John le Carré Books in Order: George Smiley + Complete List

John le Carré books in order span the Cold War, its aftermath, the War on Terror, and the political tensions surrounding Brexit. His best-known character is George Smiley, but most of his novels are standalones that can be read without following one long series.

Jump to:

• John le Carré Books by Series
• John le Carré Standalone Books
• John le Carré Short Stories
• John le Carré Nonfiction Books
• John le Carré Anthologies
• The Circus Graphic Novels and Comics
• John le Carré Book-to-Screen Adaptations
• About John le Carré

John le Carré Books by Series

George Smiley Books

George Smiley appears as the lead, a supporting figure, or part of the frame surrounding the main story. The books build on one another, especially toward the end of the sequence, so publication order is the simplest choice for a first read.

1. Call for the Dead (1961)
2. A Murder of Quality (1962)
3. The Spy Who Came in from the Cold (1963)
4. The Looking Glass War (1965)
5. Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy (1974)
6. The Honourable Schoolboy (1977)
7. Smiley’s People (1979)
8. The Secret Pilgrim (1990)
9. A Legacy of Spies (2017)
10. Karla’s Choice by Nick Harkaway (2024)
11. The Taper Man by Nick Harkaway (2026)

John le Carré’s son, Nick Harkaway, has continued the George Smiley story with the approval of the le Carré estate beginning with Karla’s Choice published in 2024.

The Karla Trilogy Books

The Karla Trilogy, also called The Quest for Karla, is a three-book arc within the larger George Smiley series. These are not additional books. Each title also appears in the Smiley list above.

1. Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy (1974)
2. The Honourable Schoolboy (1977)
3. Smiley’s People (1979)

John le Carré Standalone Books

Most of le Carré’s novels are standalones. You can choose any title that interests you, though reading them in publication order shows how his work moved from the Cold War into newer political conflicts.

1. A Small Town in Germany (1968)
2. The Naïve and Sentimental Lover (1971)
3. The Little Drummer Girl (1983)
4. A Perfect Spy (1986)
5. The Russia House (1989)
6. The Night Manager (1993)
7. Our Game (1995)
8. The Tailor of Panama (1996)
9. Single & Single (1999)
10. The Constant Gardener (2001)
11. Absolute Friends (2003)
12. The Mission Song (2006)
13. A Most Wanted Man (2008)
14. Our Kind of Traitor (2010)
15. A Delicate Truth (2013)
16. Agent Running in the Field (2019)
17. Silverview (2021)

John le Carré Short Stories

Le Carré published four known short stories. Only one has a separate commercial edition, while the others appeared in magazines or anthologies.

1. Dare I Weep, Dare I Mourn? (1967; released separately as an ebook in 2016)
2. “What Ritual Is Being Observed Tonight?” (1968)
3. “The Writer and the Horse” (1968), published in the United States as “A Writer and a Gentleman”
4. “The King Who Never Spoke” (2009), published in Ox-Tales: Fire

John le Carré Nonfiction Books

The Pigeon Tunnel is le Carré’s memoir. A Private Spy is a posthumous collection of his letters edited by his son Tim Cornwell.

1. The Pigeon Tunnel: Stories from My Life (2016)
2. A Private Spy: The Letters of John le Carré 1945–2020, edited by Tim Cornwell (2022)

John le Carré Anthologies

These books contain original essays, stories, or other contributions from le Carré. I haven’t counted anthologies that only reprint excerpts from his published novels as separate works.

1. Granta 35: The Unbearable Peace (1991), containing the essay “The Good Soldier”
2. Sarratt and the Draper of Watford (1999), a multi-author village anthology containing le Carré’s title contribution
3. Not One More Death (2006), containing the essay “The United States Has Gone Mad”
4. Ox-Tales: Fire (2009), containing “The King Who Never Spoke”
5. A Spy Among Friends by Ben Macintyre (2014), with an afterword by John le Carré

The Circus Graphic Novels and Comics

Matt Kindt’s authorized comic series tells a modern story in the world of the Circus. Until the collected edition is available, the three issues are listed separately.

1. John le Carré’s The Circus: Losing Control #1 by Matt Kindt (2025)
2. John le Carré’s The Circus: Losing Control #2 by Matt Kindt (2026)
3. John le Carré’s The Circus: Losing Control #3 by Matt Kindt (2026)

John le Carré Book-to-Screen Adaptations

Le Carré’s novels have been adapted into films, television productions, and a documentary. The lists below cover the released screen adaptations.

Films

1. The Spy Who Came in from the Cold (1965)
2. The Deadly Affair (1967), based on Call for the Dead
3. The Looking Glass War (1970)
4. The Little Drummer Girl (1984)
5. The Russia House (1990)
6. The Tailor of Panama (2001)
7. The Constant Gardener (2005)
8. Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy (2011)
9. A Most Wanted Man (2014)
10. Our Kind of Traitor (2016)

Television Adaptations

1. Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy (1979)
2. Smiley’s People (1982)
3. A Perfect Spy (1987)
4. A Murder of Quality (1991 television film)
5. The Night Manager (2016)
6. The Little Drummer Girl (2018)
7. The Night Manager (2023 Hindi-language adaptation)
8. The Night Manager Season Two (2026)

Documentary

1. The Pigeon Tunnel (2023)

About John le Carré

John le Carré was the pen name of David John Moore Cornwell. He was born in 1931 and studied German at the University of Bern before earning a first-class degree in modern languages from Oxford.

Before becoming a full-time novelist, Cornwell worked for MI5 and MI6. He served in the British Foreign Service from 1959 to 1964, including postings in Bonn and Hamburg.

He published Call for the Dead in 1961 while still working in intelligence. The Spy Who Came in from the Cold established his international reputation, while George Smiley became one of spy fiction’s most recognizable intelligence officers.

Le Carré died in 2020. His final completed novel, Silverview, was published posthumously in 2021. His estate has continued the Circus world through Nick Harkaway’s Smiley novels and Matt Kindt’s comics.

Looking for more books in order?

If you want more thriller authors and reading-order guides like this one, start with my Thriller Books in Order index.

• Books in Order (Full Index)
• Jason Bourne Books in Order
• Daniel Silva Books in Order
• Ken Follett Books in Order