Rotten Ralph Books in Order
Rotten Ralph by Jack Gantos contains 21 books, published between 1975 and 2014. The first book is Rotten Ralph (1975) and the newest is Rotten Ralph's Rotten Family (2014). Publication order is the reading order below.
- Books
- 21
- Published
- 1975–2014
- Pages on record
- 438 in 11 of 21 books
- Reading time
- 7.3–11 hours
Reading time is an estimate, not a recorded figure: 438 pages at 300 words a page, read at 200–300 words a minute, covering the 11 of 21 titles with a page count on record.
Rotten Ralph is a badly behaved cat in Jack Gantos's children's books. The first book, Rotten Ralph, appeared in 1975, and Worse Than Rotten, Ralph followed in 1977. Holidays give many of the 21 books their theme, including Rotten Ralph's Rotten Christmas, Rotten Ralph's Trick or Treat and Rotten Ralph's Rotten Romance. The series ends with Rotten Ralph's Rotten Family (2014).
How many Rotten Ralph books are there?
Rotten Ralph has 21 books, released between 1975 and 2014.
Rotten Ralph Books in Publication Order
The table lists all 21 Rotten Ralph 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.
- 1Rotten Ralph1975 · 48 pages · confirmed 1/41975481/4
- 2Worse Than Rotten, Ralph1977 · 32 pages · confirmed 1/41977321/4
- 3Rotten Ralph Helps Out1980 · 47 pages · confirmed 1/41980471/4
- 4Rotten Ralph's Rotten Christmas1984 · 32 pages · confirmed 1/41984321/4
- 5Rotten Ralph's Trick or Treat1986 · 30 pages · confirmed 1/41986301/4
- 6Rotten Ralph's Show and Tell1989 · confirmed 1/41989–1/4
- 7Happy Birthday Rotten Ralph1990 · confirmed 1/41990–1/4
- 8Not So Rotten Ralph1994 · 32 pages · confirmed 1/41994321/4
- 9Rotten Ralph's Rotten Romance1997 · 30 pages · confirmed 1/41997301/4
- 10Rotten Ralph's Halloween Howl1998 · confirmed 1/41998–1/4
- 11Back to School for Rotten Ralph1998 · confirmed 1/41998–1/4
- 12Best in Show for Rotten Ralph1998 · 46 pages · confirmed 1/41998461/4
- 13The Christmas Spirit Strikes Rotten Ralph1998 · confirmed 1/41998–1/4
- 14Wedding Bells for Rotten Ralph1999 · confirmed 1/41999–1/4
- 15Rotten Ralph's Thanksgiving Wish1999 · confirmed 1/41999–1/4
- 16Practice Makes Perfect for Rotten Ralph2002 · 46 pages · confirmed 1/42002461/4
- 17Rotten Ralph Feels Rotten2004 · 47 pages · confirmed 1/42004471/4
- 18Best in Show for Rotten Ralph [With Book]2008 · confirmed 1/42008–1/4
- 19The Nine Lives of Rotten Ralph2009 · confirmed 1/42009–1/4
- 20Three Strikes for Rotten Ralph2011 · confirmed 1/42011–1/4
- 21Rotten Ralph's Rotten Family2014 · 48 pages · confirmed 1/42014481/4
Is there a chronological order for Rotten Ralph?
No separate chronological order is on record for Rotten Ralph, because none of the book listings this catalogue draws on publishes one; the publication order above is the only order given.
Do you have to read Rotten Ralph books in order?
You should read the Rotten Ralph books in publication order, the order of the numbered table above. The catalogue does not record whether each Rotten Ralph book also stands alone.
Where to start with Rotten Ralph
Start with Rotten Ralph (1975), the earliest published title.
What is the newest Rotten Ralph book?
Rotten Ralph's Rotten Family (2014) is the newest Rotten Ralph book released so far.
Is there a new Rotten Ralph book coming?
No next Rotten Ralph book is announced in the catalogue, which is a gap in the listings it merges rather than a sign that the run has ended.
Rotten Ralph at a glance
- No recent titles
- The newest Rotten Ralph title on record dates from 2014, 12 years ago. No later title is catalogued.
- Release pace
- Rotten Ralph books have appeared about one every 2 years on average.
- Length
- 438 pages across the 11 of 21 books with a recorded length, a median of 46 pages each.
- Busiest decade
- Most Rotten Ralph books, 9 of 21, were published in the 1990s.
What the Rotten Ralph books are about
16 of the 21 Rotten Ralph books carry subject tags in Open Library's catalogue. The subjects below are the ones that recur across them, most frequent first: cats is tagged on 15 of 16. The subjects are cataloguers’ headings, not a plot summary.
- Cats 15 of 16 books
- Children's fiction 14 of 16 books
- Behavior 8 of 16 books
- Conduct of life 2 of 16 books
- Parties 2 of 16 books
More books by Jack Gantos
The author page linked below lists every book in publication order.
- Jack Gantos books in order 50 books
Other series by Jack Gantos
The series linked below has its own reading-order page.
- Joey Pigza books in order 5 books