People search: where to start with marxism, which marx book to read first, marxist books for beginners, karl marx books for beginners, marx books in chronological order
Reading order
The Communist Manifesto · Marx & Engels Short and punchy, but a pamphlet, not his theory. Buy on Bookshop.org
Wage Labour and Capital · Karl Marx Short economic primer, recommended on r/askphilosophy. Buy on Bookshop.org
Theses on Feuerbach + German Ideology Part I · Marx & Engels His method: historical materialism in a few pages. Buy on Bookshop.org
Economic and Philosophic Manuscripts of 1844 · Karl Marx Alienation: the 'humanist' young Marx. Buy on Bookshop.org
Capital, Volume 1 · Karl Marx The main event. David Harvey's companion or free lectures help. Buy on Bookshop.org
Which translation / edition
Our pick:The Marx-Engels Reader (ed. Tucker) gathers most short texts; for Capital, the Penguin Classics (Fowkes) translation is common. Older Moore/Aveling translations are public domain and free on marxists.org.
Where people get stuck
Starting with Capital and stalling in the first chapters on value.
'How much Hegel do I need first?' is a recurring r/askphilosophy question.
Mixing up Marx's own texts with later Marxism (Lenin, Frankfurt School).
FAQ
Do I need Hegel first?
r/askphilosophy answers mostly say no for a first pass.