What order should I read Allen Ginsberg's books in?

Publication order is a safe choice; the full list is above. Most readers start with Howl and Other Poems.

What is Allen Ginsberg's most famous book?

Howl and Other Poems (1956) is Allen Ginsberg's most widely read book.

Allen Ginsberg books in order

American poet and writer

Lived: 1926–1997
Country: United States
Books: 34

Poetry

Allen Ginsberg published 3 novels, 4 non-fiction books, 21 poetry collections and 6 other books, beginning with Howl and Other Poems (1956).

Updated September 2026

Where to start with Allen Ginsberg

Start here
Howl and Other Poems
Allen Ginsberg's most-read book.

Standalone novels in order

The Yage Letters (1963), with William S. Burroughs
192 pages
Buy
Howl (1966)
194 pages
Buy
Kerouac (1973)
416 pages
Buy

Non-fiction in order

Indian Journals; March 1962-May 1963 (1970)
210 pages
Buy
Journals (1977)
313 pages
Buy
Deliberate Prose (2000)
548 pages
Buy
The Best Minds of My Generation (2017)
496 pages
Buy

Poetry in order

Howl and Other Poems (1956)
44 pages★ 4.0 (30 ratings)
Buy
Kaddish, and Other Poems, 1958–1960 (1966)
100 pages
Buy
Wichita Vortex Sutra (1966)
Buy
Selected Poems, 1947-1995 (1968)
448 pages
Buy
Planet News, 1961-1967 (Pocket Poets) (1971)
144 pages
Buy
Iron Horse (1972)
52 pages
Buy
The Fall of America (1972)
188 pages
Buy
Allen Verbatim: Lectures on Poetry, Politics, Consciousness (1974)
269 pages
Buy
Mind Breaths (1977)
123 pages
Buy
Reality Sandwiches, 1953-1960 (Pocket Poets Series, No. 18) (1981)
104 pages
Buy
White Shroud (1984)
89 pages
Buy
Collected Poems 1947-1980 (1988)
1216 pages★ 4.4 (5 ratings)
Buy
Allen Ginsberg (1994)
51 pages
Buy
Cosmopolitan Greetings (1994)
131 pages
Buy
Death & Fame (1999)
116 pages
Buy
Spontaneous Mind (2001)
624 pages
Buy
Allen Ginsburg Collected Poems, 1947-1997 (2006)
1189 pages
Buy
The Book of Martyrdom and Artifice: First Journals and Poems (2008)
544 pages
Buy
Howl Kaddish And Other Poems (2009)
130 pages
Buy
The Essential Ginsberg (2015)
412 pages
Buy
Fall of America Journals, 1965-1971 (2020)
Buy

Other books in order

Empty Mirror (1961)
62 pages
Buy
As Ever (1977)
227 pages
Buy
Allen Ginsberg Photographs (1990)
132 pages
Buy
Family Business (2001)
448 pages
Buy
The Letters of Allen Ginsberg (2008)
468 pages
Buy
Jack Kerouac and Allen Ginsberg (2010)
500 pages
Buy

About Allen Ginsberg

Irwin Allen Ginsberg was an American poet and writer. As a student at Columbia University in the 1940s, he befriended Lucien Carr, William S. Burroughs, and Jack Kerouac, forming the core of the Beat Generation. He vigorously opposed militarism, economic materialism, and sexual repression, and he embodied various aspects of this counterculture with his views on drugs, sex, multiculturalism, hostility to bureaucracy, and openness to Eastern religions.

Biography from Wikipedia, CC BY-SA 4.0. Photo via Wikimedia Commons.

Allen Ginsberg FAQ

How many books has Allen Ginsberg written?: Allen Ginsberg published 3 novels, 4 non-fiction books, 21 poetry collections and 6 other books that we list, as of September 2026.
What order should I read Allen Ginsberg's books in?: Publication order is a safe choice; the full list is above. Most readers start with Howl and Other Poems.
What is Allen Ginsberg's last book?: Journals (1977).
What is Allen Ginsberg's most famous book?: Howl and Other Poems (1956) is Allen Ginsberg's most widely read book.