The Books of Jacob[a] (Polish: Księgi Jakubowe[b][c]) is an epic historical novel[5] by Olga Tokarczuk, published by Wydawnictwo Literackie in October 2014.

[14] Writing for Gazeta Wyborcza, Przemysław Czapliński [pl] wrote that the novel "revolutionizes the image of religious life in the 18th century, but also changes the perception of the Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth.

It was soon acclaimed by critics and readers alike, but its reception has been hostile in some Polish nationalistic circles and Olga Tokarczuk became a target of an internet hate and harassment campaign.

In The Guardian, Marcel Theroux writes that, "[d]ense, captivating and weird, The Books of Jacob is on a different scale from either" of her previous novels translated into English.

He goes on to compare it to John Milton's Paradise Lost and concludes that the novel is one that "will be a landmark in the life of any reader with the appetite to tackle it.

"[22] Anthony Cummins of The Observer writes that the book is a "panorama of early Enlightenment Europe that doubles as an open-minded study in the mysteries of charisma, it is perhaps above all – and aptly – a gargantuan act of faith, a novel in which your reading has barely begun by the time you’ve turned the last of its 900 pages.

"[23] Catherine Taylor, writing for Prospect, calls The Books of Jacob an "extraordinary 1,000-page novel", comparing it to Leo Tolstoy's War and Peace and Hilary Mantel's Thomas Cromwell trilogy.

The novel's seven books are narrated by seven Polish actors and actresses: Danuta Stenka, Wiktor Zborowski, Jan Peszek, Agata Kulesza, Maja Ostaszewska, Adam Ferency and Mariusz Bonaszewski [pl].