Ann Hood books

Akashic Noir Reading Order

Anthologies

Collections

Non-Fiction

Short Stories/Novellas

Standalone Novels

The Treasure Chest Reading Order

Ann Hood is a prolific American author whose work spans literary fiction, memoir, children’s books, and anthology editing. Her novels, starting with Somewhere Off the Coast of Maine (1987), explore family relationships, loss, and the search for meaning. The Knitting Circle (2006) draws on her personal experience of grief and became one of her most widely read books. More recent novels like The Book That Matters Most (2016) and The Stolen Child (2024) continue her interest in how books and stories shape lives.

Hood’s non-fiction includes several memoirs and essay collections: Comfort: A Journey Through Grief (2008) is a raw account of losing her daughter, while Fly Girl: A Memoir (2022) looks back at her time as a TWA flight attendant. She also wrote Creating Character Emotions (1998), a craft book for writers. Her Treasure Chest series (2011-2014) introduces young readers to historical figures like Clara Barton, Alexander Hamilton, and Amelia Earhart through time-travel fiction.

Hood is listed as a contributor or editor on 122 volumes in the Akashic Noir anthology series, a massive crime fiction collection that pairs cities worldwide with dark, location-specific short stories. She edited Providence Noir (2015) for the series. Her own anthology editing work includes Knitting Yarns: Writers on Knitting (2013) and several other themed collections.