Edmund White books in order
American novelist and LGBT essayist
- Lived
- 1940–2025
- Country
- United States
- Books
- 33
Edmund White published 18 novels, 1 novella, 4 short story collections, 9 non-fiction books and 1 other book, beginning with A Boy's Own Story (1982).
Updated September 2026
Where to start with Edmund White
Start here
A Boy's Own Story
Edmund White's most-read book.
Standalone novels in order
The Joy of Gay Sex (1977)
Forgetting Elena (1981)
A Boy's Own Story (Sep 1982)
Caracole (1985)
The Beautiful Room Is Empty (1988)
Skinned Alive (1995)
The Farewell Symphony (1997)
Proust (1999)
The Married Man (2000)
Fanny (2003)
My Lives (2005)
Hotel De Dream (2007)
City Boy (2009)
Jack Holmes and His Friend (2012)
Our Young Man (2016)
The Unpunished Vice (2018)
A Saint from Texas (2020)
A Previous Life (2021)
Novellas in order
Nocturnes for the King of Naples (1978)
Short story collections in order
The Darker Proof (1987)
The Faber Book of Gay Short Fiction (1991)
Fresh Men (2004)
Chaos (2007)
Non-fiction in order
States of Desire (1980)
Sketches from Memory (1994)
The Burning Library (1994)
Our Paris (1995)
Loss Within Loss (2001)
Arts and Letters (2004)
The Flaneur (2005)
Sacred Monsters (2011)
Inside A Pearl (2014)
Other books in order
The Loves of My Life
About Edmund White
Edmund Valentine White III was an American novelist, memoirist, playwright, biographer and essayist. A pioneering figure in LGBTQ and especially gay literature after the Stonewall riots, he wrote with rare candor about gay identity, relationships, and sex. His work emerged as part of an increasingly solidified and visible LGBTQ community, helping to reshape public narratives at a time when coming out was still a dangerous, even radical act. His writing, noted for intimate depth and literary elegance, includes the semi-autobiographical trilogy A Boy's Own Story (1982), The Beautiful Room Is Empty (1988), and The Farewell Symphony (1997). He also co-authored The Joy of Gay Sex (1977), promoting sex-positive discourse.
Biography from Wikipedia, CC BY-SA 4.0. Photo via Wikimedia Commons.
Edmund White FAQ
- How many books has Edmund White written?
- Edmund White published 18 novels, 1 novella, 4 short story collections, 9 non-fiction books and 1 other book that we list, as of September 2026.
- What order should I read Edmund White's books in?
- Publication order is a safe choice; the full list is above. Most readers start with A Boy's Own Story.
- What is Edmund White's last book?
- A Previous Life (2021).
- What is Edmund White's most famous book?
- A Boy's Own Story (1982) is Edmund White's most widely read book.
Authors like Edmund White
Sources: book lists and dates from Wikidata and Open Library, ratings from Open Library readers. Last updated September 2026.