Winston Groom Books In Order

Publication Order of Forrest Gump Books

Publication Order of Forrest Gump Non-Fiction Books

Publication Order of Standalone Novels

Publication Order of Non-Fiction Books

Publication Order of Anthologies

Winston Groom was American nonfiction writer and a novelist born 23rd March 1943 and died September 17, 2020. He was popularly known for his novel Forrest Gump. He was born in Washington, D.C. and spent his childhood in Mobile County, Alabama where he later joined University Military School. Groom dreams were to become a lawyer just like his father was but instead chose to take writing career while working as a literary editor in college. He joined the University of Alabama where he became a member of the Army ROTC and Delta Tau Delta and graduated in 1965.

He served in the military from 1965-1969, and most of his service in the army was with the Fourth Infantry Division though he went on a tour of duty during the Vietnam War. After returning home from Vietnam, Winston worked for the Washington Star as a reporter covering the federal court system and justice department but later resigned to pursue his writing career.

Winston Groom debut novel is Better Times Than These published in 1978. The novel is about a rifle company during the Vietnam War whom patriotism and live are shattered. His second novel As Summers Die (1980) received a much better recognition than the first one. Conversations with the Enemy (1982) narrates the story of American Prisoner of War soldier who escapes after being held a prisoner in Vietnam and heads back home only to be arrested 14 years later for desertion. The novel was finalist during the 1984 Pulitzer Prize for General Non-Fiction.

Winston Groom moved back to Mobile, Alabama in 1985 where he began writing Forrest Gump which was published in 1986. The novel did not at first make him a bestseller until it was adapted into 1994 movies by the same name featuring Tom Hank as the lead character. The film aided the novel to become a bestseller which sold over 1.7 million copies globally.

The author devotes his time to writing history books regarding American wars. Kearny’s March: The Epic Creation of the American West, 1846-1847 was published in November 2011. The novel describes how the desires for the westward adventure of Brigadier Stephen W. Kearny match with the expansionists interests of the United States President James K. Polk. Set in the mid-summer of 1846, the desires for expansionism and adventures led to Texas Annexation from Mexico.

Forest Gump

This is the first novel in Forrest Gump series. The book introduces Forrest Gump a character that is handsome, herculean and a savvy hero. After becoming a star of University of Alabama football team by accidental means, he goes on to become a Vietnam war hero, a villainous wrestler, world class ping pong player and a business tycoon. In between the misadventures, he compares war scars with Lyndon Johnson, unravels the truth regarding Richard Nixon and survives all the ups and downs of remaining faithful to his only one true love Jenny, on a superficial journey through thirty years of the American cultural landscapes.

The first book is an excellent read, Gump is quite an interesting character that you will ever come across. He does not know what he wants to do in his life. He is full of wisdom despite his low IQ. According to Gump, he says that he can think things pretty well, but the problem comes in when he tries writing of saying them. His feats of strength, mathematical abilities as an autistic servant, lead Gump through many kinds of amazing adventures. This first novel was adapted into a movies version, even though the film is an excellent one, the book is a brilliant classic.

Gump and Co.

In the first installment, Forrest Gump captured the hearts of many readers as well as in the film version which also won five Academy Awards including Best Actor and Best Picture. Now in the second installment, a bit older and wiser in some unique ways, The Bubba Gump Shrimp Co. is gone, and Forrest Gump is flat broke, and we find him sweeping the floors in a New Orleans strip joint. Fortunately, a new opportunity to participate in championship football sets him back in the limelight and in money as well. However, his fate turns volatile again, and he is soon on the road selling fake encyclopedias and trying to feed his son who only needs his father more than ever. Forrest astonishing, touching and extremely comic adventure has just begun.

The sequel to Forrest Gump is an interesting read, and it is one of the rare novels where you will find the sequel a better read than the original book. It is written in Gump’s perspective, the protagonist who embarks on many more fascinating adventures.

1942: The Year That Tried Men’s Souls

From the author of A Storm in Flanders and Forrest Gump comes a riveting narrative of America’s most crucial hour. On 6th December 1942, an attack on American territory sends the unprepared country into a new era of war. Winston Groom, the famous novelist and historian writer, recreates history and tells the story and the events that led American to join the Second World War. To the Americans who lived through the war, the Second World War was what defined the 20th century, and the defining events of the world that involved almost every nation in the war were played out in 1942.

This narrative covers the allies’ consecutive defeats as the axis defeated most of North Africa, Europe, and the Far East. However, when the American joined the war by creating an offensive in the Pacific, the British overrun the Rommel Panzer division while the United States Army sends out the Germans out of North Africa. Moreover, by the end of 1942, the smell of victory was already in the air. 1942, is narrated in such a way that you will feel like a fighter in the war, you will get the chance to enter admirals strategy rooms, battle fronts and finally enter the heart of a country at war. It is an informative book about the World War II. The focus on Pearl Harbor attack that prompted the Americans to join the war and unleash offensive that saw the Allies win World War II forms an excellent foundation for the author to narrate the events of the war.