Jerry Pournelle

Jerry Pournelle was an American author, engineer, essayist, and journalist, best known for his military science fiction novels and non-fiction books. He was a New York Times bestselling author, with his novels featuring the infantry force known as Falkenberg's Legion, which are similar to the works of Gordon R. Dickson and Robert Heinlein. Pournelle wrote a column for Byte Magazine from 1980 to 2008 and was a regular contributor to various computer magazines in the 1970s, 80s, and early 90s.

Dr. Pournelle had a distinguished career in the aerospace industry, working at Boeing on projects related to heat tolerance for astronauts and their spacesuits. He also contributed to projections related to military tactics and probabilities. One report he worked on became a basis for the Strategic Defense Initiative, the missile defense system proposed by President Ronald Reagan. Pournelle was also a President of the Science Fiction and Fantasy Writers of America in 1973.

Pournelle was a tireless ambassador for the future, with his predictions and persuasive essays potentially changing the course of American history. He was known for his paleo-conservative political views, which were sometimes expressed in his fiction. Pournelle was one of the founders of the Citizens' Advisory Council on National Space Policy, which developed some of the Reagan Administration's space initiatives.

As an author, Pournelle wrote for over 50 years, with his work including the NY Times bestsellers Lucifer’s Hammer, Oath of Fealty and Footfall (with Larry Niven). He worked well with co-authors Larry Niven and Steve Barnes, combining mystery, science, well-paced drama, and outlandish predictions of the future. Pournelle's writing is known for its strong military themes, fast-paced and rollicking stories, and often features funny and scary aliens as antagonists and protagonists.

Pournelle was a full-time writer of technology, science fact, and fiction, with his essays on future prediction and adventurous tales of fiction appearing in various magazines. He was also active in the American Association for the Advancement of Science. Pournelle's column in BYTE was the longest-running column in the computer industry, beginning in 1980 and continuing past the turn of the Century on one of the world’s first blogs, ChaosManor™.

Pournelle's work often centered around strong military themes, with several books describing the fictional mercenary infantry force known as Falkenberg's Legion. He was also a prolific writer of non-fiction, with his work including studies on military tactics and probabilities, as well as essays on future prediction. Pournelle was always generous with his advice to would-be writers, telling them that the key to becoming an author was to write - a lot, and to finish what they write.
CoDominium Universe Books
# Title Year
1 King David's Spaceship 1973
2 West Of Honor 1976
3 The Mercenary 1977
The Endless Frontier Books (with John F. Carr)
# Title Year
1 The Endless Frontier Vol. II (With: John F. Carr) 1982
2 Cities In Space (With: John F. Carr) 1991
3 Life Among Asteroids (With: John F. Carr) 1992
The Endless Frontier Books
# Title Year
1 The Endless Frontier Vol. II 1982
2 Cities In Space 1991
3 Life Among Asteroids 1992
Falkenberg's Legion Books
# Title Year
1 Prince of Mercenaries 1989
2 Falkenberg's Legion 1990
3 Prince of Sparta 1993
4 Prince of Sparta (With: S.M. Stirling) 1993
5 Go Tell the Spartans 1993
Far Frontiers Books (with Jim Baen)
# Title Year
1 Far Frontiers 1985
2 Far Frontiers 2 1985
3 Far Frontiers 3 1985
4 Far Frontiers 4 1986
5 Far Frontiers 5 1986
6 Far Frontiers 6 1986
7 Far Frontiers 7 1986
Golden Road Books (with Larry Niven)
# Title Year
1 The Burning City 2000
2 Burning Tower 2005
Heorot Books (with Larry Niven, with Steven Barnes)
# Title Year
1 The Legacy of Heorot 1987
2 Beowulf's Children / The Dragons of Heorot 1995
3 The Secret of Black Ship Island 2012
4 Starborn and Godsons 2020
Heorot Books in Chronological Order
# Title Year
1 The Legacy of Heorot 1987
2 The Secret of Black Ship Island 2012
3 Beowulf's Children / The Dragons of Heorot 1995
4 Starborn and Godsons 2020
Heorot Series in Chronological Order
# Title Year
1 The Legacy of Heorot 1987
2 The Secret of Black Ship Island 2012
3 Beowulf's Children / The Dragons of Heorot 1995
4 Starborn and Godsons 2020
Imperial Stars Books (with John F. Carr)
# Title Year
1 The Stars at War 1986
2 Republic and Empire 1987
3 The Crash of Empire 1989
Inferno Books (with Larry Niven)
# Title Year
1 Inferno 1975
2 Escape from Hell 2009
Janissaries Books
# Title Year
1 Janissaries 1979
2 Clan and Crown (With: Roland J. Green) 1982
3 Clan and Crown 1982
4 Storms of Victory 1987
5 Storms of Victory (With: Roland J. Green) 1987
6 Mamelukes 2020
7 Mamelukes (With: David Weber, Phillip Pournelle) 2020
Jupiter Books
# Title Year
1 Higher Education 1996
2 Higher Education (With: Charles Sheffield) 1996
3 The Billion Dollar Boy 1997
4 The Billion Dollar Boy (By: Charles Sheffield) 1997
5 Putting Up Roots (By: Charles Sheffield) 1997
6 Putting Up Roots 1997
7 The Cyborg From Earth (By: Charles Sheffield) 1998
8 The Cyborg From Earth 1998
9 Starswarm 1998
10 Outward Bound ( By: James P. Hogan) 1999
11 Outward Bound 1999
Laurie Jo Hansen Books
# Title Year
1 High Justice 1977
2 Exiles to Glory 1978
3 Exile- and Glory 2008
Man-Kzin Wars Books
# Title Year
1 The Man-Kzin Wars 1988
2 The Man-Kzin Wars ( By: Larry Niven) 1988
3 Man-Kzin Wars II (With: Larry Niven, S.M. Stirling) 1989
4 Man-Kzin Wars II 1989
5 Man-Kzin Wars III ( By: Larry Niven) 1990
6 Man-Kzin Wars III 1990
7 Man-Kzin Wars IV 1991
8 Man-Kzin Wars IV ( By: S.M. Stirling) 1991
9 The Children's Hour 1991
10 The Children's Hour (With: S.M. Stirling) 1991
11 Man-Kzin Wars V 1992
12 Man-Kzin Wars VI 1994
13 Man-Kzin Wars VI (By: Gregory Benford, Mark O. Martin) 1994
14 Man-Kzin Wars VII 1995
15 Man-Kzin Wars VII (By: Larry Niven, Gregory Benford, Paul Chafe) 1995
16 A Darker Geometry ( By: Gregory Benford) 1996
17 A Darker Geometry 1996
18 The Best of All Possible Wars (By: S.M. Stirling, Robert Sheckley) 1998
19 The Best of All Possible Wars 1998
20 Man-Kzin Wars VIII: Choosing Names 1998
21 Man-Kzin Wars VIII: Choosing Names (By: Larry Niven) 1998
22 Man-Kzin Wars IX ( By: Jim Baen) 2001
23 Man-Kzin Wars IX 2001
24 The House of the Kzinti 2002
25 Man-Kzin Wars X: The Wunder War ( By: Larry Niven) 2003
26 Man-Kzin Wars X: The Wunder War 2003
27 Man-Kzin Wars XI 2005
28 Man-Kzin Wars XI ( By: Matthew Harrington) 2005
29 Destiny's Forge ( By: Paul Chafe) 2006
30 Destiny's Forge 2006
31 Man-Kzin Wars XII 2009
32 Man-Kzin Wars XII ( By: Larry Niven) 2009
33 Man-Kzin Wars XIII 2012
34 Man-Kzin Wars XIII ( By: Larry Niven) 2012
35 Man-Kzin Wars XIV ( By: Larry Niven) 2013
36 Man-Kzin Wars XIV 2013
37 Treasure Planet (By: Larry Niven, Hal Colebatch, Jessica Q. Fox) 2014
38 Treasure Planet 2014
39 Man-Kzin Wars XV 2019
40 Man-Kzin Wars XV ( By: Larry Niven) 2019
Moties Books (with Larry Niven, with Jennifer R. Pournelle)
# Title Year
1 The Mote in God's Eye 1974
2 The Gripping Hand / The Moat Around Murcheson's Eye 1993
3 Outies 2010
4 Outies ( By: Jennifer R. Pournelle) 2010
Paul Crane Books (as Wade Curtis)
# Title Year
1 Red Heroin 1980
2 Red Dragon 2012
Planet of the Apes Books
# Title Year
1 Planet of the Apes 1963
2 Planet of the Apes (By: Pierre Boulle, Xan Fielding) 1963
3 Beneath The Planet of The Apes ( By: Michael Avallone) 1970
4 Beneath The Planet of The Apes 1970
5 Escape from the Planet of the Apes 1973
6 Conquest of the Planet of the Apes 1974
7 Conquest of the Planet of the Apes ( By: John Jakes) 1974
8 Planet of the Apes Movie Novelization (By: William T. Quick) 2001
9 Planet of the Apes Movie Novelization 2001
There Will Be War Books
# Title Year
1 There Will Be War 1983
2 Men of War 1984
3 Blood and Iron (With: John F. Carr) 1984
4 Blood and Iron 1984
5 Day of the Tyrant 1985
6 Day of the Tyrant (With: John F. Carr) 1985
7 Warrior 1986
8 Guns of Darkness 1987
9 Call To Battle! 1988
10 Call To Battle! (With: John F. Carr) 1988
11 Armageddon! (With: John F. Carr) 1989
12 Armageddon! 1989
13 After Armageddon 1990
War World Books
# Title Year
1 War World: The Lidless Eye 0
2 The Burning Eye (With: John F. Carr) 1988
3 Death's Head Rebellion (With: John F. Carr) 1990
4 The Burning Eye 1988
5 Sauron Dominion (With: John F. Carr) 1991
6 Death's Head Rebellion 1990
7 Codominium (With: John F. Carr) 1992
8 Sauron Dominion 1991
9 Codominium 1992
10 Blood Feuds ( By: Harry Turtledove) 1992
11 Blood Feuds 1992
12 Invasion 1994
13 Blood Vengeance (With: Harry Turtledove, S.M. Stirling, Judith Tarr, Susan Shwartz) 1994
14 Discovery (With: William Wu, Leslie Fish, Charles E. Gannon, E.R. Stewart, Don Hawthorne, John F. Carr) 2010
15 Blood Vengeance 1994
16 Takeover (With: Don Hawthorne, John F. Carr) 2011
17 Discovery 2010
18 Takeover 2011
19 The Lidless Eye (By: Don Hawthorne, John F. Carr) 2013
20 The Battle of Sauron (With: Don Hawthorne, John F. Carr) 2013
21 The Lidless Eye 2013
22 Cyborg Revolt (By: John F. Carr) 2013
23 Jihad! (By: John F. Carr) 2013
24 The Patriotic Wars (By: John F. Carr) 2017
25 The Battle of Sauron 2013
26 Falkenberg's Regiment (By: John F. Carr) 2018
27 War World: Cyborg Revolt 2013
28 The Fall of the CoDominium (By: John F. Carr) 2020
29 Andromeda Flight (By: John F. Carr, Doug McElwain) 2021
30 War World Concordance (By: John F. Carr, Doug McElwain) 2022
31 Road Warrior ( By: John F. Carr) 2022
32 The Falkenberg Protectorate ( By: John F. Carr) 2023
Standalone Novels
# Title Year
1 Birth of Fire 1976
2 Lucifer's Hammer (With: Larry Niven) 1977
3 Lucifer's Hammer 1977
4 Future History 1980
5 Oath of Fealty (With: Larry Niven) 1981
6 Oath of Fealty 1981
7 Footfall 1985
8 Footfall (With: Larry Niven) 1985
9 Fallen Angels 1991
10 Fallen Angels (With: Larry Niven, Michael Flynn) 1991
Short Story Collections
# Title Year
1 The Best of Jerry Pournelle 2019
Non-Fiction Books
# Title Year
1 That Buck Rogers Stuff 1977
2 A Step Farther Out 1981
3 The Users' Guide to Small Computers 1984
4 Mutual Assured Survival 1984
5 Mutual Assured Survival (With: Dean Ing) 1984
6 The Essential Users Guide to the IBM PC, XT, and PCjr ( By: Dian Girard) 1984
7 The Essential Users Guide to the IBM PC, XT, and PCjr 1984
8 Adventures in Microland 1985
9 Guide to Disc Operating System and Easy Computing 1989
10 PC Communications Bible 1992
11 Windows with an Attitude 1995
12 PC Hardware 2003
13 1001 Computer Words You Need to Know 2004
14 Step Further Out: Jerry Pournelle's Essays on Taking the Stars 2020
Pournelle Users Guide Books
# Title Year
1 The User Guide to CP/M Systems 1984
2 The User Guide to CP/M Systems (By: Tony Bove, Cheryl Rhodes) 1984
3 Free Software: How to Get It, How to Use It (By: Tony Bove, Cheryl Rhodes, Kelly Smith, Dan Dugan, Bob Wolff) 1985
4 Free Software: How to Get It, How to Use It 1985
5 The Guidebook for Winning Adventures 1985
6 The Guidebook for Winning Adventures (By: Sandy Small) 1985
L. Ron Hubbard Presents: Writers of the Future Books
# Title Year
1 L. Ron Hubbard Presents Writers of the Future 1 1985
2 L. Ron Hubbard Presents Writers of the Future 2 1986
3 L. Ron Hubbard Presents Writers of the Future 3 1987
4 L. Ron Hubbard Presents Writers of the Future 4 1988
5 L. Ron Hubbard Presents Writers of the Future 5 1989
6 L. Ron Hubbard Presents Writers of the Future 6 1990
7 L. Ron Hubbard Presents Writers of the Future 7 1991
8 L. Ron Hubbard Presents Writers of the Future 8 1992
9 L. Ron Hubbard Presents Writers of the Future 9 1993
10 L. Ron Hubbard Presents Writers of the Future 10 1994
11 L. Ron Hubbard Presents Writers of the Future 11 1995
12 L. Ron Hubbard Presents Writers of the Future 12 1996
13 L. Ron Hubbard Presents Writers of the Future 13 1997
14 L. Ron Hubbard Presents Writers of the Future 14 1998
15 L. Ron Hubbard Presents Writers of the Future 15 1999
16 L. Ron Hubbard Presents Writers of the Future 16 2000
17 L. Ron Hubbard Presents Writers of the Future 17 2001
18 L. Ron Hubbard Presents Writers of the Future 18 2002
19 L. Ron Hubbard Presents Writers of the Future 19 2002
20 L. Ron Hubbard Presents Writers of the Future 20 2004
21 L. Ron Hubbard Presents Writers of the Future 21 2005
22 L. Ron Hubbard Presents Writers of the Future 22 2006
23 L. Ron Hubbard Presents Writers of the Future 23 2007
24 L. Ron Hubbard Presents Writers of the Future 24 2008
25 L. Ron Hubbard Presents Writers of the Future 25 2009
26 L. Ron Hubbard Presents Writers of the Future 26 2010
27 L. Ron Hubbard Presents Writers of the Future 27 2011
28 L. Ron Hubbard Presents Writers of the Future 28 2012
29 L. Ron Hubbard Presents Writers of the Future 29 2013
30 L. Ron Hubbard Presents Writers of the Future 30 2014
31 L. Ron Hubbard Presents Writers of the Future 31 2015
32 L. Ron Hubbard Presents Writers of the Future 32 2016
33 L. Ron Hubbard Presents Writers of the Future 33 2017
34 L. Ron Hubbard Presents Writers of the Future 34 2018
35 L. Ron Hubbard Presents Writers of the Future 35 2019
36 L. Ron Hubbard Presents Writers of the Future 36 2020
37 L. Ron Hubbard Presents Writers of the Future 37 2021
38 L. Ron Hubbard Presents Writers of the Future 38 2022
39 L. Ron Hubbard Presents Writers of the Future 39 2023
40 L. Ron Hubbard Presents: Writers of the Future 40 2024
41 L. Ron Hubbard Presents Writers of the Future 41 2025
Jerry Pournelle Anthologies
# Title Year
1 Analog Science Fiction And Fact, May 1971 1971
2 2020 Vision 1974
3 The Best From Galaxy, Volume IV 1976
4 Black Holes 1978
5 Destinies: The Paperback Magazine of Science Fiction and Speculative Fact 1979
6 The Endless Frontier 1979
7 Survival of Freedom 1981
8 Nebula Award Stories 16 / Sixteen 1982
9 The Science Fiction Yearbook 1985
10 Power 1991
11 Multiverse 2014
12 Riding the Red Horse 2014
13 Infinite Stars 2017