books in order 20 books
• New Jedi Order books in order 17 books
• Young Jedi Knights books in order 14 books
• Galaxy Of Fear books in order 12 books
• Jedi Quest books in order 11 books
• X-Wing books in order 10 books