Ursula K. Le Guin books in order
American fantasy and science fiction author
- Lived
- 1929–2018
- Country
- United States
- Books
- 72
- Series
- 4
Ursula K. Le Guin published 34 novels, 10 novellas, 13 short story collections, 5 non-fiction books, 2 children's books, 5 poetry collections and 3 other books, beginning with Rocannon's World (1966). The 4 series include Hainish Cycle (10 books, starting with Rocannon's World), Earthsea (6 books, starting with A Wizard of Earthsea) and Catwings (4 books, starting with Catwings). The best-known is A Wizard of Earthsea (1968).
Updated September 2026
Hainish Cycle books in order (10)Series page
Reading order: 1 Rocannon's World (1966) · 2 Planet of Exile (1966) · 3 City of Illusions (1967) · 4 The Left Hand of Darkness (1969) · 5 The Dispossessed: An Ambiguous Utopia (1974) · 6 The Word for World Is Forest (1972) · 7 Five Complete Novels (1985) · 8 The Telling (2000) · 9 The Hainish Novels & Stories (2017) · Four Ways to Forgiveness (1995)
- 1.
Rocannon's World (1966)
- 2.
Planet of Exile (Oct 1966)
- 3.
City of Illusions (1967)
- 4.
The Left Hand of Darkness (Mar 1969)
- 5.
The Dispossessed: An Ambiguous Utopia (May 1974)
- 6.
The Word for World Is Forest (Mar 1972), also published as Three Hainish Novels
- 7.
Five Complete Novels (1985)
- 8.
The Telling (Sep 2000)
- 9.
The Hainish Novels & Stories (2017)
Four Ways to Forgiveness (1995)
Earthsea books in order (6)Series page
Reading order: 1 A Wizard of Earthsea (1968) · 2 The Tombs of Atuan (1971) · 3 The Farthest Shore (1972) · 4 Tehanu (1990) · 5 The Other Wind (2001) · Tales from Earthsea (2001)
- 1.
A Wizard of Earthsea (1968)
- 2.
The Tombs of Atuan (1971)
- 3.
The Farthest Shore (Sep 1972)
- 4.
Tehanu (Mar 1990)
- 5.
The Other Wind (Sep 2001)
Tales from Earthsea (May 2001)
Catwings books in order (4)Series page
Reading order: 1 Catwings (1988) · 2 Catwings Return (1989) · 3 Wonderful Alexander and the Catwings (1994) · 4 Jane on Her Own (1999)
- 1.
Catwings (Aug 1988)
- 2.
Catwings Return (Mar 1989)
- 3.
Wonderful Alexander and the Catwings (1994)
- 4.
Jane on Her Own (1999)
Annals of the Western Shore books in order (3)Series page
Reading order: 1 Gifts (2004) · 2 Voices (2006) · 3 Powers (2007)
- 1.
Gifts (2004)
- 2.
Voices (Sep 2006)
- 3.
Powers (2007)
Where to start with Ursula K. Le Guin
Start here
A Wizard of Earthsea
Ursula K. Le Guin's most-read book and the first of the 6 Earthsea books.
Highest rated
The Dispossessed: An Ambiguous Utopia
Rated 4.5 out of 5 by 37 readers.
Shortest way in
Rocannon's World
One of the most-read, at about 139 pages.
Standalone novels in order
The Lathe of Heaven (Mar 1971)
The Altered I (1976)
The Eye of the Heron (Aug 1978)
The Language of the Night (1979)
Malafrena (Oct 1979)
Edges (1980)
Interfaces (1980)
The Beginning Place (Feb 1980)
Always Coming Home (Oct 1985)
Buffalo Gals and Other Animal Presences (1987)
Searoad (1991)
Unlocking the Air and Other Stories (Dec 1996)
Steering the Craft (Apr 1998)
The Wind's Twelve Quarters and The Compass Rose (2001)
Changing Planes (2003)
Lavinia (Apr 2008)
Words Are My Matter (2016)
Novellas in order
Very Far Away from Anywhere Else (1976)
The Carrier Bag Theory of Fiction (1986)
Buffalo Gals, Won't You Come Out Tonight (1987)
Wild Oats and Fireweed (1987)
The Ones Who Walk Away from Omelas (1993)
Paradises Lost (Mar 2002)
Day Before the Revolution (2017)
The Wild Girls (2018)
Short story collections in order
The Wind's Twelve Quarters (1975)
Nebula Award Stories Eleven (1976)
Orsinian Tales (1976)
Millennial Women (1978)
The Compass Rose (1982)
A Fisherman of the Inland Sea (1994)
More Tales of the Catwings (2000)
Worlds of Exile and Illusion (2002)
The Birthday of the World (Mar 2002)
The Unreal and the Real (2016)
The Found and the Lost: The Collected Novellas of Ursula K. Le Guin (Oct 2016)
Non-fiction in order
Dancing at the Edge of the World (1989)
Lao Tzu: Tao Te Ching (1997)
The Wave in the Mind (2004)
No Time to Spare: Thinking About What Matters (Dec 2017)
Space Crone (2023)
Poetry in order
Hard Words, and Other Poems (1981)
Incredible Good Fortune (2005)
Finding My Elegy (2012)
Late in the Day (2015)
So Far So Good (2018)
Other books in order
A Very Long Way from Anywhere Else (1976)
Tales of the Catwings (1997)
Sixty Odd (1999)
Film and TV adaptations
- Earthsea (2004)TV · from A Wizard of Earthsea
- The Lathe of Heaven (1980)TV · from The Lathe of Heaven
- Earthsea (2004)TV · from The Tombs of Atuan
About Ursula K. Le Guin
Ursula Kroeber Le Guin was an American author. She is best known for her works of speculative fiction, including science fiction works set in her Hainish universe, and the Earthsea fantasy series. Her work was first published in 1959, and her literary career spanned nearly sixty years, producing more than twenty novels and more than a hundred short stories, in addition to poetry, literary criticism, translations, and children's books. Frequently described as an author of science fiction, Le Guin has also been called a "major voice in American Letters". Le Guin said that she would prefer to be known as an "American novelist".
Biography from Wikipedia, CC BY-SA 4.0. Photo via Wikimedia Commons.
Ursula K. Le Guin FAQ
- How many books has Ursula K. Le Guin written?
- Ursula K. Le Guin published 34 novels, 10 novellas, 13 short story collections, 5 non-fiction books, 2 children's books, 5 poetry collections and 3 other books that we list, as of September 2026.
- What order should I read Ursula K. Le Guin's books in?
- Read each series in its own order: start Hainish Cycle with Rocannon's World, Earthsea with A Wizard of Earthsea and Catwings with Catwings. The other books stand alone and can be read in any order.
- What is Ursula K. Le Guin's last book?
- The Wild Girls (2018).
- What is Ursula K. Le Guin's most famous book?
- A Wizard of Earthsea (1968) is Ursula K. Le Guin's most widely read book.
- Are Ursula K. Le Guin's books connected?
- 23 books belong to 4 series (Hainish Cycle, Earthsea, Catwings and Annals of the Western Shore); the other 49 books stand alone.
- Which Ursula K. Le Guin books have been adapted?
- 3 books have been adapted for film or TV, including A Wizard of Earthsea (as Earthsea, TV, 2004), The Lathe of Heaven (TV, 1980) and The Tombs of Atuan (as Earthsea, TV, 2004).
Authors like Ursula K. Le Guin
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Stephen King
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C. S. Lewis
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George R. R. Martin
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Marion Zimmer Bradley
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H. P. Lovecraft
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Sources: book lists and dates from Wikidata and Open Library, ratings from Open Library readers. Last updated September 2026.