Fables: A Suggested Reading Order

Fables (comics):

A Suggested Reading Order

Note: If you're interested in my mini-reviews, a running character list, and some pictures of the comics themselves, please see my other post -

Reviews of Fables.

Description: Fables is a comic book series published by DC Comics’ Vertigo imprint beginning in 2002. The series deals with various people from fairy tales and folklore – referring to themselves as “Fables” – who have been forced out of their Homelands. The Fables have traveled to our mundane world and formed a clandestine community in New York City known as Fabletown.

Publisher: Vertigo

Publication Date: 2002-2015+

Genre: Contemporary/Dark Fantasy

Creators: Bill Willingham, Lan Medina

Printing Formats:

-Individual issues

-Trade paperbacks with textured matte paper (collects a couple issues together)

-Deluxe hardcovers with smooth glossy paper (collects several issues together)

-Compendiums, which collect all of Fables together into 4 books

All are comics with the below exceptions:

-A Wolf in the Fold (prose story, 2003)

-1001 Nights of Snowfall (graphic novel, 2006)

-Peter and Max (prose novel, 2009)

-Pinocchio's Army (prose story, 2011)

-Werewolves of the Heartland (graphic novel, 2012)

-Fairest in All the Land (2013, graphic novel)

-The Wolf Among Us (video game, 2013)

-Fables #150: Farewell (graphic novel, 2015)

LEGEND (for the colored and bolded text below):

Fables

Jack of Fables spinoff

Fairest spinoff

Limited Series

One-Shots and non-comic formats

Comments

What I own

A Suggested Reading Order:

DELUXE V1 Fables #1-5: Legends in Exile (2003)

Fables #6-10: Animal Farm (2003)

DELUXE V2
A Wolf in the Fold (2003, prose story)
Fables #11-13: Bag O' Bones, A Two-Part Caper (2004)

Fables #14-17: Storybook Love (2004)

Fables #18: Barleycorn Brides (2004)
Fables: The Last Castle (2004, one-shot)

The Wolf Among Us (2013, video game)

Note: This is a video game that was adapted later as a print comic. Another game will possibly be released in 2025. The game is a prequel to the series and could be played whenever, but I recommend playing it after #10: Animal Farm and before #51: Big and Small. More specifically, I suggest right before #22: Cinderella Libertine.

Fables: The Wolf Among Us Vol 1: #1-7 and Vol 2: #8-16 (2014) 

Note: A video game adapted later as a print comic. Just play the game. The only parts worth reading in the comics are The Crucible in #1-7 and Bloody Mary's story in #8-16. When the Crooked Man meets Bloody Mary in the greenhouse, stop reading.

DELUXE V3
Fables #22: Cinderella Libertine (2005)

Note: #22 can be read before, mid, or after March of the Wooden Soldiers. It makes sense to read it before if you plan to play the game right before Cinderella Libertine.

Fables #19-21; #23-27: March of the Wooden Soldiers (2004)

DELUXE V4
Fables #28-33: War Stories, The Long Year/The Mean Season (2005)

    -Also includes #22: Cinderella Libertine (2005), not in Deluxe V4
Fables: 1001 Nights of Snowfall (2006, graphic novel)

DELUXE V5
Fables #34-35: Jack Be Nimble (2006)
Fables #36-41: Homelands (2006)

    -Also includes #34-35: Jack Be Nimble (2006), also in Deluxe V5
Fables #42-45: Arabian Nights and Days (2006)

    -Also includes #46-47: Ballad of Rodney and June (2006), not in Deluxe V5

DELUXE V6

Fables #46-47: Ballad of Rodney and June (2006)

Fables #48-51: Wolves, Happily Ever After, Big and Small (2006)

DELUXE V7

Fables #52-59: Sons of Empire (and 4 mini one-shots), Jiminy Christmas, Father and Son, Burning Questions (2007)

Fables #64: The Birthday Secret (2008)

DELUXE V8
Fables #60-63; #65-69: The Good Prince (2008)

DELUXE ED1

Jack of Fables #1-5: The (Nearly) Great Escape (2007)

Jack of Fables #6-11: Jack Frost and Jack of Hearts (2007)
Jack of Fables #12-16: The Bad Prince and Jack O'Lantern (2008)

DELUXE V9

Fables #70-75: Kingdom Come, Skullduggery, War and Pieces (2008)

Fables #76-82: Around the Town, The Dark Ages, Return to the Jungle Book (mini story arc), Waiting for the Blues (2009)

Peter & Max: A Fables Novel (2009, prose)

Cinderella: From Fabletown With Love #1-6 (2010)

DELUXE ED2

Jack of Fables #17-21: Americana and Gary Goes to Denmark (2008)

Jack of Fables #22-27: 1883 and Turning Pages (2009)

Jack of Fables #28-32: Books of War (2009)

DELUXE V10
The Great Fables Crossover (2010):
Fables #83; Jack of Fables #33; The Literals #1
Fables #84; Jack of Fables #34; The Literals #2
Fables #85; Jack of Fables #35; The Literals #3

    -Also includes Werewolves of the Heartland (2012, graphic novel)

    -Note: It could be read here, but I suggest reading it a little later - or not at all.

DELUXE ED3
Jack of Fables #36: Jack 'n' Apes (2010)

Jack of Fables #37-40: New Adventures of Jack and Jack (2010)
Jack of Fables #41-45: The Kings of Earth and Sky / Fulminate Blade (2011)

Jack of Fables #46-50: Jack Dragon and Gary (mini one-shots) and The End (2011)

Mini Blue Ox (various, one-pagers)

Note: There's no particular order to read them in, since they're printed in the middle of existing comics. There's enough that I wanted to call them out and count them as a one-off collection, though.

DELUXE V11
Fables #86-91: Boxing Days, Witches (5) (2010)

Celebrity Burning Questions (2011, 4 mini one-shots)

Fables #92-98: Out to the Ball Game (2), Rose Red (5) (2011)

Pinocchio's Army (2011, prose story)

Fables #99-100: Dark City and Single Combat (2011)

After the Duels (2011, 2 mini one-shots)

Cinderella: Fables are Forever #1-6 (2012)

Werewolves of the Heartland (2012, graphic novel)

DELUXE V12

Fables #101-107: The Ascent, Super Team (5), Waking Beauty (2011)

Fables #108-113: Inherit the Wind (4), All in a Single Night, In Those Days (2012)

THE UNWRITTEN V9 #50-54 (2014) - non-canon crossover

FAIREST V1
Fairest #1-7: Wide Awake (2012)

FAIREST V2
Fairest #8-14: Hidden Kingdom (2013)

FAIREST V3

Fairest #15-20: The Return of the Maharaja (2014)

DELUXE V13
Fables #124: The Revolution in Oz (2013)

Fables #114-123: Cubs in Toyland (8), The Destiny game (2) (2013)
Fables #125-129: Snow White (2013)

DELUXE V14
Fables #130: June Bug (2014)
Fables #131-140: Camelot (7), Root & Branch, The Boys in the Band (2014)

Fairest in All the Land (2013, graphic novel)

FAIREST V4

Fairest #21-26: Of Men and Mice (2014)

FAIREST V5

Fairest #27-33: Clamour of Glamour (2015)

DELUXE V15

Fables #141-149: Happily Ever After (and 9 mini one-shots) (2015)

Fables #150: Farewell (2015, graphic novel)

Everafter: From the Pages of Fables V1

Everafter #1-6: The Pandora Protocol (2017)

Everafter: From the Pages of Fables V2

Everafter #7-12: The Unsentimental Education (2017)

Deluxe V16

Fables #151-162: The Black Forest (2024)

Batman Vs. Bigby! A Wolf In Gotham #1-6 (2021)