Nathaniel Hawthorne Books in Order: The Complete Reading Guide
Updated September 2026
Nathaniel Hawthorne Books in Order: The Short Answer
Nathaniel Hawthorne finished five novels in his lifetime, published three collections of short stories, and wrote several books for children between 1828 and 1863. None of them connect, so most readers should start with The Scarlet Letter (1850) or a few of his tales. Here are the Nathaniel Hawthorne books in order of first publication:
| Year | Title | Type |
|---|---|---|
| 1828 | Fanshawe | Novel (published anonymously) |
| 1837 | Twice-Told Tales (expanded 1842) | Short stories |
| 1840 | Grandfather's Chair | Children's history |
| 1846 | Mosses from an Old Manse | Short stories |
| 1850 | The Scarlet Letter | Novel |
| 1851 | The House of the Seven Gables | Novel |
| 1851 | A Wonder-Book for Girls and Boys | Children's myths |
| 1852 | The Snow-Image, and Other Twice-Told Tales | Short stories |
| 1852 | The Blithedale Romance | Novel |
| 1852 | Life of Franklin Pierce | Campaign biography |
| 1853 | Tanglewood Tales | Children's myths |
| 1860 | The Marble Faun (UK title Transformation) | Novel |
| 1863 | Our Old Home | Essays on England |
After his death in 1864, his family and editors published several unfinished romances, including Septimius Felton (1872) and Doctor Grimshawe's Secret (1882), along with his notebooks. Those are for devoted readers only.
In this guide:
- Hawthorne's Four Major Novels
- The Short Stories: Where Many Readers Should Start
- Hawthorne's Children's Books: Greek Myths and New England History
- Reading Level, Content Notes and Study Tips
- Hawthorne Movie Adaptations
- Where to Find Hawthorne Used
- Frequently Asked Questions
Hawthorne's Four Major Novels
Hawthorne called his long fiction "romances," not novels, meaning he felt free to mix realism with symbol, allegory and a touch of the supernatural. That is worth telling a student up front, because it explains why so much of his work feels like a parable.
The Scarlet Letter (1850)
In 1640s Puritan Boston, Hester Prynne is made to wear a scarlet A for adultery, while the father of her child, the town's admired young minister, keeps his secret, and her wronged husband hunts for it. It is short, intense and endlessly discussable: sin, public shame, hidden guilt, and who is actually worse off. It sold well immediately and made Hawthorne's name. Read the introductory essay, "The Custom-House," last or skip it on a first reading; it is Hawthorne's grumpy account of his job at the Salem customs office, and it stops many students before the story starts.
The House of the Seven Gables (1851)
A Salem family lives under a curse laid on their ancestor, who took land from a man he helped hang for witchcraft. It is gothic, but warmer and slower than The Scarlet Letter, with a happier ending. Hawthorne felt it came more naturally to him than The Scarlet Letter had. The real house, which belonged to his cousin, still stands in Salem.
The Blithedale Romance (1852)
Drawn from Hawthorne's own months at Brook Farm, a utopian community near Boston, this story follows a group of reformers whose idealism falls apart through vanity and romantic rivalry. It is the least read of the four, but students who have studied Transcendentalism will get a lot out of it.
The Marble Faun (1860)
Four artists in Rome, a crime, and a young man who loses his innocence. It is long and doubles as a guidebook to Rome's art, which Victorian tourists actually used it for. Save it for last.
What about Fanshawe?
Hawthorne paid to publish this college novel anonymously in 1828 and later tried to destroy every copy he could find. It is a curiosity. Skip it unless you are reading everything.
The Short Stories: Where Many Readers Should Start
Hawthorne spent more than a decade writing tales before his novels, and many readers find him at his best in them. The famous ones are short enough for one sitting and ideal for teaching symbolism.
| Story | Collected in |
|---|---|
| "The Minister's Black Veil" | Twice-Told Tales (1837) |
| "Dr. Heidegger's Experiment" | Twice-Told Tales (1837) |
| "Young Goodman Brown" | Mosses from an Old Manse (1846) |
| "The Birth-Mark" | Mosses from an Old Manse (1846) |
| "Rappaccini's Daughter" | Mosses from an Old Manse (1846) |
| "My Kinsman, Major Molineux" | The Snow-Image (1852) |
| "The Great Stone Face" | The Snow-Image (1852) |
The easiest way to get all of these is a one-volume selection of his tales rather than hunting for the original collections. A good teaching order is "Dr. Heidegger's Experiment" (short, clear, a little funny), then "The Minister's Black Veil," then "Young Goodman Brown," and only then The Scarlet Letter. By the time a student reaches Hester, they already know how Hawthorne uses a single object to carry a whole theme. Students who enjoy these dark tales usually like Hawthorne's contemporary Poe next, and our Edgar Allan Poe books in order guide shows where to begin.
Mosses from an Old Manse takes its name from the house in Concord where Hawthorne and his wife Sophia lived after their marriage, the same house Ralph Waldo Emerson's grandfather had built. The book so impressed Herman Melville that he wrote a long essay praising it, "Hawthorne and His Mosses" (1850), and dedicated Moby-Dick to Hawthorne the next year.
Hawthorne's Children's Books: Greek Myths and New England History
It surprises people that the author of The Scarlet Letter wrote some of the best-loved children's books of his century.
- A Wonder-Book for Girls and Boys (1851) — Greek myths retold by a college student for a group of children in the Berkshires, including Midas and the golden touch, Pandora's box and Perseus and Medusa.
- Tanglewood Tales (1853) — the sequel, with Theseus and the Minotaur, Jason and the Golden Fleece, and Persephone.
- Grandfather's Chair (1840) — New England history told through the people who owned one old chair. Useful for early American history units, alongside the picks in our American history books for homeschool guide.
The two myth books are wonderful read-alouds for ages 7–11, and they fit neatly into a classical homeschool year on ancient Greece. Hawthorne softens the darker parts of the myths, so they are gentler than most adult retellings. For more options at that age, see our mythology books for fifth graders.
Reading Level, Content Notes and Study Tips
The Scarlet Letter is usually taught in 10th or 11th grade American literature. The vocabulary and long sentences are the real obstacle, not the content: the adultery happens before the book begins and is never described. Expect to spend the first few chapters helping a student settle into the prose. Our American literature reading list for high school shows what usually comes before and after it.
The short stories suit strong readers from about age 13. "Young Goodman Brown" involves a witches' meeting in the forest and may unsettle a sensitive reader; "Rappaccini's Daughter" and "The Birth-Mark" are closer to early science fiction.
Some background makes everything click. Hawthorne was born in Salem on July 4, 1804. His great-great-grandfather John Hathorne was one of the judges at the Salem witch trials, and Hawthorne is generally believed to have added the "w" to his name to distance himself from that family history. Guilt passed down through generations runs through nearly everything he wrote. He died in 1864.
For discussion, three questions work with almost any Hawthorne text: What is the central symbol, and does its meaning change? Who is hiding something? Does the community make people better or worse?
Hawthorne Movie Adaptations
The Scarlet Letter has been filmed several times. The 1926 silent version with Lillian Gish is the most faithful of the older films. The 1995 version with Demi Moore is rated R and changes the ending, so it is no help for a book report. The House of the Seven Gables (1940) stars Vincent Price, who returned for the anthology film Twice-Told Tales (1963). The teen comedy Easy A (2010) riffs on The Scarlet Letter and is rated PG-13.
Where to Find Hawthorne Used
Older hardcover and school editions of Hawthorne turn up often in used stock. Check what Nathaniel Hawthorne books and copies of The Scarlet Letter are on the shelf today, browse our classic literature collection, or pick up a study guide for a literature unit. Orders over $15 ship free.
Frequently Asked Questions
How many novels did Nathaniel Hawthorne write?
Five completed novels: Fanshawe (1828), The Scarlet Letter (1850), The House of the Seven Gables (1851), The Blithedale Romance (1852) and The Marble Faun (1860). Several unfinished ones were published after his death.
What is Nathaniel Hawthorne's most famous book?
The Scarlet Letter (1850), the story of Hester Prynne in Puritan Boston. It remains one of the most assigned novels in American high schools.
Should I read The Scarlet Letter or The House of the Seven Gables first?
Begin with the shorter, more focused book, The Scarlet Letter. Read The House of the Seven Gables next if you want more of Hawthorne's Salem.
What grade reads The Scarlet Letter?
It is usually taught in 10th or 11th grade. There is nothing graphic in it, but the old-fashioned prose makes it hard going for younger readers.
Did Nathaniel Hawthorne write for children?
Yes. A Wonder-Book for Girls and Boys (1851) and Tanglewood Tales (1853) retell Greek myths for children, and Grandfather's Chair (1840) tells New England history.
Which Hawthorne short stories are most famous?
"Young Goodman Brown," "The Minister's Black Veil," "Dr. Heidegger's Experiment," "The Birth-Mark" and "Rappaccini's Daughter."
Why did Hawthorne change the spelling of his name?
He added the "w" as a young man, most likely to separate himself from his ancestor John Hathorne, a judge at the Salem witch trials.
