Order of Kurt Vonnegut Books

Kurt Vonnegut, Jr. (1922-2007) was an American author known for his science fiction and satire. He was also a critical leftist intellectual. He served in World War II as a soldier and was a POW who received a Purple Heart for what he called a “frostbite.” Vonnegut gave his works all letter grades – he gave Cat’s Cradle and Slaughterhouse-Five an A+, while he gave A’s to The Sirens of Titan, Mother Night, God Bless You, Mr. Rosewater and Jailbird. On the flip side, he gave Happy Birthday, Wanda June and Slapstick D’s.

Kurt Vonnegut published his first novel in 1952, which was Player Piano. Below is a list of Kurt Vonnegut’s books in order of when they were originally published:

Publication Order of Standalone Novels

Player Piano	(1952)
The Sirens of Titan	(1959)
Cat's Cradle	(1960)
Mother Night	(1961)
God Bless You, Mr. Rosewater	(1965)
Slaughterhouse-Five	(1969)
Happy Birthday, Wanda June	(1970)
Who Am I This Time? For Romeos and Juliets	(1970)
Between Time and Timbuktu	(1972)
Breakfast of Champions	(1973)
Slapstick, or Lonesome No More!	(1976)
Jailbird	(1979)
Deadeye Dick	(1982)
Galápagos	(1985)
Bluebeard	(1987)
Hocus Pocus	(1990)
Timequake	(1997)
Kurt Vonnegut on Mark Twain, Lincoln, Imperialist Wars and the Weather	(2004)
The Big Trip Up Yonder	(2009)

Publication Order of Short Story Collections

Canary in a Cat House	(1961)
2BR02B	(1962)
Welcome to the Monkey House	(1968)
Bagombo Snuff Box	(1999)
Armageddon in Retrospect	(2008)
Look at the Birdie	(2009)
While Mortals Sleep	(2011)
Sucker's Portfolio	(2012)
Complete Stories	(2017)

Publication Order of Non-Fiction Books

Wampeters, Foma and Granfalloons	(1974)
Palm Sunday	(1981)
Fates Worse Than Death	(1982)
God Bless You, Dr. Kevorkian	(1999)
Like Shaking Hands with God	(1999)
A Man Without a Country	(2005)
Letters	(2012)
We Are What We Pretend To Be	(2012)
If This Isn't Nice What Is?	(2013)
Love, Kurt: The Vonnegut Love Letters, 1941-1945	(2020)

Publication Order of Children's Books

Sun, Moon, Star

(1980)

Publication Order of Anthologies

The Best American Mystery Stories 2010	(2010)
The Big Book of Classic Horror, Fantasy & Science Fiction	(2013)
Grave Predictions	(2016)

Notes: Player Piano was also published as Utopia-14. The Last Interview is co-authored by Tom McCartan. Like Shaking Hands with God is co-authored by Lee Stringer.

If You Like Kurt Vonnegut Books, You’ll Love…

• Chuck Palahniuk
• Hunter S. Thompson
• Ernest Hemingway

3 Responses to “Order of Kurt Vonnegut Books”

1. John Lienhart: 5 months ago

   Canary in a Cat House is a short story collection, not a standalone novel.
   I just finished reading it.

   Reply

   • Graeme: 5 months ago

     Cheers John – we’ll update the listing.

     Reply

2. Rick Galliher: 2 years ago

   Years ago my library had a VHS tape of a Vonnegut movie about a black kid growing up in Germany after WWII. Fathered by an American GI and living in an orphanage . I didn’t steal it, but I was tempted too.

   Reply