🎯 Where Should I Start?
ⓘ About Richard Ford
Richard Ford is a literary fiction author of short fiction and novels usually about damaged and lonely people. He grew up in Jackson Mississippi and went to Michigan State University for his bachelor’s degree. Ford then went to the University of California, Irvine, and Washington University Law School after which he became a professor at several universities and colleges across the United States. During the 1980s, he got jobs working as a sportswriter though he never got to settle down in one place for very long. During this time, he got married to air force child Kristina and together they lived all over the United States. For a time, they lived in New Orleans since his wife was a director of city planning there though the hours she kept drove him crazy.
All Book Series by Richard Ford
Poems Written by a Government Prisoner in Georgia, USA
Book 6 of 7 · published 2016
The Letters of Richard Ford, 1797-1858
Latest in the series · book 4 of 4 · published 2018
Granta 40: Richard Ford: The Womanizer
Series opener · book 1 of 12 · published 1992
The Scribner Anthology of Contemporary Short Fiction
Book 6 of 12 · published 1999
A Very Southern Christmas: Holiday Stories from the South's Best Writers
Book 9 of 12 · published 2003
? Frequently Asked Questions
Who is Richard Ford?
Richard Ford is a literary fiction author of short fiction and novels usually about damaged and lonely people. He grew up in Jackson Mississippi and went to Michigan State University for his bachelor’s degree. Ford then went to the University of California, Irvine, and Washington University Law School after which he became a professor at several universities and colleges across the United States.
Which Richard Ford series should I start with?
The best place to start is the Frank Bascombe series, the earliest of Richard Ford's multi-book series: it opens with The Sportswriter (1986) and runs to 5 books across 1986–2023, ending with Be Mine (2023).
How many books has Richard Ford written?
Richard Ford has 49 books catalogued in this guide, published between 1976 and 2023. 22 of them belong to 2 named series — the largest being the Frank Bascombe series with 5 books — and 27 are standalone titles, collections or anthologies.
In what order should Richard Ford's series be read?
Read each series in publication order — the numbered entries in each series follow the year each book first appeared. Richard Ford's series do not depend on one another, so they can be started in any order; by start date they are Frank Bascombe (1986–2023, 5 books).
How are Richard Ford's books organised into series?
This guide splits Richard Ford's 49 books into 2 named series and 27 titles that stand alone or appear only in collections: Frank Bascombe (5 books, 1986–2023); Selected Shorts (17 books, 1993–2012).