William Faulkner Books: Where to Start & Reading Order
Where to start with William Faulkner, and the correct reading order for the books that connect.
Most of William Faulkner's novels are set in the fictional Yoknapatawpha County, Mississippi, and share families, places and history. But apart from the Snopes trilogy they aren't sequels, so the real question is where to start. Some of his books are much harder going than others.
Best Places to Start
More approachable than his most experimental work.
The Major Novels
His most celebrated and most difficult books. They share characters (the Compsons, including Quentin), so read The Sound and the Fury first.
The Snopes Trilogy
Faulkner's one true series. Read in order.
Where Yoknapatawpha Began
His first Yoknapatawpha County novel, first published in cut form as Sartoris (1929); the full text appeared in 1973.
Frequently Asked Questions
What order should I read William Faulkner in?
Start with As I Lay Dying or Light in August. Then read The Sound and the Fury before Absalom, Absalom!, since they share the Compson family. Read the Snopes trilogy in order: The Hamlet, The Town, The Mansion.
Should I start Faulkner with The Sound and the Fury?
It's his most famous novel, but its first section is narrated by Benjy, a cognitively disabled man, in fractured time, which makes it a hard first Faulkner. Starting with As I Lay Dying or Light in August makes it more rewarding.
Which Faulkner books are a series?
Only the Snopes trilogy (The Hamlet, The Town, The Mansion) is a true series. The rest are connected standalones set in Yoknapatawpha County.
What is Yoknapatawpha County?
Faulkner's fictional Mississippi county, based on the area around Oxford, Mississippi, where most of his novels are set.
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