What order should I read Louis-Ferdinand Céline's books in?

Publication order is a safe choice; the full list is above. Most readers start with Journey to the End of the Night.

What is Louis-Ferdinand Céline's most famous book?

Journey to the End of the Night (1932) is Louis-Ferdinand Céline's most widely read book.

Louis-Ferdinand Céline books in order

French writer

Lived: 1894–1961
Country: France
Books: 20

Essays

Louis-Ferdinand Céline published 16 novels, 2 novellas, 1 non-fiction book and 1 play, beginning with Journey to the End of the Night (1932).

Updated September 2026

Where to start with Louis-Ferdinand Céline

Start here
Journey to the End of the Night
Louis-Ferdinand Céline's most-read book.

Standalone novels in order

Journey to the End of the Night (1932)
509 pages★ 4.1 (21 ratings)
Buy
Death on Credit (1936)
Buy
Death on the Instalment Plan (1936)
592 pages
Buy
Mea Culpa (1936)
Buy
Bagatelles Pour Un Massacre (1937)
379 pages
Buy
Trifles for a Massacre (Dec 1937)
Buy
École Des Cadavres (1938)
305 pages
Buy
Guignol's Band (1944)
320 pages
Buy
Fable for Another Time (Jun 1952)
280 pages
Buy
Normance (Jun 1954)
462 pages
Buy
Conversations with Professor Y (1955)
153 pages
Buy
Castle to Castle (1957)
359 pages
Buy
Ballets Without Music, Without Dancers, Without Anything (1959)
196 pages
Buy
North (1960)
454 pages
Buy
London Bridge: Guignol's Band II (Mar 1964)
Buy
Rigadoon (1969)
307 pages
Buy

Novellas in order

Cannon-Fodder (1949)
84 pages
Buy
Semmelweis (1818-1865) (1952)
127 pages
Buy

Non-fiction in order

Beaux Draps (1941)
222 pages
Buy

Plays in order

The Church (1933)
263 pages
Buy

About Louis-Ferdinand Céline

Louis Ferdinand Auguste Destouches, better known by the pen name Louis-Ferdinand Céline, was a French novelist, polemicist, and physician. His first novel Journey to the End of the Night (1932) won the Prix Renaudot but divided critics due to the author's pessimistic depiction of the human condition and his writing style based on working-class speech. In subsequent novels such as Death on the Installment Plan (1936), Guignol's Band (1944) and Castle to Castle (1957), Céline further developed an innovative and distinctive literary style. Maurice Nadeau wrote: "What Joyce did for the English language...what the surrealists attempted to do for the French language, Céline achieved effortlessly and on a vast scale."

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

Louis-Ferdinand Céline FAQ

How many books has Louis-Ferdinand Céline written?: Louis-Ferdinand Céline published 16 novels, 2 novellas, 1 non-fiction book and 1 play that we list, as of September 2026.
What order should I read Louis-Ferdinand Céline's books in?: Publication order is a safe choice; the full list is above. Most readers start with Journey to the End of the Night.
What is Louis-Ferdinand Céline's last book?: North (1960).
What is Louis-Ferdinand Céline's most famous book?: Journey to the End of the Night (1932) is Louis-Ferdinand Céline's most widely read book.