Affiliate Disclosure: Links on this page may earn us a commission at no extra cost to you. Read our affiliate policy
Bill Bryson Books in Order
Bill Bryson is a celebrated author, born in Des Moines, Iowa, in 1951. He has spent considerable time in England, where he settled in 1977 and began his writing career after a stint in journalism. A devoted husband and father of four, he has resided in North Yorkshire and New Hampshire, before returning to the UK. Bryson's travelogues have captivated readers worldwide, beginning with the humorous account of his mother's Chevy trip across America in <i>The Lost Continent</i>. His subsequent travel books, including the acclaimed <i>Notes From a Small Island</i>, <i>A Walk in the Woods</i>, <i>Notes From a Big Country</i>, and <i>Down Under</i>, have established him as a masterful storyteller. In addition to his travel works, Bryson has written critically acclaimed books on the English language, such as <i>Mother Tongue</i> and <i>Made in America</i>, and <i>A Short History of Nearly Everything</i>, his groundbreaking science book that has received widespread acclaim and numerous awards.
Bibliography verified: April 2026
Quick Answer
What are all of Bill Bryson's book series? Bill Bryson has written 8 book series. The most notable is the Eminent Lives series.
Complete series list with all books in reading order below.
Book Series by Bill Bryson
- #1
Muhammad: A Prophet for Our Time (By: Karen Armstrong)(1991) - #2
Ulysses S. Grant: The Unlikely Hero (By: Michael Korda)(2004) - #3
George Balanchine (By: Robert Gottlieb)(2004) - #4
Beethoven (By: Edmund Morris)(2005) - #5
Thomas Jefferson (By: Christopher Hitchens)(2005) - #6
Caravaggio (By: Francine Prose)(2005) - #7
Alexander the Great (By: Norman F. Cantor)(2005) - #8
Freud (By: Peter D. Kramer)(2006) - #9
Francis Crick (By: Matt Ridley)(2006) - #10
Alexis de Tocqueville (By: Joseph Epstein)(2006) - #11
Shakespeare(2007) - #12
Machiavelli (By: Ross King)(2007) - #13
George Washington (By: Paul Johnson)(2009)
- #1
Icons of England(2008) - #2
At Home: A Short History of Private Life(2010) - #3One Summer: America, 1927(2013)
- #1
Bryson's Dictionary of Troublesome Words(1984) - #2
The Mother Tongue(1990) - #3Made in America(1994)
- #4
Bryson's Dictionary for Writers and Editors(2008)
- #1
The English Landscape: Its Character and Diversity (With: Marina Warner,Christopher Lloyd,Jennifer Jenkins,David Bellamy,Robin Hanbury-Tenbison,Anna Parord)(2000) - #2
Myth and Landscape (By: Marina Warner,Ibrahim al-Koni,DavidParker)(2015)
- #1
The Best American Travel Writing 2000(2000) - #2
The Life and Times of the Thunderbolt Kid: A Memoir(2006) - #3Shakespeare(2007)
- #4
The Secret History of Christmas(2022) - #5In the humorous travel book Notes from a Small Island(1995)
- #6In the book A Walk in the Woods: Rediscovering America on the Appalachian Trail(1998)
- #1A Short History of Nearly Everything(2003)
- #2
A Really Short History of Nearly Everything(2004) - #3
Seeing Further(2010) - #4The Body(2019)
- #1The Best American Travel Writing 2000(2000)
- #2
The Best American Travel Writing 2011 (By: Sloane Crosley)(2011) - #3
The Best American Travel Writing 2012 (By: Jason Wilson)(2012) - #4
The Best American Travel Writing 2013 (By: Jason Wilson)(2013) - #5
The Best American Travel Writing 2014 (By: Jason Wilson)(2014) - #6
The Best American Travel Writing 2015 (By: Jason Wilson)(2015) - #7
The Best American Travel Writing 2016(2016) - #8
The Best American Travel Writing 2017 (By: Jason Wilson,Lauren Collins)(2017) - #9
The Best American Travel Writing 2018 (By: Cheryl Strayed)(2018) - #10
The Best American Travel Writing 2019 (By: Jason Wilson)(2019) - #11
The Best American Travel Writing 2020 (By: Jason Wilson)(2020) - #12
The Best American Travel Writing 2021 (By: Padma Lakshmi)(2021) - #13
Great Baseball Stories(1990) - #14Icons of England(2008)
- #15
The Astronomy Book(2012) - #16
Dear NHS(2020)
- #1
The Palace Under the Alps(1985) - #2
The Lost Continent(1989) - #3
Neither Here nor There(1992) - #4
Notes from a Small Island(1995) - #5A Walk in the Woods(1997)
- #6
I'm a Stranger Here Myself / Notes from a Big Country(1998) - #7The English Landscape: Its Character and Diversity (With: Marina Warner,Christopher Lloyd,Jennifer Jenkins,David Bellamy,Robin Hanbury-Tenbison,Anna Parord)(2000)
- #8
In a Sunburned Country / Down Under(2000) - #9
Bill Bryson's African Diary(2002) - #10The Road to Little Dribbling(2015)
- #11
The Bill Bryson BBC Radio Collection(2023)
About Bill Bryson
Bill Bryson is a celebrated author, born in Des Moines, Iowa, in 1951. He has spent considerable time in England, where he settled in 1977 and began his writing career after a stint in journalism. A devoted husband and father of four, he has resided in North Yorkshire and New Hampshire, before returning to the UK. Bryson's travelogues have captivated readers worldwide, beginning with the humorous account of his mother's Chevy trip across America in <i>The Lost Continent</i>. His subsequent travel books, including the acclaimed <i>Notes From a Small Island</i>, <i>A Walk in the Woods</i>, <i>Notes From a Big Country</i>, and <i>Down Under</i>, have established him as a masterful storyteller. In addition to his travel works, Bryson has written critically acclaimed books on the English language, such as <i>Mother Tongue</i> and <i>Made in America</i>, and <i>A Short History of Nearly Everything</i>, his groundbreaking science book that has received widespread acclaim and numerous awards.
Affiliate Disclosure
As an Amazon Associate, Reading Order Books earns from qualifying purchases. When you buy through links on our site, we may earn an affiliate commission at no additional cost to you. This helps us maintain the site and continue providing reading order guides. Read our full disclosure