Alice Hoffman Books In Order

Publication Order of Practical Magic Books

Chronological Order of Practical Magic Books

Publication Order of Water Tales Books

Publication Order of Green Angel Books

Publication Order of Inheritance Collection Books

Publication Order of Standalone Novels

Publication Order of Short Stories/Novellas

Publication Order of Short Story Collections

Publication Order of Standalone Plays

Publication Order of Picture Books

Publication Order of Non-Fiction Books

Publication Order of The Year's Best Dark Fantasy & Horror Books

Publication Order of Anthologies

Alice Hoffman is one of the most-loved writers of the century, with over 30 titles delighting readers of all ages across the globe. Many of her books ranging from children’s books to young adults’ fiction have received numerous literary accolades and have been turned into films. Her works are well-known for depicting magical realism, irony, and uncommon romances and relationships between characters.

Early Beginnings

Hoffman was born on March 16, 1952 in New York City. Her childhood years were spent on Long Island and she graduated high school in 1969 after which she proceeded to get a bachelor’s degree from Adelphi University. Hoffman has said that the turning point in her life which made her decide to be a writer was when she picked up a copy of “The Catcher in the Rye” by J. D. Salinger from her mom’s bookshelf. After poring over the first few pages, Hoffman was enthralled with the way the book spoke to her as the reader and from that moment, she knew what she wanted to do in her life.

From 1973-1974, she studied for an MA degree in Creative Writing from Stanford University through a Mirrellees Fellowship. Her mentor and professor, the writer Albert J. Guerard, was instrumental in helping her develop a writing career. According to Hoffman, he effectively ingrained in his students the mentality that writers write unceasingly when he assigned them to write 50 pages a week for their first homework. True enough, Guerard and his wife Maclin Bocock Guerard (also a writer) helped Hoffman publish her first short story in a magazine called “Fiction”. Ted Solotaroff, the magazine editor at that time, asked her if she had a novel. This prompted her to start writing what would be her first book, “Property Of”, at the age of 21. Eventually, a section of this novel was published in Solotaroff’s own magazine, “American Review”. All of this happened while Hoffman was still studying at Stanford.

Her first job was for the American publishing company Doubleday, which later published 2 of her own works.

Published Works

Ever since her beginner’s success, Alice Hoffman proceeded to write 24 novels, 3 books on short fiction stories, and 8 books for children and young adults. Her prose has captivated millions of readers around the world. She has stated that some of her inspirations and favorite writers are Emily Bronte and Ray Bradbury.

In her novel “Here on Earth”, Hoffman gave a nod to Bronte by incorporating her own twist to many of the themes introduced in “Wuthering Heights”. This novel went on to be chosen as an Oprah Book Club Selection. Another novel, “At Risk”, is also a staple in many schools’ reading lists from middle-school to university libraries. It tells the story of a family who has to deal with AIDS. Some of Hoffman’s recent works such as “The Ice Queen”, “Blue Diary”, “The River King”, and “The Probable Future”, have topped the New York Times’ bestselling lists. Her teen novel about hidden Jews during the Spanish Inquisition entitled “Incantation” was also published by Little Brown in 2007 and was then named as one of the best books of the year by Publishers Weekly. Little Brown has also published another of her novels, “The Foretelling”, about a young Amazon who lived in the Bronze Age.

Hoffman’s stories have been translated to over 20 languages and have been published in around a hundred countries in different editions. Her books have been granted awards by distinguished institutions such as The New York Times, Entertainment Weekly, The Library Journal, People Magazine, and The Los Angeles Times. Her short written works, both fiction and non-fiction, have also been published in many magazines and journals like the Kenyan Review, Harvard Review, The Boston Globe Magazine, Architectural Digest, and Ploughshares, to name a few.

Her novel entitled “The Dovekeepers”, about the survivors of Masada, has been hailed by critics and audiences as her masterpiece. It has been dubbed as “a major contribution to 21st century literature” by Toni Morrison, another prolific author who is also one of Hoffman’s favorite writers.

Works in Films

In 1983, Hoffman wrote the screenplay for the film “Independence Day” which starred Kathleen Quinlan and Dianne West. The film’s tagline is “A small town is a hard place to have a big dream”. The story is about an amateur photographer, Mary Ann Taylor, who initially believes that she must go to the city to have a chance at pursuing her dreams. When a man named Jack Parker returns to their hometown, he tells her that it is as hard to find success and happiness in the city as it is in their town. The two start to have a budding romance, but their unfolding bliss is cut short when they discover that Jack’s sister Nancy is being physically abused by her husband. In the end, Nancy finds the courage and inner strength to take matters into her own hands. In this film, Hoffman also demonstrated her talent in projecting complex human emotions through writing for the cinema.

Her 1996 novel, “Practical Magic”, was turned into a movie starring Sandra Bullock and Nicole Kidman. The book is about the 2 Owens sisters Gillian and Sally who have been raised unconventionally by a family of witches. For centuries, bad happenings in the village had been blamed on their family. This led to them both being treated as outsiders by the rest of the villagers. Nothing stops the sisters though from trying to escape from their bonds, even though along the way they face hard challenges and must eventually find comfort in each other.

Another Hoffman novel, “Aquamarine” (2001), was also turned into a film in 2006 with Emma Roberts, Sara Paxton and Jojo cast into the lead roles. This timeless pre-teen’s classic about a spoiled mermaid who eventually befriends two girls has become a beloved story in young teens’ literature. The movie has some considerable differences from the novel however, but these have not detracted audiences from delighting in the emotions that Hoffman is able to masterfully weave into her tales.

Hoffman was diagnosed with breast cancer after which she underwent treatment at the Mount Auburn Hospital in Cambridge. After her experience, she instituted the hospitals’ Hoffman Breast Center. Her earnings from a collection of short stories she wrote, “Local Girls”, were used to help realize the construction of the center.

Alice Hoffman currently resides in Boston where she continues to write. She confesses that she also loves to read science fiction books in her spare time.