Reading order · 5 books · 1958 to 1987 · Set in space
Future History Books in Order
The Future History follows humanity’s expansion into space over thousands of years. Its hero, Lazarus Long, born Woodrow Wilson Smith in 1912, lives for more than two thousand years thanks to selective breeding and medicine.
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Series facts
- Books
- 5
- Published
- 1958 to 1987
- First book
- Methuselah's Children
- Latest
- To Sail Beyond the Sunset (1987)
- Setting
- Set in space
The reading order
Every Future History book in publication order. Choose a title for its cast and summary.
5 books · Set in space
- 1Methuselah's Children1958With Lazarus LongThe Howard Families have been bred for long life, and when their secret is revealed, a jealous Earth turns against them.Buy on Amazon
- 2Time Enough for Love1973With Lazarus LongLazarus Long, more than two thousand years old and tired of living, is persuaded to tell the stories of his long life.Buy on Amazon
- 3The Number of the Beast1980Four people escape an assassination attempt in a car that can travel between universes, and visit many worlds, some of them from fiction.Buy on Amazon
- 4The Cat Who Walks Through Walls1985Colonel Colin Campbell, a writer living on a space habitat, is approached by a stranger who asks him to kill someone, moments before the stranger is shot dead at the table.Buy on Amazon
- 5To Sail Beyond the Sunset1987With Maureen JohnsonMaureen Johnson, the mother of Lazarus Long, tells her own life story, from a Missouri childhood in the 1880s onwards.Buy on Amazon
Do you need to read them in order?
Read Methuselah’s Children first, then Time Enough for Love. The later books bring together many of Heinlein’s characters.
Who appears in which book
The series’ main characters, book by book. Lead means the book is told around them; minor covers cameos.
| Book | Lazarus Long | Maureen Johnson |
|---|---|---|
| 1 Methuselah's Children | LLead | |
| 2 Time Enough for Love | LLead | ·Minor |
| 3 The Number of the Beast | ·Minor | |
| 4 The Cat Who Walks Through Walls | MMajor | |
| 5 To Sail Beyond the Sunset | MMajor | LLead |
Characters in the Future History books
3 characters from Robert A. Heinlein’s chart, with the number of Future History books each appears in.
| Character | Books | First in this series |
|---|---|---|
| Lazarus LongWoodrow Wilson Smith, oldest living human | 5 | Methuselah's Children 1958 |
| Maureen JohnsonLazarus's mother | 2 | Time Enough for Love 1973 |
| Jubal HarshawLawyer, doctor and writer | 1 | The Number of the Beast 1980 |