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Jack London

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Books Written by Jack London

London was among the first American writers to treat undercover immersion as a serious journalistic method, living for weeks in the slums of London’s East End in 1902 — sleeping in workhouses, queuing for shelter beds — to write The People of the Abyss, decades before George Orwell would cover similar ground in Down and Out in Paris and London. He said late in life that of all his books, The People of the Abyss was closest to his heart, though he’s best remembered today for his wilderness fiction, drawn from his own time in the Klondike Gold Rush.

The People of the Abyss is the essential read for understanding London as a precursor to the entire tradition of immersive journalism, while The Call of the Wild remains his most widely read and famous work overall.

By Lisanne Swart · 5 books · Adventure Fiction & Immersive Journalism · Updated August 2026

Quick answer

Jack London is best known for the novels The Call of the Wild (1903) and White Fang (1906), along with his undercover journalism The People of the Abyss (1903) and the novels Martin Eden (1909) and John Barleycorn (1913). The People of the Abyss is essential for readers interested in his immersive method specifically.

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01
Immersive JournalismStart here

The People of the Abyss

Jack London · 1903

London spent several weeks living undercover in the Whitechapel district of London’s East End in 1902, sleeping in workhouses and on the streets and staying as a lodger with a poor family, to document the conditions of extreme urban poverty firsthand rather than through secondhand accounts.

One of the earliest true works of undercover immersive journalism, predating George Orwell’s Down and Out in Paris and London by nearly three decades. London himself said it was, of all his books, closest to his heart.

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02
Adventure Fiction

The Call of the Wild

Jack London · 1903

A domesticated dog named Buck is stolen and sold into service as a sled dog during the Klondike Gold Rush, gradually reverting to his wild instincts across a brutal, transformative journey through the Yukon wilderness.

London’s most famous and widely read book, drawn directly from his own time prospecting in the Klondike — a foundational work of American adventure fiction still assigned in schools worldwide.

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03
Adventure Fiction

White Fang

Jack London · 1906

A companion piece to The Call of the Wild told in reverse, following a wild wolf-dog hybrid as he’s gradually tamed and domesticated across a harsh Yukon landscape, culminating in genuine loyalty to a human companion.

Often read alongside The Call of the Wild as a deliberate inversion — one story of wildness reclaimed, the other of wildness civilized — both drawing on London’s firsthand experience of the Klondike.

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04
Literary Fiction

Martin Eden

Jack London · 1909

A largely autobiographical novel following a self-educated sailor who becomes a successful writer, only to grow disillusioned with the literary establishment and the society that once excluded him, ending in the protagonist’s suicide.

London’s most directly autobiographical novel and one of his most literary, examining fame, class, and disillusionment with an intensity that reflects his own uneasy relationship with sudden wealth and success.

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05
Memoir

John Barleycorn

Jack London · 1913

A frank memoir of London’s own lifelong relationship with alcohol, tracing his drinking from childhood through his career, and functioning as an early and unusually candid account of alcoholism from inside the experience.

Notable for its directness about addiction at a time when such candor was rare in published memoir — an early precursor to the confessional addiction memoirs that would become common decades later.

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Watch: Jack London: American Original | Full Documentary

A documentary tracing Jack London’s rise from poverty to become the highest-paid and most popular writer in the world, and the adventures behind his fiction and journalism.

Where to start with Jack London

If you want his immersive journalism specifically

The People of the Abyss is the essential read and a direct precursor to the whole tradition of undercover reporting.

If you want his most famous book

The Call of the Wild remains his most widely read and celebrated work.

If you want his most personal book

Martin Eden and John Barleycorn are his most directly autobiographical works.

Frequently asked questions about Jack London’s books

How many books did Jack London write?

Jack London wrote over 50 books across his career, including novels, story collections, and journalism, most notably The Call of the Wild (1903), The People of the Abyss (1903), White Fang (1906), Martin Eden (1909), and John Barleycorn (1913). He died in 1916.

What is the best Jack London book to start with?

The Call of the Wild if you want his most famous work, or The People of the Abyss if you’re specifically interested in his pioneering immersive journalism.

Did Jack London really live in the slums to write The People of the Abyss?

Yes. In 1902 he spent several weeks living undercover in London’s Whitechapel district, sleeping in workhouses and on the streets, to document the conditions of extreme poverty firsthand — decades before George Orwell covered similar ground.

Written by Lisanne Swart

Lisanne curates books for curious readers at lisanneswart.com, publishing original reading lists, author deep-dives, and honest recommendations since 2021. Read more about Lisanne.

More from the shelf

Reading listBest Classic LiteratureBooks that outlasted their century.
Reading listBest Adventure and Travel BooksJourneys worth the risk.
Reading listBest Memoirs and BiographiesLives told with real directness.
Author indexBooks by AuthorEvery writer on the shelf.

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