What order should I read Elizabeth Bowen's books in?

Publication order is a safe choice; the full list is above. Most readers start with The Death of the Heart.

What is Elizabeth Bowen's last book?

Pictures and Conversations (1975).

What is Elizabeth Bowen's most famous book?

The Death of the Heart (1938) is Elizabeth Bowen's most widely read book.

Does Elizabeth Bowen write under a pen name?

Yes: Elizabeth Bowen has also published as Bitha, Bitha Bowen, Dorothea Cole and Elizabeth Bowen Cameron.

Which Elizabeth Bowen books have been adapted?

1 book has been adapted for film or TV, including The Last September (film, 1999).

Elizabeth Bowen books in order

Anglo-Irish novelist and diarist

Lived: 1899–1973
Country: Ireland
Books: 26
Also writes as: Bitha, Bitha Bowen, Dorothea Cole, Elizabeth Bowen Cameron

Literary fiction

Elizabeth Bowen published 17 novels, 1 novella, 2 short story collections and 6 non-fiction books, beginning with The Last September (1929). The best-known is The Death of the Heart (1938).

Updated September 2026

Where to start with Elizabeth Bowen

Start here
The Death of the Heart
Elizabeth Bowen's most-read book.

Standalone novels in order

Encounters (1923)
191 pages
Buy
Ann Lee's (1926)
288 pages
Buy
The Hotel (1927)
208 pages
Buy
The Last September (1929)
208 pagesAdapted for film
Buy
Friends and Relations (1931)
164 pages
Buy
The House in Paris (1935)
240 pages
Buy
The Death of the Heart (1938)
363 pages
Buy
Look at All Those Roses (1941)
222 pages
Buy
Demon Lover, and Other Stories (1945)
203 pages
Buy
To the North (1945)
266 pages
Buy
The Heat of the Day (Oct 1948)
330 pages
Buy
A World of Love (1955)
160 pages
Buy
The Little Girls (1964)
240 pages
Buy
The Good Tiger (1965)
Buy
Eva Trout (1968)
272 pages
Buy
The Mulberry Tree (1986)
325 pages
Buy
Love's Civil War (2008)
489 pages
Buy

Novellas in order

Seven Winters (1942)
57 pages
Buy

Short story collections in order

Irish Stories (1978)
135 pages
Buy
The Collected Stories of Elizabeth Bowen (1980)
783 pages
Buy

Non-fiction in order

Court (1942)
459 pages
Buy
Collected Impressions (1950)
269 pages
Buy
The Shelbourne Hotel (1951)
224 pages
Buy
A Time in Rome (1960)
241 pages
Buy
Pictures and Conversations (1975)
193 pages
Buy
The Heritage of British Literature (1983)
240 pages
Buy

Film and TV adaptations

The Last September (1999)Film · from The Last September

About Elizabeth Bowen

Elizabeth Dorothea Cole Bowen was an Anglo-Irish novelist and short story writer notable for her books about "the Big House" of Irish landed Protestants as well as her fiction about life in wartime London.

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

Elizabeth Bowen FAQ

How many books has Elizabeth Bowen written?: Elizabeth Bowen published 17 novels, 1 novella, 2 short story collections and 6 non-fiction books that we list, as of September 2026.
What order should I read Elizabeth Bowen's books in?: Publication order is a safe choice; the full list is above. Most readers start with The Death of the Heart.
What is Elizabeth Bowen's last book?: Pictures and Conversations (1975).
What is Elizabeth Bowen's most famous book?: The Death of the Heart (1938) is Elizabeth Bowen's most widely read book.
Does Elizabeth Bowen write under a pen name?: Yes: Elizabeth Bowen has also published as Bitha, Bitha Bowen, Dorothea Cole and Elizabeth Bowen Cameron.
Which Elizabeth Bowen books have been adapted?: 1 book has been adapted for film or TV, including The Last September (film, 1999).