Alice McDermott Reading Order
4 series · 17 books · Born 1953-06-27
Alice McDermott is an American novelist and essayist known for exploring intimate family dynamics and the interior lives of ordinary people with lyrical precision. Her body of work, spanning from 1982 to 2023, includes standalone novels alongside contributions to various anthologies and collections that showcase her distinctive voice and thematic depth. McDermott's seventeen books demonstrate her sustained engagement with character-driven narratives that examine how personal history shapes identity and belonging.
Anthologies Series
Complete3 books (1993–2019)
Start with Mondo Barbie and read in order.
Start this series with Mondo Barbie
Buy Book 1 🇺🇸🎧 Listen free on Audible| # | Title |
|---|---|
| 1 |  Mondo Barbie |
| 2 | Secret Ingredients |
| 3 | Why I Like This Story |
Collections Series
Complete1 book (2021–2021)
| # | Title |
|---|---|
| 1 |  What About the Baby? |
Mondo Series
Complete4 books (1993–1996)
Start with Mondo Barbie(With: John Varley,Lynne Barrett,Julia Alvarez,Philip Levine,A.M. Homes,David Trinidad,Sandra Cisneros,Marge Piercy,Gary Soto,Roberta Allen,Hilary Tham,Lyn Lifshin,Rebecca Brown,Denise Duhamel,Lucinda Ebersole,Richard Peabody,Jeanne Beaumont,Lynne McMahon,Kathryn Harrison,Patricia Storace,Richard Grayson,Leslie Shiel,Laura Costas,Sharon Henry,Cookie Lupton,Lisa B. Herskovits,Belinda Subraman,Ellie Schoenfeld,Sparrow .,Gregg Shapiro,Cathryn Hankla,Wayne E. Kline,Jose Padua,Jeff Weddle), the first of 4 books in the Mondo series.
Start this series with Mondo Barbie(With: John Varley,Lynne Barrett,Julia Alvarez,Philip Levine,A.M. Homes,David Trinidad,Sandra Cisneros,Marge Piercy,Gary Soto,Roberta Allen,Hilary Tham,Lyn Lifshin,Rebecca Brown,Denise Duhamel,Lucinda Ebersole,Richard Peabody,Jeanne Beaumont,Lynne McMahon,Kathryn Harrison,Patricia Storace,Richard Grayson,Leslie Shiel,Laura Costas,Sharon Henry,Cookie Lupton,Lisa B. Herskovits,Belinda Subraman,Ellie Schoenfeld,Sparrow .,Gregg Shapiro,Cathryn Hankla,Wayne E. Kline,Jose Padua,Jeff Weddle)
Buy Book 1 🇺🇸🎧 Listen free on Audible| # | Title |
|---|---|
| 1 | Mondo Barbie(With: John Varley,Lynne Barrett,Julia Alvarez,Philip Levine,A.M. Homes,David Trinidad,Sandra Cisneros,Marge Piercy,Gary Soto,Roberta Allen,Hilary Tham,Lyn Lifshin,Rebecca Brown,Denise Duhamel,Lucinda Ebersole,Richard Peabody,Jeanne Beaumont,Lynne McMahon,Kathryn Harrison,Patricia Storace,Richard Grayson,Leslie Shiel,Laura Costas,Sharon Henry,Cookie Lupton,Lisa B. Herskovits,Belinda Subraman,Ellie Schoenfeld,Sparrow .,Gregg Shapiro,Cathryn Hankla,Wayne E. Kline,Jose Padua,Jeff Weddle) |
| 2 |  Mondo Elvis(By: Howard Waldrop,Cornelius Eady,Mark Childress,Susie Mee,Nick Cave,Mark Winegardner,Rafael Alvarez,Greil Marcus,Pagan Kennedy,Lucinda Ebersole,Richard Peabody,Lynne McMahon,Cathryn Hankla,Samuel Charters,Rachel Salazar,Eleanor Earle Crockett,Diane Wakoski,Judy Vernon,David Wojahn,William McCranor Henderson,Janice Eidus,Elizabeth Ash Vélez,Laura Kalpakian,Eri Makino,Ai,Michael Wilkerson,Brian Gilmore) |
| 3 |  Mondo Marilyn(By: J.G. Ballard,Michael Hemmingson,Clive Barker,Doris Grumbach,Beth Meacham,Lynne Tillman,Charles Bukowski,David Trinidad,Tom Whalen,Sharon Olds,Leslie Pietrzyk,Lyn Lifshin,Nanci Griffith,Robert Peters,Lucinda Ebersole,Richard Peabody,Jeanne Beaumont,Gregg Shapiro,Judy Grahn,Sam Toperoff,Julia P. Dubner,Bill Morris,John Rechy,L.A. Lantz,Phyllis Burke,Hillary Johnson,Rita Valencia,Michael Lally,Eleanor E. Crocket,Taylor Mead,Susan Compo,Rosanne Daryl Thomas) |
| 4 |  Mondo James Dean(By: Lewis Shiner,Jack C. Haldeman II,Bentley Little,Michael Hemmingson,Chuck Taylor,Michael Martone,Louisa Ermelino,Terence Winch,Lucinda Ebersole,Richard Peabody,Sparrow .,Janice Eidus,Ai,Tino Villanueva,Edwin Corley,Robert Ready,Reuben Jackson,Stephanie Hart,D.E. Steward,David Plumb,Ed Graczyk,Hilary Howard,James Finney Boylan,Miranda Schwartz) |
Standalone Novels Series
Likely Complete9 books (1982–2023)
Start with A Bigamist's Daughter, the first of 9 books in the Standalone Novels series.
Start this series with A Bigamist's Daughter
Buy Book 1 🇺🇸🎧 Listen free on Audible| # | Title |
|---|---|
| 1 |  A Bigamist's Daughter |
| 2 | That Night |
| 3 |  At Weddings and Wakes |
| 4 |  Charming Billy |
| 5 |  Child Of My Heart |
| 6 |  After This |
| 7 |  Someone |
| 8 |  The Ninth Hour |
| 9 | Absolution |
Frequently Asked Questions
- How many books has Alice McDermott written?
- Alice McDermott has written 17 books across 4 series. Their published works span from 1982 to 2023.
- What is the first book in each Alice McDermott series?
- Here are the first books in Alice McDermott's series: Anthologies: Mondo Barbie; Mondo: Mondo Barbie(With: John Varley,Lynne Barrett,Julia Alvarez,Philip Levine,A.M. Homes,David Trinidad,Sandra Cisneros,Marge Piercy,Gary Soto,Roberta Allen,Hilary Tham,Lyn Lifshin,Rebecca Brown,Denise Duhamel,Lucinda Ebersole,Richard Peabody,Jeanne Beaumont,Lynne McMahon,Kathryn Harrison,Patricia Storace,Richard Grayson,Leslie Shiel,Laura Costas,Sharon Henry,Cookie Lupton,Lisa B. Herskovits,Belinda Subraman,Ellie Schoenfeld,Sparrow .,Gregg Shapiro,Cathryn Hankla,Wayne E. Kline,Jose Padua,Jeff Weddle).
- What order should I read Alice McDermott's books?
- We recommend reading Alice McDermott's series in publication order. Each series can be read independently.
- Are Alice McDermott's series complete?
- Alice McDermott has 3 completed series.