Kingsley Amis Reading Order

17 books (1921–2000)

Kingsley Amis edited 17 anthologies between 1921 and 2000, creating a comprehensive collection that spans literary fiction, science fiction, poetry, and short stories. This complete series should be read in publication order, beginning with The Faber Popular Reciter and progressing through various themed collections including the Spectrum series, The Golden Age of Science Fiction, and The Penguin Book of Modern British Short Stories. The anthologies showcase Amis's eclectic editorial tastes and his influence on British literary culture across multiple genres and decades.

Start with The Faber Popular Reciter, the first of 17 books in the Anthologies series.

#	Title
1	The Faber Popular Reciter 1921Buy 🇺🇸🎧 Audible
2	Spectrum I 1961Buy 🇺🇸🎧 Audible
3	Spectrum II 1962Buy 🇺🇸🎧 Audible
4	Writing in America 1962Buy 🇺🇸🎧 Audible
5	Spectrum III 1963Buy 🇺🇸🎧 Audible
6	Five-Odd / Possible Tomorrows 1964Buy 🇺🇸🎧 Audible
7	Spectrum IV 1965Buy 🇺🇸🎧 Audible
8	The Best of British SF 2 1977Buy 🇺🇸🎧 Audible
9	Right Turn: Eight Men Who Changed Their Minds 1978Buy 🇺🇸🎧 Audible
10	The New Oxford Book of Light Verse 1978Buy 🇺🇸🎧 Audible
11	Best for Winter 1979Buy 🇺🇸🎧 Audible
12	The Golden Age of Science Fiction 1981Buy 🇺🇸🎧 Audible
13	The Penguin Book of Modern British Short Stories 1987Buy 🇺🇸🎧 Audible
14	The Amis Anthology 1988Buy 🇺🇸🎧 Audible
15	The Amis Story Anthology 1992Buy 🇺🇸🎧 Audible
16	The Little Book of Horrors: Tiny Tales of Terror 1992Buy 🇺🇸🎧 Audible
17	The Young Oxford Book of Nightmares 2000Buy 🇺🇸🎧 Audible

34 books (1968–2022)

This 33-book James Bond series spans from 1968 to 2022 and should be read in publication order. The collection begins with Kingsley Amis's Colonel Sun and includes novels by various authors, most notably John Gardner who contributed numerous entries throughout the series. The sequence appears to be complete, encompassing continuation novels and authorized works that extend the James Bond legacy well beyond Ian Fleming's original canon.

Start with Colonel Sun, the first of 33 books in the James Bond series.

#	Title
1	Colonel Sun 1968Buy 🇺🇸🎧 Audible
2	The Authorized Biography of 007(By: John George Pearson) 1973Buy 🇺🇸🎧 Audible
3	License Renewed(By: John Gardner) 1981Buy 🇺🇸🎧 Audible
4	For Special Services(By: John Gardner) 1982Buy 🇺🇸🎧 Audible
5	Icebreaker(By: John Gardner) 1983Buy 🇺🇸🎧 Audible
6	Role of Honor(By: John Gardner) 1984Buy 🇺🇸🎧 Audible
7	Nobody Lives Forever(By: John Gardner) 1986Buy 🇺🇸🎧 Audible
8	No Deals, Mr. Bond(By: John Gardner) 1987Buy 🇺🇸🎧 Audible
9	Scorpius(By: John Gardner) 1988Buy 🇺🇸🎧 Audible
10	Licence to Kill(By: John Gardner) 1989Buy 🇺🇸🎧 Audible
11	Win, Lose or Die(By: John Gardner) 1989Buy 🇺🇸🎧 Audible
12	Brokenclaw(By: John Gardner) 1990Buy 🇺🇸🎧 Audible
13	The Man from Barbarossa(By: John Gardner) 1991Buy 🇺🇸🎧 Audible
14	Death Is Forever(By: John Gardner) 1992Buy 🇺🇸🎧 Audible
15	Never Send Flowers(By: John Gardner) 1993Buy 🇺🇸🎧 Audible
16	SeaFire(By: John Gardner) 1994Buy 🇺🇸🎧 Audible
17	GoldenEye(By: John Gardner) 1995Buy 🇺🇸🎧 Audible
18	Cold Fall(By: John Gardner) 1996Buy 🇺🇸🎧 Audible
19	Tomorrow Never Dies(By: Raymond Benson) 1997Buy 🇺🇸🎧 Audible
20	Zero Minus Ten(By: Raymond Benson) 1997Buy 🇺🇸🎧 Audible
21	The Facts of Death(By: Raymond Benson) 1998Buy 🇺🇸🎧 Audible
22	High Time to Kill(By: Raymond Benson) 1999Buy 🇺🇸🎧 Audible
23	Midsummer Nights Doom(By: John Gardner) 1999
24	The World is Not Enough(By: Raymond Benson) 1999Buy 🇺🇸🎧 Audible
25	Doubleshot(By: Raymond Benson) 2000Buy 🇺🇸🎧 Audible
26	Never Dream of Dying(By: Raymond Benson) 2001Buy 🇺🇸🎧 Audible
27	Die Another Day(By: Raymond Benson) 2002Buy 🇺🇸🎧 Audible
28	The Man With the Red Tattoo(By: Raymond Benson) 2002Buy 🇺🇸🎧 Audible
29	Devil May Care(By: Sebastian Faulks) 2008Buy 🇺🇸🎧 Audible
30	Carte Blanche(By: Jeffery Deaver) 2011Buy 🇺🇸🎧 Audible
31	Solo(By: William Boyd) 2013Buy 🇺🇸🎧 Audible
32	Trigger Mortis(By: Anthony Horowitz) 2015Buy 🇺🇸🎧 Audible
33	Forever and a Day(By: Anthony Horowitz) 2018Buy 🇺🇸🎧 Audible
34	With a Mind to Kill(By: Anthony Horowitz) 2022Buy 🇺🇸🎧 Audible

4 books (1954–1968)

The Jim Dixon series comprises four literary fiction novels by Kingsley Amis, published between 1954 and 1968. The complete series should be read in publication order, beginning with Lucky Jim and continuing through That Uncertain Feeling, I Like it Here, and Lucky Jim's Politics. This finished series follows the character of Jim Dixon across his various misadventures and encounters with British society.

Start with Lucky Jim, the first of 4 books in the Jim Dixon series.

#	Title
1	Lucky Jim 1954Buy 🇺🇸🎧 Audible
2	That Uncertain Feeling 1955Buy 🇺🇸🎧 Audible
3	I Like it Here 1958Buy 🇺🇸🎧 Audible
4	Lucky Jim's Politics. 1968Buy 🇺🇸🎧 Audible

19 books (1960–2019)

Kingsley Amis's non-fiction writings span nearly six decades, from 1960 to 2019, comprising 19 complete volumes that should be read in publication order. His essays and collections cover diverse subjects including science fiction criticism, James Bond, literary figures like Jane Austen and Tennyson, drinking culture, and his own life and letters. These works showcase the renowned novelist's sharp wit and erudite observations across literary criticism, cultural commentary, and memoir.

Start with New Maps of Hell, the first of 19 books in the Non-Fiction series.

#	Title
1	New Maps of Hell 1960Buy 🇺🇸🎧 Audible
2	The James Bond Dossier 1965Buy 🇺🇸🎧 Audible
3	What Became of Jane Austen? 1970Buy 🇺🇸🎧 Audible
4	On Drink 1972Buy 🇺🇸🎧 Audible
5	Tennyson 1972Buy 🇺🇸🎧 Audible
6	Rudyard Kipling and His World 1975Buy 🇺🇸🎧 Audible
7	Harold's Years 1977Buy 🇺🇸🎧 Audible
8	An Arts Policy? 1979Buy 🇺🇸🎧 Audible
9	Everyday Drinking 1983Buy 🇺🇸🎧 Audible
10	How's Your Glass? 1984Buy 🇺🇸🎧 Audible
11	The Great British Songbook 1986Buy 🇺🇸🎧 Audible
12	The Amis Collection 1990Buy 🇺🇸🎧 Audible
13	Kingsley Amis in Life and Letters 1991Buy 🇺🇸🎧 Audible
14	Memoirs 1991Buy 🇺🇸🎧 Audible
15	You Can't Do Both 1994Buy 🇺🇸🎧 Audible
16	The King's English 1996Buy 🇺🇸🎧 Audible
17	The Letters of Kingsley Amis 2000Buy 🇺🇸🎧 Audible
18	Conversations with Kingsley Amis 2009Buy 🇺🇸🎧 Audible
19	Raising a Smile 2019Buy 🇺🇸🎧 Audible

2 books (1960–1988)

This complete two-book series by Kingsley Amis spans nearly three decades and should be read in publication order. Take a Girl Like You appeared in 1960, followed by Difficulties with Girls in 1988, reuniting the same protagonists for a later chapter in their lives. Both novels are literary fiction works that explore the relationship between Patrick Standish and Jenny Bunn across different periods of their story.

Start with Take a Girl Like You and read in order.

#	Title
1	Take a Girl Like You 1960Buy 🇺🇸🎧 Audible
2	Difficulties with Girls 1988Buy 🇺🇸🎧 Audible

9 books (1947–2011)

Kingsley Amis's Short Story Collections series spans nine volumes published between 1947 and 2011, tracing the evolution of the acclaimed author's work in short fiction and poetry across more than six decades. The series should be read in publication order, beginning with Bright November and concluding with Complete Stories, offering a comprehensive view of Amis's literary output in these forms. This complete series combines individual collections with cumulative editions, including thematic selections and retrospectives that showcase his range across literary fiction and non-fiction.

Start with Bright November, the first of 9 books in the Short Story Collections series.

#	Title
1	Bright November 1947Buy 🇺🇸🎧 Audible
2	A Frame of Mind 1953Buy 🇺🇸🎧 Audible
3	A Case of Samples 1956Buy 🇺🇸🎧 Audible
4	A Look Around the Estate 1967Buy 🇺🇸🎧 Audible
5	Collected Poems, 1944-1979 1979Buy 🇺🇸🎧 Audible
6	Collected Short Stories 1980Buy 🇺🇸🎧 Audible
7	The Pleasure of Poetry 1990Buy 🇺🇸🎧 Audible
8	Mr. Barrett's Secret and Other Stories 1993Buy 🇺🇸🎧 Audible
9	Complete Stories 2011Buy 🇺🇸🎧 Audible

4 books (1961–1965)

The Spectrum series is a four-book collection of science fiction and speculative fiction anthologies edited by Kingsley Amis and Robert Conquest, with additional editors featured in the final volume. Published between 1961 and 1965, the series presents a curated selection of short stories and imaginative works from various authors. The collection should be read in publication order, beginning with Spectrum I and concluding with Spectrum IV, which includes contributions from notable genre figures such as John Wyndham and Cordwainer Smith. This complete series offers a comprehensive snapshot of speculative fiction during the early 1960s.

Start with Spectrum I(With: Robert Conquest), the first of 4 books in the Spectrum series.

#	Title
1	Spectrum I(With: Robert Conquest) 1961Buy 🇺🇸🎧 Audible
2	Spectrum II(With: Robert Conquest) 1962Buy 🇺🇸🎧 Audible
3	Spectrum III(With: Robert Conquest) 1963Buy 🇺🇸🎧 Audible
4	Spectrum IV(With: John Wyndham,Cordwainer Smith,Robert Conquest) 1965Buy 🇺🇸🎧 Audible

21 books (1962–1995)

Kingsley Amis published 21 standalone novels between 1962 and 1995, with the series now complete. These literary fiction works should be read in publication order, beginning with My Enemy's Enemy and concluding with the final entry. The collection spans diverse settings and themes across Amis's four decades as a novelist, offering readers independent stories that showcase his evolving style and satirical wit throughout his career.

Start with My Enemy's Enemy, the first of 21 books in the Standalone Novels series.

#	Title
1	My Enemy's Enemy 1962Buy 🇺🇸🎧 Audible
2	One Fat Englishman 1963Buy 🇺🇸🎧 Audible
3	The Anti-Death League 1966Buy 🇺🇸🎧 Audible
4	The Egyptologists(With: Robert Conquest) 1966Buy 🇺🇸🎧 Audible
5	I Want It Now 1968Buy 🇺🇸🎧 Audible
6	The Green Man 1969Buy 🇺🇸🎧 Audible
7	Girl, 20 1971Buy 🇺🇸🎧 Audible
8	Dear Illusion 1972Buy 🇺🇸🎧 Audible
9	The Riverside Villas Murder 1973Buy 🇺🇸🎧 Audible
10	Ending Up 1974Buy 🇺🇸🎧 Audible
11	The Crime of the Century 1975Buy 🇺🇸🎧 Audible
12	The Alteration 1976Buy 🇺🇸🎧 Audible
13	Jake's Thing 1978Buy 🇺🇸🎧 Audible
14	The Darkwater Hall Mystery 1978Buy 🇺🇸🎧 Audible
15	Russian Hide-and-Seek 1980Buy 🇺🇸🎧 Audible
16	Stanley and the Women 1984Buy 🇺🇸🎧 Audible
17	The Old Devils 1986Buy 🇺🇸🎧 Audible
18	The Folks That Live on the Hill 1990Buy 🇺🇸🎧 Audible
19	We Are All Guilty 1991Buy 🇺🇸🎧 Audible
20	The Russian Girl 1992Buy 🇺🇸🎧 Audible
21	The Biographer's Moustache 1995Buy 🇺🇸🎧 Audible