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Standalone Books in Order
Below you'll find the complete list of Standalone books in publication order. This is generally the recommended reading order for the series.
Reading order verified: April 2026
Quick Answer
What order should I read the Standalone series? Start with "The Naked and the Dead" (1948) and follow publication order through all 28 books.
The complete Standalone reading order is listed below in publication sequence.
Publication Order
The Naked and the Dead
1948
Barbary Shore
1952
The Deer Park
1955
The Presidential Papers
1963
Cannibals and Christians
1966
An American Dream
1966
Bull Fight: A Photographic Narrative
1967
Why Are We in Vietnam?
1968
Maidstone
1971
St. George and the Godfather
1972
Watching My Name Go By
1974
Of a Small and Modest Malignancy, Wicked and Bristling with Dots
1980
After the White Negro
1982
Ancient Evenings
1983
Tough Guys Don't Dance
1984
Harlot's Ghost
1991
The Gospel According to the Son
1997
The Castle in the Forest
2007
Advertisements for Myself
1959
Deaths for the Ladies
1962
Existential Errands
1973
The Short Fiction of Norman Mailer
1980
Pieces
1982
Essential Mailer
1982
Pontifications
1982
Pieces and Pontifications
1983
The Time Of Our Time
1998
Modest Gifts
2003
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