Tom Swift: Who He Is, the Books in Order, and Where to Read Them Free
Tom Swift is the teenage inventor hero of a boys' adventure series that began in 1910. Edward Stratemeyer's Stratemeyer Syndicate created him and ghostwriters wrote the books under the pen name Victor Appleton.
He's the SWIFT in the "Fictional Toms" group, which appeared in Sunday's NYT Connections. And the early Tom Swift books are in the public domain, so you can read them free.
He has nothing to do with Taylor Swift, by the way.
Also check Tom Ripley books in order here
Table of Contents
Who is Tom Swift? Quick facts
- Creator: Edward Stratemeyer, whose Syndicate also gave us Nancy Drew and the Hardy Boys.
- Author: Victor Appleton was never a real person. Ghostwriters, including Howard R. Garis, wrote under that name.
- First book: Tom Swift and His Motor-Cycle (1910).
- Sales: more than 30 million copies worldwide (as of 2009).
- Taser trivia: the Taser takes its name from Tom Swift and His Electric Rifle (1911). Inventor Jack Cover called it "TSER" (Thomas Swift's Electric Rifle) and later added an A.
- TV: The CW's Tom Swift, starring Tian Richards, premiered on 31 May 2022. It was cancelled on 30 June 2022 after one season.
Tom Swift books in order, run by run
There are more than 100 Tom Swift books. Wikipedia lists these runs:
| Series | Years | Books |
| Original series | 1910–1941 | 40 |
| Tom Swift Jr. ("Victor Appleton II") | 1954–1971 | 33 |
| Third series | 1981–1984 | 11 |
| Fourth series | 1991–1993 | 13 |
| Young Inventor | 2006–2007 | 6 |
| Inventors' Academy (ages 8–12) | 2019–2022 | 8 |
Which Tom Swift books are worth reading today
You can start with Motor-Cycle and Electric Rifle. They're short, quick and fun if you like early 1900s ideas about the future: airships, submarines and wireless gadgets. Every chapter ends on a cliffhanger. That's a large part of the charm.
Be warned that the originals show the attitudes of their time. Some characters, Eradicate Sampson in particular, are racist caricatures that are hard to read now. Read them as history, not as bedtime stories you hand over without a word.
For children, the newer Inventors' Academy series from Simon & Schuster is the better choice. It starts with The Drone Pursuit. You can browse every edition on Goodreads or Amazon.
How to read Tom Swift books free
- Go to Project Gutenberg's Tom Swift collection. Good first picks are Motor-Cycle and Electric Rifle.
- Download the Kindle or EPUB file.
- Send it to your Kindle with Amazon's Send to Kindle feature, or open it in any reading app. You don't need a Kindle device to read ebooks.
If you'd rather listen, LibriVox has free volunteer-read audiobooks.
Project Gutenberg is based in the US; Readers in other countries should check local copyright rules before downloading. Amazon also lists some free public-domain Kindle editions but check that the price shows zero before buying.
Want more free and cheap reading? See my articles about Prime Reading and Kindle Unlimited.
That's Tom Swift in a nutshell. Have you read any of the originals. Tell me in the comments, and have a look round Book Blabber for your next read. Happy reading!
FAQs about Tom Swift books
Is Tom Swift related to Taylor Swift?
No. Tom Swift is a fictional teenage inventor from a boys' adventure series that began in 1910. He has no link to the singer.
Who wrote the Tom Swift books?
The books came out under the name Victor Appleton, but no such person existed. It was a pen name. Edward Stratemeyer's Stratemeyer Syndicate created the series, and ghostwriters such as Howard R. Garis wrote the books. The later Tom Swift Jr. books used the name Victor Appleton II.
How many Tom Swift books are there?
There are more than 100 across six runs. Wikipedia lists 111 – 40 originals (1910–1941), 33 Tom Swift Jr. books, 11 in the third series, 13 in the fourth, 6 Young Inventor books and 8 Inventors' Academy books (2019–2022).
Is the Taser named after Tom Swift?
Yes. Inventor Jack Cover named his device after the 1911 novel Tom Swift and His Electric Rifle. He first called it TSER, short for Thomas Swift's Electric Rifle, and later added an A so it was easier to say. That gave us the word Taser.
Where can I read Tom Swift books for free?
The early books are public domain in the US and free on Project Gutenberg in Kindle and EPUB formats. LibriVox has free audiobook versions. Gutenberg is US-based, so readers should check their local copyright rules before downloading.
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