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The Spiderwick Chronicles

by Holly Black

The Spiderwick Chronicles series by Holly Black has 8 known books (8 published). It is best read in publication order, starting with The Field Guide (2003).

Books
8 known books (8 novels)
Published
8
First published
2003
Status
completed
Shelved under
Fantasy
Start here: The Field Guide (2003) — then read straight through in publication order.
Book one
Cover of The Field Guide
The Field Guide (2003)

Reading order

The date order of published books and any announced future entries — the default way to read the series.

  1. The Field Guide

    Novel
    The Field Guide is co-written by Holly Black and Tony DiTerlizzi, the book that opens The Spiderwick Chronicles series. Published in 2003 at 142 pages, it precedes The Seeing Stone, the next book in the reading order.
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  2. The Seeing Stone

    Novel
    The Seeing Stone is co-written by Holly Black and Tony DiTerlizzi, the 2nd book in The Spiderwick Chronicles series. Published in 2003, it follows The Field Guide and precedes Lucinda's Secret in the reading order.
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  3. Lucinda's Secret

    Novel
    Lucinda's Secret is co-written by Holly Black and Tony DiTerlizzi, the 3rd book in The Spiderwick Chronicles series. Published in 2003, it follows The Seeing Stone and precedes The Ironwood Tree in the reading order.
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  4. The Ironwood Tree

    Novel
    The Ironwood Tree is co-written by Holly Black and Tony DiTerlizzi, the 4th book in The Spiderwick Chronicles series. Published in 2004 at 128 pages, it follows Lucinda's Secret and precedes The Wrath of Mulgarath in the reading order.
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  5. The Wrath of Mulgarath

    Novel
    The Wrath of Mulgarath is co-written by Holly Black and Tony DiTerlizzi, the 5th book in The Spiderwick Chronicles series. Published in 2004, it follows The Ironwood Tree and precedes The Nixie's Song in the reading order.
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  6. The Nixie's Song

    Novel
    The Nixie's Song is co-written by Holly Black and Tony DiTerlizzi, the 6th book in The Spiderwick Chronicles series. Published in 2007, it follows The Wrath of Mulgarath and precedes A Giant Problem in the reading order.
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  7. A Giant Problem

    Novel
    A Giant Problem is co-written by Holly Black and Tony DiTerlizzi, the 7th book in The Spiderwick Chronicles series. Published in 2008, it follows The Nixie's Song and precedes The Wyrm King in the reading order.
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  8. The Wyrm King

    Novel
    The Wyrm King is co-written by Holly Black and Tony DiTerlizzi, the 8th book in The Spiderwick Chronicles series. Published in 2009, it follows A Giant Problem, the previous book in the reading order.
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Key facts about The Spiderwick Chronicles series

The Spiderwick Chronicles series has 8 books on our list. Since all 8 are out now, you can read the whole list today.

Start with The Field Guide, since it opens the publication order in 2003. The Seeing Stone is book 2, from 2003. Lucinda's Secret is book 3, from 2003.

The Ironwood Tree is book 4, from 2004. The Wrath of Mulgarath is book 5, from 2004. The Nixie's Song is book 6, from 2007. A Giant Problem is book 7, from 2008, while The Wyrm King is book 8, from 2009.

Each title links to its own page, while the list keeps them in date order. Each book page shows its dates and editions. Since the catalogue marks the series as complete, we list no next book.

The books came out between 2003 and 2009, while their length runs from 108 to 224 pages. That is a run of 6 years.

Holly Black has 32 books on our list. Additionally, they write The Modern Faerie Tales, The Curse Workers and Magisterium, plus 3 more series. We shelve the books under fantasy.

About The Spiderwick Chronicles

When the Grace children move into their late great-great-uncle Arthur Spiderwick's crumbling, secret-filled estate, the youngest, Jared, discovers a hidden library holding Arthur's life's work: a field guide to the real, dangerous faeries living in the woods around the house. Reading it awakens the attention of the creatures it describes -- brownies, goblins, ogres, a treacherous shapeshifting hobgoblin -- and the Grace siblings are pulled into a war to protect the guide, and themselves, from a faerie world that very much does not want to be catalogued.

Holly Black and illustrator Tony DiTerlizzi built this as a true collaboration: DiTerlizzi's detailed, gothic-storybook illustrations are as central to the reading experience as Black's text, and the five original slim volumes (originally released almost as a set) work as an accessible entry point into dangerous-faerie fiction for younger readers than Black's other work. A sequel trilogy, Beyond the Spiderwick Chronicles, continues the story with the next generation of the family confronting new, larger threats to the faerie world's balance.

For readers (or their parents) looking for the illustrated, slightly younger on-ramp to Holly Black's faerie fiction before graduating to her YA books, this is where to start.

Frequently asked questions

How many Spiderwick Chronicles books are there?

Eight total: the original five-book series (2003-2004) plus the three-book sequel, Beyond the Spiderwick Chronicles (2007-2009).

What order should I read The Spiderwick Chronicles in?

Publication order: the five original books first (they're one continuous story told in short volumes), then the Beyond the Spiderwick Chronicles trilogy.

Who wrote The Spiderwick Chronicles?

Holly Black wrote the text and Tony DiTerlizzi illustrated it -- both series are credited as a full collaboration between the two.

Is The Spiderwick Chronicles finished?

Yes, both the original series and its sequel trilogy are complete.

What age group is The Spiderwick Chronicles for?

Roughly ages 7-11, younger than Holly Black's other faerie fiction, with a strong illustrated-storybook format.

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