Kenzaburō Ōe books in order
Japanese writer and Nobel Laureate
- Lived
- 1935–2023
- Country
- Japan
- Books
- 24
Kenzaburō Ōe published 20 novels, 2 short story collections, 1 non-fiction book and 1 other book, beginning with A Personal Matter (1964).
Updated September 2026
Where to start with Kenzaburō Ōe
Start here
A Personal Matter
Kenzaburō Ōe's most-read book.
Standalone novels in order
Nip the Buds, Shoot the Kids (Jun 1958)
A Personal Matter (1964)
The Silent Cry (1967)
The Flood Invades My Spirit (1973)
The Pinch Runner Memorandum (1976)
Teach Us to Outgrow Our Madness (1978)
Dōjidai Gemu (1979)
The Catch and Other War Stories (1981)
M/T and the Narrative About the Marvels of the Forest (1986)
Letters for Nostalgic Years (Oct 1987)
For the New Literature (Jan 1988)
The Tower of Treatment (May 1990)
An Echo of Heaven (1996)
A Quiet Life (Oe, Kenzaburo) (1997)
Somersault (1999)
The Changeling (2000)
Rouse Up O Young Men of the New Age! (2002)
Seventeen and J (2002)
The Beautiful Annabel Lee Was Chilled and Killed (2007)
Death by Water (2015)
Short story collections in order
Fire from the Ashes (1985)
The Crazy Iris and Other Stories of the Atomic Aftermath (1985)
Non-fiction in order
Hiroshima Notes (1965)
Other books in order
Japan, the Ambiguous, and Myself (1995)
About Kenzaburō Ōe
Kenzaburō Ōe was a Japanese writer and a major figure in contemporary Japanese literature. His novels, short stories and essays, strongly influenced by French and American literature and literary theory, deal with political, social and philosophical issues, including nuclear weapons, nuclear power, social non-conformism, and existentialism. Ōe was awarded the 1994 Nobel Prize in Literature for creating "an imagined world, where life and myth condense to form a disconcerting picture of the human predicament today".
Biography from Wikipedia, CC BY-SA 4.0. Photo via Wikimedia Commons.
Kenzaburō Ōe FAQ
- How many books has Kenzaburō Ōe written?
- Kenzaburō Ōe published 20 novels, 2 short story collections, 1 non-fiction book and 1 other book that we list, as of September 2026.
- What order should I read Kenzaburō Ōe's books in?
- Publication order is a safe choice; the full list is above. Most readers start with A Personal Matter.
- What is Kenzaburō Ōe's last book?
- Death by Water (2015).
- What is Kenzaburō Ōe's most famous book?
- A Personal Matter (1964) is Kenzaburō Ōe's most widely read book.
Authors like Kenzaburō Ōe
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V. S. Naipaul
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Jorge Luis Borges
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Gore Vidal
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Françoise Sagan
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Aldous Huxley
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Sources: book lists and dates from Wikidata and Open Library, ratings from Open Library readers. Last updated September 2026.