Herbert Read books in order
English anarchist, poet, and critic of literature and art
- Lived
- 1893–1968
- Country
- United Kingdom
- Books
- 44
Herbert Read published 1 novella, 25 non-fiction books, 5 poetry collections and 13 other books, beginning with In Retreat (1925). The best-known is Education Through Art (1943).
Updated September 2026
Where to start with Herbert Read
Start here
Education Through Art
Herbert Read's most-read book.
Novellas in order
The Green Child (1935)
Non-fiction in order
Reason and Romanticism (1926)
The Sense of Glory (1929)
Wordsworth (1930)
Art Now (1933)
Art and Society (1936)
In Defence of Shelley & Other Essays (1936)
Surrealism (1936)
The Philosophy of Anarchism (Sep 1940)
To Hell with Culture, and Other Essays on Art and Society (1941)
Education Through Art (1943)
A Coat of Many Colours (1945)
Education for Peace (1949)
The Philosophy of Modern Art (1952)
Icon and Idea (1955)
Nature of Literature (1956)
The Tenth Muse (1957)
A Concise History of Modern Painting (1963)
The Contrary Experience (1963)
A Concise History of Modern Sculpture (1964)
Art Education (1964)
Henry Moore (1965)
The Origins of Form in Art (1965)
Art and Alienation (1967)
The Meaning of Art (1972)
The Thames and Hudson Dictionary of Art and Artists (1994)
Poetry in order
Phases of English Poetry (1928)
Form in Modern Poetry (1932)
Poetry and Anarchism (1938)
This Way, Delight (1956)
Collected Poems (1966)
Other books in order
In Retreat (1925)
English Prose Style (1928)
The Innocent Eye (1933)
Art and Industry (1934)
The Grass Roots of Art (1946)
Existentialism, Marxism, and Anarchism (1949)
Anarchy and Order (1954)
The Forms of Things Unknown (1960)
The Art of Sculpture (1961)
A Letter to a Young Painter (1962)
The Book of Art (1967)
Arp (1968)
The Art of Jean Arp (1968)
About Herbert Read
Sir Herbert Edward Read, was an English art historian, poet, literary critic and philosopher, best known for numerous books on art, which included influential volumes on the role of art in education. Read was co-founder of the Institute of Contemporary Arts. As well as being a prominent English anarchist, he was one of the earliest English writers to take notice of existentialism. He was co-editor with Michael Fordham and Gerhard Adler of the British edition in English of The Collected Works of C. G. Jung.
Biography from Wikipedia, CC BY-SA 4.0. Photo via Wikimedia Commons.
Herbert Read FAQ
- How many books has Herbert Read written?
- Herbert Read published 1 novella, 25 non-fiction books, 5 poetry collections and 13 other books that we list, as of September 2026.
- What order should I read Herbert Read's books in?
- Publication order is a safe choice; the full list is above. Most readers start with Education Through Art.
- What is Herbert Read's last book?
- Art and Alienation (1967).
- What is Herbert Read's most famous book?
- Education Through Art (1943) is Herbert Read's most widely read book.
Sources: book lists and dates from Wikidata and Open Library, ratings from Open Library readers. Last updated September 2026.