Leo Tolstoy Reading Order
8 series Β· 86 books Β· Born 1955
Leo Tolstoy was a Russian aristocrat whose sweeping novels and philosophical works fundamentally shaped world literature and continue to influence readers and writers across disciplines. His vast output spans monumental historical epics, intimate psychological explorations, spiritual essays, and moral fables, all characterized by profound insights into human nature and society. Through acclaimed novels like War and Peace and Anna Karenina alongside his shorter works and philosophical treatises, Tolstoy established himself as one of literature's most towering figures, whose examination of meaning, ethics, and the human condition remains urgently relevant more than a century after his death.
Anthologies Series
Likely Complete12 books (1969β2023)
Start with War: An Anthology, the first of 12 books in the Anthologies series.
Start this series with War: An Anthology
Buy Book 1 πΊπΈπ§ Listen free on Audible| # | Title |
|---|---|
| 1 | War: An Anthology |
| 2 | Magical Realist Fiction |
| 3 | Famous and Curious Animal Stories |
| 4 | Horse & Pony Stories |
| 5 | On Suicide: Great Writers on the Ultimate Question |
| 6 | 50 Classic Novellas |
| 7 | Selected Stories by Leo Tolstoy |
| 8 | Letters to Change the World: From Pankhurst to Orwell |
| 9 | Writers: Their Lives and Works |
| 10 | Following the Call: Living the Sermon on the Mount Together |
| 11 | The Dover Anthology of Classic Christmas Stories |
| 12 | The Greatest Tales of Regency Romance |
Autobiographical Novels Series
Complete3 books (1852β1856)
Start with Childhood and read in order.
Start this series with Childhood
Buy Book 1 πΊπΈπ§ Listen free on Audible| # | Title |
|---|---|
| 1 | Childhood |
| 2 | Boyhood |
| 3 | Youth |
Leo Tolstoy Fables Series
Complete9 books (1885β2018)
Start with What Men Live by and Other Tales, the first of 9 books in the Leo Tolstoy Fables series.
Start this series with What Men Live by and Other Tales
Buy Book 1 πΊπΈπ§ Listen free on Audible| # | Title |
|---|---|
| 1 | What Men Live by and Other Tales |
| 2 | How Much Land Does a Man Need? and Other Stories |
| 3 | Ivan the Fool |
| 4 | The Candle |
| 5 | The Godson |
| 6 | The Wisdom of Children |
| 7 | Two Old Men |
| 8 | Esarhaddon, And Other Tales |
| 9 | Where Love is There God is Also |
Non-Fiction Series
Complete23 books (1391β2020)
Start with What Then Must We Do?, the first of 23 books in the Non-Fiction series.
Start this series with What Then Must We Do?
Buy Book 1 πΊπΈπ§ Listen free on Audible| # | Title |
|---|---|
| 1 | What Then Must We Do? |
| 2 | A Confession |
| 3 | The Gospel in Brief |
| 4 | What I Believe |
| 5 | On Life and Essays on Religion |
| 6 | The First Step: on vegetarianism |
| 7 | The Kingdom of God Is Within You |
| 8 | Bethink Yourselves! |
| 9 | A Calendar of Wisdom |
| 10 | Tolstoy on Shakespeare |
| 11 | A Letter to a Hindu |
| 12 | The Law of Love and the Law of Violence |
| 13 | The Slavery of Our Times |
| 14 | Guy De Maupassant |
| 15 | Why Do Men Stupefy Themselves? |
| 16 | Christianity and Patriotism |
| 17 | What Is to Be Done? and Life |
| 18 | Church and State and Other Essays |
| 19 | The Christian Teaching |
| 20 | The Four Gospels Harmonized and Translated by Leo Tolstoy |
| 21 | Religion and Morality |
| 22 | The Diaries Of Leo Tolstoy |
| 23 | What is Art? |
Short Stories/Novellas Series
Complete24 books (1853β2017)
Start with The Raid, the first of 24 books in the Short Stories/Novellas series.
Start this series with The Raid
Buy Book 1 πΊπΈπ§ Listen free on Audible| # | Title |
|---|---|
| 1 | The Raid |
| 2 | Two Hussars |
| 3 | Albert |
| 4 | Family Happiness |
| 5 | The Cossacks |
| 6 | A Prisoner in the Caucasus |
| 7 | God Sees the Truth, but Waits |
| 8 | Kholstomer |
| 9 | The Death of Ivan Ilych |
| 10 | The Kreutzer Sonata |
| 11 | Walk in the Light While There is Light |
| 12 | Master and Man |
| 13 | Father Sergius |
| 14 | The Devil |
| 15 | The Forged Coupon |
| 16 | Hadji Murat |
| 17 | Polikushka and Two Hussars |
| 18 | A Lost Opportunity |
| 19 | Divine and Human and Other Stories |
| 20 | The Long Exile and Other Stories |
| 21 | An Old Acquaintance |
| 22 | Three Questions / The Emperor's Three Questions |
| 23 | Diary of a Lunatic/Three Deaths |
| 24 | Work, Death, and Sickness |
Short Story Collections Series
Complete6 books (1855β2017)
Start with The Sebastopol Sketches, the first of 5 books in the Short Story Collections series.
Start this series with The Sebastopol Sketches
Buy Book 1 πΊπΈπ§ Listen free on Audible| # | Title |
|---|---|
| 1 | The Sebastopol Sketches |
| 2 | Twenty-three Tales |
| 3 | Short Novels |
| 4 | The Death of Ivan Ilyich and Other Stories |
| 5 | Leo Tolstoy's 20 Greatest Short Stories |
| 6 | Selected Short Stories |
Standalone Novels Series
Complete4 books (1867β2004)
Start with War and Peace, the first of 4 books in the Standalone Novels series.
Start this series with War and Peace
Buy Book 1 πΊπΈπ§ Listen free on Audible| # | Title |
|---|---|
| 1 | War and Peace |
| 2 | Anna Karenina |
| 3 | The Resurrection |
| 4 | The Decembrists |
Standalone Plays Series
Complete5 books (1886β2019)
Start with The Power of Darkness, the first of 5 books in the Standalone Plays series.
Start this series with The Power of Darkness
Buy Book 1 πΊπΈπ§ Listen free on Audible| # | Title |
|---|---|
| 1 | The Power of Darkness |
| 2 | The Light That Shines in the Darkness |
| 3 | The Man Who Was Dead and the Cause of It All |
| 4 | The Living Corpse |
| 5 | The Fruits of Enlightenment |
Frequently Asked Questions
- How many books has Leo Tolstoy written?
- Leo Tolstoy has written 86 books across 8 series. Their published works span from 1391 to 2023.
- What is the first book in each Leo Tolstoy series?
- Here are the first books in Leo Tolstoy's series: Anthologies: War: An Anthology; Autobiographical Novels: Childhood; Leo Tolstoy Fables: What Men Live by and Other Tales; Non-Fiction: What Then Must We Do?; Short Stories/Novellas: The Raid.
- What order should I read Leo Tolstoy's books?
- We recommend reading Leo Tolstoy's series in publication order. Each series can be read independently.
- Are Leo Tolstoy's series complete?
- Leo Tolstoy has 7 completed series.

