- Over 50 million John Green books are available in print worldwide.
- His most popular title, The Fault in Our Stars (2012), has sold more than 23 million copies.
- Barnes & Noble accidentally shipped 1,500 copies of the title in December 2011 (prior to its release date) to customers that had pre-ordered the book.
- Due to this, many recipients pledged not to begin reading the book until its release date and not to discuss it until the day after.
- John Green promised to hand-sign every pre-order, which resulted in him signing each copy from the first printing (150,000 books).
- Between 2010 and 2019, John Green’s first novel, Looking for Alaska (2005), was the fourth-most banned, challenged, and/or removed book in the US.
- After a long period of steadily increasing sales, the title officially became a bestseller in 2012 (7 years after its initial publication).
- In 2012, Fox 2000 Pictures purchased the film option rights to The Fault in Our Stars.
- Two years later, the film was released, grossing over $307 million worldwide from a budget of $12 million.
- Paper Towns (2008) by John Green, was also adapted into a movie in 2015, grossing $85.5 million from a $12 million budget.
John Green books in order
- As of 2023, there are 16 John Green book titles.
- This includes
- 7 novels
- 6 short stories
- 1 short story collection
- 1 nonfiction title
- 1 interactive novel
- John Green has also released multiple gift books in collaboration with other authors and written several book forewords for other authors.
- Looking for Alaska was John Green’s first title, released in 2005.
- The Anthropocene Reviewed: Essays on a Human-Centered Planet was John Green’s most recent title, released in 2021.
# | Date published | Title | Type | Page count | Audiobook length |
1 | March 3, 2005 | Looking for Alaska | Novel | 221 | 6h40m |
2 | January 1, 2006** | The Approximate Cost of Loving Caroline | Short story* | N/A | N/A |
3 | September 21, 2006 | An Abundance of Katherines | Novel | 229 | 6h47m |
4 | March 1, 2007 | The Great American Morp | Short story* | N/A | N/A |
5 | October 2, 2008 | Let It Snow: Three Holiday Romances | Novel | 352 | 8h9m |
6 | October 16, 2008 | Paper Towns | Novel | 305 | 8h |
7 | January 1, 2009** | Thisisnottom | Interactive novel | 58 | N/A |
8 | August 1, 2009** | Freak the Geek | Short story* | N/A | N/A |
9 | April 6, 2010 | Will Grayson, Will Grayson | Novel | 310 | 7h51m |
10 | January 19, 2011 | Zombicorns | Short story | 72 | N/A |
11 | September 15, 2011 | Reasons | Short story* | N/A | N/A |
12 | January 10, 2012 | The Fault in Our Stars | Novel | 313 | 7h11m |
13 | August 20, 2012 | The War for Banks Island | Short story | 48 | N/A |
14 | January 1, 2014** | The Space & The Cat and the Mouse | Short story collection | N/A | N/A |
15 | October 10, 2017 | Turtles All the Way Down | Novel | 290 | 7h12m |
16 | May 18, 2021 | The Anthropocene Reviewed: Essays on a Human-Centered Planet | Nonfiction | 304 | 10h42m |
John Green YouTube projects
- John Green and his brother Hank Green started Vlogbrothers in 2007 as a video blog YouTube channel.
- As of 2023, the channel has 3.74 million subscribers and 2.1 thousand videos.
- Through the channel, they started a charitable movement in 2007 named Project for Awesome, an annual 48-hour event allowing YouTubers to create content and vote for their favorite charities.
- In total, the project has raised over $20 million through 13 annual events ($1.54 million on average per event).
- In 2023 alone, Project for Awesome raised $3.07 million to be shared between 32 different charitable organizations.
- Crash Course was also started by the two brothers in 2012 to be an educational YouTube channel.
- The previous year, it was selected to be funded as part of YouTube’s original $100 million channel initiative.
- In 2018, Crash Course received additional funding through YouTube’s Learning initiative.
- As of 2023, the channel has 14.9 million subscribers and 1.4 thousand videos.
- John Green’s popularity on YouTube has greatly contributed towards the success of his book titles.
John Green FAQ
Who is John Green?
- John Green is a widely recognized author, mainly due to his successful young adult novels.
- The popularity of his novels has been attributed to the relativity and emotional depth of his characters, in addition to creating thought-provoking storylines.
- In addition to writing, he is also a leading YouTuber due to his channels Vlogbrothers and Crash Course, which he runs alongside his brother Hank Green.
What genre does John Green write?
- Primarily, John Green writes books within the young adult fiction genre.
- His writing style resonates with both young adults and adult readers alike, by including themes such as identity, relationships and mental health.
- In particular, his bestsellers Looking for Alaska and The Fault in Our Stars have had a tremendous influence on the young adult book genre.
Why did John Green write The Fault in Our Stars?
- John Green was compelled to write The Fault in Our Stars over a period of about 10 years following his younger experiences working at a children’s hospital.
- Although he produced multiple versions of the story, he did not consider any of the versions to be serious until a close friend of his, Esther Erle, passed away due to cancer in 2010.
- Returning to the story in a state of loss, he was motivated to finish the project. The book was later dedicated to Esther.