J. G. Ballard books in order
British novelist
- Lived
- 1930–2009
- Country
- United Kingdom
- Books
- 40
J. G. Ballard published 26 novels, 3 novellas, 10 short story collections and 1 non-fiction book, beginning with The Wind from Nowhere (1961). The best-known is Empire of the Sun (1984).
Updated September 2026
Where to start with J. G. Ballard
Start here
Empire of the Sun
J. G. Ballard's most-read book.
Shortest way in
The Drowned World
One of the most-read, at about 175 pages.
Standalone novels in order
The Wind from Nowhere (1961)
Billenium (1962)
The Drowned World (1962)
The Burning World (1964)
The Drought (1965)
The Crystal World (1966)
The Disaster Area (1967)
The Overloaded Man (1971)
Crash (Jun 1973)
Concrete Island (1974)
High-Rise (1975)
The Unlimited Dream Company (Oct 1979)
Hello America (Jun 1981)
The Voices of Time (1984)
Empire of the Sun (Sep 1984)
The Day of Creation (1987)
The Kindness of Women (1991)
Rushing to Paradise (1994)
A User's Guide to the Millennium (1996)
Cocaine Nights (1996)
Super-Cannes (2000)
Millenium People (2003)
Quotes (2004)
Kingdom Come (2006)
Miracles of Life (2008)
Extreme Metaphors (2012)
Novellas in order
The Atrocity Exhibition (1970)
The Venus Hunters (1984)
Running Wild (1988)
Short story collections in order
The Four-dimensional Nightmare (1963)
The Terminal Beach (1964)
Chronopolis and Other Stories (1971)
Vermilion Sands (1971)
Low-flying Aircraft, and Other Stories (1976)
The Best Short Stories of J.g. Ballard (1978)
Myths of the Near Future (1982)
The Day of Forever (1985)
Memories of the Space Age (1988)
War Fever (1990)
Non-fiction in order
Conversations (2005)
Film and TV adaptations
- Crash (1996)Film · from Crash
- High-Rise (2015)Film · from High-Rise
- Empire of the Sun (1987)Film · from Empire of the Sun
About J. G. Ballard
James Graham Ballard was an English novelist and short-story writer, satirist and essayist known for psychologically provocative works of fiction that explore the relations between human psychology, technology, sex and mass media. Ballard first became associated with New Wave science fiction for post-apocalyptic novels such as The Drowned World (1962). He later courted controversy with the short-story collection The Atrocity Exhibition (1970), which includes the 1968 story "Why I Want to Fuck Ronald Reagan", and later the novel Crash (1973), a story about car-crash fetishists.
Biography from Wikipedia, CC BY-SA 4.0.
J. G. Ballard FAQ
- How many books has J. G. Ballard written?
- J. G. Ballard published 26 novels, 3 novellas, 10 short story collections and 1 non-fiction book that we list, as of September 2026.
- What order should I read J. G. Ballard's books in?
- Publication order is a safe choice; the full list is above. Most readers start with Empire of the Sun.
- What is J. G. Ballard's last book?
- Miracles of Life (2008).
- What is J. G. Ballard's most famous book?
- Empire of the Sun (1984) is J. G. Ballard's most widely read book.
- Which J. G. Ballard books have been adapted?
- 3 books have been adapted for film or TV, including Crash (film, 1996), High-Rise (film, 2015) and Empire of the Sun (film, 1987).
Authors like J. G. Ballard
Sources: book lists and dates from Wikidata and Open Library, ratings from Open Library readers. Last updated September 2026.