Anthologies#
| Title |
Published |
Buy on Amazon |
| Open City #9: Bewitched |
2000 |
Buy |
| 110 Stories |
2004 |
Buy |
| The Insomniac Reader |
2005 |
Buy |
| Alone in the Kitchen with an Eggplant: Confessions of Cooking for One and Dining Alone |
2007 |
Buy |
| Awake! |
2007 |
Buy |
| Coming and Crying |
2010 |
Buy |
Graphic Standalone Novels#
| Title |
Published |
Buy on Amazon |
| The Alcoholic |
2008 |
Buy |
Happy Doll Reading Order#
| Title |
Published |
Buy on Amazon |
| A Man Named Doll |
2021 |
Buy |
| The Wheel of Doll |
2022 |
Buy |
| Karma Doll |
2025 |
Buy |
Non-Fiction#
| Title |
Published |
Buy on Amazon |
| What’s Not to Love? |
2000 |
Buy |
| Sexual Metamorphosis |
2005 |
Buy |
| I Love You More Than You Know |
2005 |
Buy |
Short Stories/Novellas#
| Title |
Published |
Buy on Amazon |
| Bored to Death |
2009 |
Buy |
| You Were Never Really Here |
2013 |
Buy |
Short Story Collections#
| Title |
Published |
Buy on Amazon |
| My Less Than Secret Life |
2002 |
Buy |
| The Double Life is Twice as Good |
2009 |
Buy |
Standalone Novels#
| Title |
Published |
Buy on Amazon |
| I Pass Like Night |
1989 |
Buy |
| The Extra Man |
1998 |
Buy |
| Wake Up, Sir! |
2004 |
Buy |
Jonathan Ames is an American writer whose career spans novels, essays, graphic novels, anthologies, and screenwriting. He gained wide recognition as the creator of the HBO series Bored to Death, starring Jason Schwartzman. His fiction often draws from his own life, filtered through a lens of self-deprecating humor and noirish plotting.
Ames published his first novel I Pass Like Night in 1989 and went on to write several more, including The Extra Man (1998) and Wake Up, Sir! (2004). His more recent Happy Doll series follows a Los Angeles private detective through a seedy, sun-bleached version of the city. He has also written extensively in nonfiction, with essay collections like What’s Not to Love? and I Love You More Than You Know. His novella You Were Never Really Here was adapted into a critically acclaimed 2017 film starring Joaquin Phoenix.
Frequently Asked Questions
How many books has Jonathan Ames written?
Jonathan Ames has written twenty books across seven series.
What was Jonathan Ames's first book?
Jonathan Ames’s first book is I Pass Like Night, published in 1989.
What is Jonathan Ames best known for?
Ames is widely known for creating the HBO comedy series Bored to Death, which ran from 2009 to 2011. He is also recognized for his confessional essays, his darkly comic novels, and his Happy Doll private detective series.