Cover of Tree of Smoke

Tree of Smoke

Denis Johnson, 2007

American novelist, 1949–2017. Won the National Book Award for Fiction in 2007.

Tree of Smoke is a 2007 novel by Denis Johnson. It won the National Book Award for Fiction in 2007.

Acclaimed
  • Critics' Darling
  • Prize Winner

In war novels

On 3 of the 13 lists it was eligible for.

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At a glance

Author
Denis Johnson
First published
2007
Length
624 pages (UK paperback)
Awards
Genre
War novels, Political, Psychological

Is Tree of Smoke worth reading?

3 of the 13 best-of lists it could have made include it, among them the National Book Award for Fiction and the Pulitzer Prize for Fiction.

ListPlaceOriginal
National Book Award for Fiction (winners and finalists) (National Book Foundation, 2007)WinnerSee the list
Pulitzer Prize for Fiction (winners and finalists) (Columbia University, 2008)ShortlistSee the list
The 100 best books of the 21st century (The New York Times, 2024)No. 100See the list

Best edition of Tree of Smoke

The edition we link to is the Picador paperback (2026), 624 pages.

Publisher
Picador (paperback, 2026)
Pages
624
ISBN
9781035091317

How critics, prizes and readers rate Tree of Smoke

Prize juries rate it most highly: it earned 56% of the points available on prize lists, against 14% on critics' lists and 0% on readers' and booksellers' lists.

Critics
14%
Prizes
56%
Readers and booksellers
0%

Share of the available points it earned on each kind of list it was eligible for. How the scores work

Books like Tree of Smoke

If you liked Tree of Smoke, try Train Dreams, Catch-22 or The Sympathizer.

Lists used on this page