how many books are in the tanakh

The Tanakh contains 24 books in total. This count is derived by combining certain books that are separate in Christian Old Testament versions, such as 1 and 2 Samuel combined as one book (Samuel), 1 and 2 Kings combined as Kings, 1 and 2 Chronicles combined as Chronicles, Ezra and Nehemiah counted as one book, and the twelve minor prophets combined into one book called The Twelve. The 24 books are organized into three sections: The Law (Torah) with 5 books, The Prophets (Nevi'im) with 8 books, and The Writings (Ketuvim) with 11 books.