🎯 Where Should I Start?
ⓘ About John Cheever
In 1926, John started attending Thayer Academy, a private day school, however he found the atmosphere stifling and performed poorly, and transferred to Quincy High in 1928. One year later, he won a short story contest that was sponsored by the Boston Herald and was invited back to Thayer as a “special student” on academic probation. However his grades continued being poor, and, in March of 1930, he either got expelled for smoking or (more likely) departed on his own accord when the headmaster delivered an ultimatum to him to the effect that he had to apply himself or leave. Eighteen year old Cheever wrote a sardonic account of this experience, which was called “Expelled”, and was published in The New Republic.
All Book Series by John Cheever
Some People, Places, And Things That Will Not Appear In My Next Novel
Book 4 of 16 · published 1961
The Uncollected Stories Of John Cheever, 1930 1981
Book 9 of 16 · published 1990
Listening for God Reader, Vol. 1
Series opener · book 1 of 4 · published 1994 Anthology · Flannery O'Connor,Raymond Carver,Alice Walker,Garrison Keillor,Annie Dillard,Richard Rodríguez,Patricia Hampl,Peter Hawkins,Frederick Buechner,Paula J. Carlson,Peter S. Hawkins
Listening for God, Vol. 2
Book 2 of 4 · published 1996 Anthology · Anne Tyler,John Updike,Tobias Wolff,Gail Godwin,Henry Louis Gates Jr.,Kathleen Norris,Paula J. Carlson,Peter S. Hawkins,Carol Bly,Andrew Dubus
Listening for God, Vol. 3
Book 3 of 4 · published 2000 Co-authored · Tillie Olsen,Wendell Berry,Louise Erdrich,Mary Gordon,Tess Gallagher,Reynolds Price,Oscar Hijuelos,Paula J. Carlson,Peter S. Hawkins
Listening For God, Vol. 4
Latest in the series · book 4 of 4 · published 2002 Anthology · Robert Olen Butler,Allegra Goodman,James Baldwin,Kent Haruf,SueMiller,Doris Betts,Paula J. Carlson,Peter S. Hawkins,MichaelMalone,Alice Elliot Dark
Short Story Masterpieces: 35 Classic American and British Stories from the First Half of the 20th Century
Series opener · book 1 of 17 · published 1954
First Fiction: An Anthology of the First Published Stories by Famous Writers
Book 8 of 17 · published 1994
Our Mothers' Spirits: Great Writers on the Death of Mothers and the Grief of Men
Book 9 of 17 · published 1997
? Frequently Asked Questions
Who is John Cheever?
In 1926, John started attending Thayer Academy, a private day school, however he found the atmosphere stifling and performed poorly, and transferred to Quincy High in 1928. One year later, he won a short story contest that was sponsored by the Boston Herald and was invited back to Thayer as a “special student” on academic probation. However his grades continued being poor, and, in March of 1930, he either got expelled for smoking or (more likely) departed on his own accord when the headmaster delivered an ultimatum to him to the effect that he had to apply himself or leave.
Which John Cheever series should I start with?
The best place to start is the Wapshot series, the earliest of John Cheever's multi-book series: it opens with The Wapshot Chronicle (1957) and runs to 2 books across 1957–1964, ending with The Wapshot Scandal (1964).
How many books has John Cheever written?
John Cheever has 66 books catalogued in this guide, published between 1943 and 2021. 23 of them belong to 3 named series — the largest being the Wapshot series with 2 books — and 43 are standalone titles, collections or anthologies.
In what order should John Cheever's series be read?
Read each series in publication order — the numbered entries in each series follow the year each book first appeared. John Cheever's series do not depend on one another, so they can be started in any order; by start date they are Wapshot (1957–1964, 2 books).
How are John Cheever's books organised into series?
This guide splits John Cheever's 66 books into 3 named series and 43 titles that stand alone or appear only in collections: Wapshot (2 books, 1957–1964); Selected Shorts (17 books, 1993–2012); Contemporary Literature and the Life of Faith (4 books, 1994–2002).