J. B. Priestley books in order
English writer
- Lived
- 1894–1984
- Country
- United Kingdom
- Books
- 98
- Also writes as
- Peter Goldsmith
J. B. Priestley published 22 novels, 4 novellas, 3 short story collections, 22 non-fiction books, 4 children's books, 9 plays and 34 other books, beginning with An Inspector Calls (1946).
Updated September 2026
Where to start with J. B. Priestley
Start here
An Inspector Calls
J. B. Priestley's most-read book.
Standalone novels in order
George Meredith (1926)
Benighted (1927)
The Good Companions (1929)
Angel Pavement (Aug 1930)
English Journey (1934)
They Walk in the City (1936)
Let the People Sing (1939)
Blackout in Gretley (1942)
Daylight on Saturday (1943)
Three Men in New Suits (1945)
Bright Day (1946)
Jenny Villiers. a Story of the Theatre (1947)
The Doomsday Men (1952)
The Magicians (1954)
Saturn Over the Water (1961)
The Thirty-first of June (1961)
The Shapes of Sleep (1962)
Lost Empires (1965)
It's an Old Country (1967)
The Image Men (1968)
The English (1971)
Particular Pleasures (1975)
Novellas in order
Albert Goes Through (1933)
Cornelius (1935)
The English Novel (1935)
Charles Dickens and His World (1978)
Short story collections in order
The Other Place (1953)
The Carfitt Crisis, and Two Other Stories (1975)
What a Life! (2014)
Non-fiction in order
Figures in Modern Literature (1924)
Essayists Past and Present (1925)
The English Comic Characters (1925)
Thomas Love Peacock (1927)
English Humour (1929)
Midnight on the Desert (1937)
Rain Upon Godshill (1939)
Out of the People (1941)
Russian Journey (1946)
The Beauty of Britain (1946)
Theatre Outlook (1947)
Delight (1949)
Journey Down a Rainbow (1955)
Literature and Western Man (1960)
William Hazlitt (1960)
4 English Biographies (1961)
Margin Released (1962)
Man and Time (1964)
Essays of Five Decades (1968)
The Prince of Pleasure and His Regency (1969)
The Edwardians (1970)
Victoria's Heyday (1972)
Children's books in order
The Wonderful World of the Theatre (1959)
Charles Dickens a Pictorial Biography (1961)
Snoggle (1971)
Salt Is Leaving (1983)
Plays in order
Dangerous Corner (1932)
Eden End (1934)
Time and the Conways (1934)
I Have Been Here Before (1937)
When We Are Married (1938)
Johnson Over Jordan (1939)
An Inspector Calls (1946)
Three Time-plays (1947)
ART of the DRAMATIST: AND OTHER WRITINGS on THEATRE; ED. by TOM PRIESTLY (1957)
Other books in order
Brief Diversions (1922)
Papers from Lilliput (1922)
I for One (1923)
Adam in Moonshine (1926)
Open House (1927)
Too Many People (1928)
The Balconinny and Other Essays (1929)
Faraway (1932)
Self-selected Essays (1932)
I'll Tell You Everything (1933)
Laburnum Grove (1933)
The Roundabout (1933)
Four-in-hand (1934)
Three Plays and a Preface (1935)
Mystery at Greenfingers (1937)
Britain Speaks (1940)
Postscripts (1940)
Four Plays (1944)
The Arts Under Socialism (1947)
The Rose and Crown (1947)
Plays (1948)
The Linden Tree (1948)
Home Is Tomorrow (1949)
Festival at Farbridge (1951)
The Scandalous Affair of Mr. Kettle and Mrs. Moon (1956)
The Glass Cage (1957)
Thoughts in the Wilderness (1957)
Wonder Hero (1960)
Sir Michael and Sir George (1964)
An Everyman Anthology of Excerpts Grave and Gay from Everyman's Library (1966)
Out of Town (1968)
Found, Lost, Found (1976)
My 6 Favorite Plays (1978)
Different Inside (1990)
Film and TV adaptations
- The Good Companions (1933)Film · from The Good Companions
- The Good Companions (1956)Film · from The Good Companions
- An Inspector Calls (1954)Film · from An Inspector Calls
- An Inspector Calls (2015)Film · from An Inspector Calls
- An Inspector Calls (2015)TV · from An Inspector Calls
About J. B. Priestley
John Boynton Priestley was an English novelist, playwright, screenwriter, broadcaster and social commentator.
Biography from Wikipedia, CC BY-SA 4.0. Photo via Wikimedia Commons.
J. B. Priestley FAQ
- How many books has J. B. Priestley written?
- J. B. Priestley published 22 novels, 4 novellas, 3 short story collections, 22 non-fiction books, 4 children's books, 9 plays and 34 other books that we list, as of September 2026.
- What order should I read J. B. Priestley's books in?
- Publication order is a safe choice; the full list is above. Most readers start with An Inspector Calls.
- What is J. B. Priestley's last book?
- Charles Dickens and His World (1978).
- What is J. B. Priestley's most famous book?
- An Inspector Calls (1946) is J. B. Priestley's most widely read book.
- Does J. B. Priestley write under a pen name?
- Yes: J. B. Priestley has also published as Peter Goldsmith.
- Which J. B. Priestley books have been adapted?
- 2 books have been adapted for film or TV, including The Good Companions (film, 1933) and An Inspector Calls (film, 1954).
- Can I read J. B. Priestley's books for free?
- Yes. 4 books by J. B. Priestley are in the public domain in the US and free to read online or download here.
Authors like J. B. Priestley
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Sources: book lists and dates from Wikidata and Open Library, ratings from Open Library readers, free texts from Project Gutenberg. Last updated September 2026.