C. L. R. James published 1 novel, 2 short story collections, 11 non-fiction books, 1 children's book, 1 play and 2 other books, beginning with The Black Jacobins. Toussaint L'Ouverture and the San Domingo Revolution (1938).
Updated September 2026
Where to start with C. L. R. James
Start here
The Black Jacobins. Toussaint L'Ouverture and the San Domingo Revolution
C. L. R. James's most-read book.
Standalone novels in order
Minty Alley (1936)
Short story collections in order
The Future in the Present (1977)
Spheres of Existence (1980)
Non-fiction in order
World Revolution, 1917-1936 (1937)
The Black Jacobins. Toussaint L'Ouverture and the San Domingo Revolution (1938)
Mariners, Renegades, and Castaways (1953)
Modern Politics (1960)
Beyond a Boundary (1963)
A History of Negro Revolt (1969)
Nkrumah and the Ghana Revolution (1977)
Special Delivery (1995)
Marxism for Our Times (1999)
Letters from London (2003)
A New Notion: Two Works by C. L. R. James (2010)
Children's books in order
The Nobbie Stories for Children and Adults (2006)
Plays in order
Toussaint Louverture (2012)
Other books in order
A Majestic Innings (2013)
Dialectics of State Capitalism (2014)
About C. L. R. James
Cyril Lionel Robert James, who sometimes wrote under the pen-name J. R. Johnson, was a Trinidadian historian, journalist, Trotskyist activist, and Marxist writer. His works are influential in various theoretical, social, and historiographical contexts. His work is a staple of Marxism, and he figures as a pioneering and influential voice in postcolonial literature. A tireless political activist, James is the author of the 1937 work World Revolution outlining the history of the Communist International, which stirred debate in Trotskyist circles, and in 1938 he wrote on the Haitian Revolution, The Black Jacobins.
Biography from Wikipedia, CC BY-SA 4.0. Photo via Wikimedia Commons.
C. L. R. James FAQ
- How many books has C. L. R. James written?
- C. L. R. James published 1 novel, 2 short story collections, 11 non-fiction books, 1 children's book, 1 play and 2 other books that we list, as of September 2026.
- What order should I read C. L. R. James's books in?
- Publication order is a safe choice; the full list is above. Most readers start with The Black Jacobins. Toussaint L'Ouverture and the San Domingo Revolution.
- What is C. L. R. James's last book?
- Spheres of Existence (1980).
- What is C. L. R. James's most famous book?
- The Black Jacobins. Toussaint L'Ouverture and the San Domingo Revolution (1938) is C. L. R. James's most widely read book.
Authors like C. L. R. James
Sources: book lists and dates from Wikidata and Open Library, ratings from Open Library readers. Last updated September 2026.