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These are books that I want to read but intimidate me for some reason. Either the length, subject matter, complexity or even print size causes me to avoid these books for easier reads. What about you?
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A book’s total score is based on multiple factors, including the number of people who have voted for it and how highly those voters ranked the book.
| 1 |
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War and Peace
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4.17 avg rating — 362,581 ratings
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| 2 |
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Les Misérables
by
4.21 avg rating — 839,225 ratings
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| 3 |
|
Don Quixote
by
3.91 avg rating — 302,618 ratings
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| 4 |
|
Ulysses
by
3.76 avg rating — 137,056 ratings
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| 5 |
|
The Count of Monte Cristo
by
4.32 avg rating — 1,011,832 ratings
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| 6 |
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Anna Karenina
by
4.10 avg rating — 921,928 ratings
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| 7 |
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Crime and Punishment
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4.28 avg rating — 1,060,255 ratings
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| 8 |
|
The Divine Comedy: Inferno - Purgatorio - Paradiso
by
4.08 avg rating — 170,509 ratings
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| 9 |
|
Gone with the Wind
by
4.31 avg rating — 1,252,593 ratings
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| 10 |
|
The Lord of the Rings
by
4.54 avg rating — 725,715 ratings
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| 11 |
|
Moby-Dick
by
3.56 avg rating — 611,348 ratings
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| 12 |
|
The Canterbury Tales
by
3.52 avg rating — 236,746 ratings
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| 13 |
|
Gravity’s Rainbow
by
4.01 avg rating — 47,746 ratings
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| 14 |
|
Middlemarch
by
4.04 avg rating — 177,862 ratings
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| 15 |
|
Infinite Jest
by
4.25 avg rating — 100,510 ratings
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| 16 |
|
The Complete Sherlock Holmes
by
4.51 avg rating — 215,985 ratings
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| 17 |
|
The Brothers Karamazov
by
4.39 avg rating — 381,030 ratings
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| 18 |
|
A Game of Thrones (A Song of Ice and Fire, #1)
by
4.45 avg rating — 2,711,584 ratings
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| 19 |
|
Atlas Shrugged
by
3.69 avg rating — 405,587 ratings
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| 20 |
|
The Fountainhead
by
3.89 avg rating — 336,167 ratings
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| 21 |
|
The Scarlet Letter
by
3.44 avg rating — 912,347 ratings
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| 22 |
|
The Pillars of the Earth (Kingsbridge, #1)
by
Ken Follett (Goodreads Author)
4.35 avg rating — 822,655 ratings
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| 23 |
|
Finnegans Wake
by
3.68 avg rating — 13,563 ratings
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| 24 |
|
The Faerie Queene
by
3.59 avg rating — 17,260 ratings
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| 25 |
|
2666
by
4.22 avg rating — 48,075 ratings
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| 26 |
|
House of Leaves
by
Mark Z. Danielewski (Goodreads Author)
4.09 avg rating — 197,406 ratings
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| 27 |
|
The Arabian Nights
by
4.03 avg rating — 80,979 ratings
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| 28 |
|
Paradise Lost
by
3.85 avg rating — 180,789 ratings
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| 29 |
|
Jonathan Strange & Mr Norrell
by
3.87 avg rating — 253,444 ratings
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| 30 |
|
Bleak House
by
4.02 avg rating — 113,506 ratings
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| 31 |
|
Dune (Dune #1)
by
4.29 avg rating — 1,606,937 ratings
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| 32 |
|
Vanity Fair
by
3.81 avg rating — 132,776 ratings
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| 33 |
|
Great Expectations
by
3.80 avg rating — 867,751 ratings
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| 34 |
|
The Forsyte Saga (The Forsyte Chronicles, #1-3)
by
4.18 avg rating — 20,671 ratings
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| 35 |
|
A People’s History of the United States: 1492 - Present
by
4.09 avg rating — 263,725 ratings
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| 36 |
|
1Q84 (1Q84, #1-3)
by
3.95 avg rating — 337,530 ratings
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| 37 |
|
In Search of Lost Time
by
4.34 avg rating — 13,958 ratings
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| 38 |
|
The Complete Works
by
4.48 avg rating — 57,661 ratings
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| 39 |
|
The Gormenghast Novels (Gormenghast, #1-3)
by
4.03 avg rating — 9,882 ratings
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| 40 |
|
Cloud Atlas
by
4.01 avg rating — 266,036 ratings
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| 41 |
|
Frankenstein
by
3.90 avg rating — 1,846,033 ratings
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| 42 |
|
The Satanic Verses
by
3.71 avg rating — 71,336 ratings
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| 43 |
|
Dracula
by
4.02 avg rating — 1,455,215 ratings
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| 44 |
|
Le Morte d'Arthur
by
3.92 avg rating — 39,311 ratings
score: 836,
and
9 people voted
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| 45 |
|
The Tale of Genji
by
3.72 avg rating — 14,642 ratings
score: 742,
and
8 people voted
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| 46 |
|
A Confederacy of Dunces
by
3.89 avg rating — 295,831 ratings
score: 730,
and
8 people voted
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| 47 |
|
V.
by
3.97 avg rating — 25,178 ratings
score: 663,
and
7 people voted
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| 47 |
|
Gödel, Escher, Bach: An Eternal Golden Braid
by
4.29 avg rating — 52,205 ratings
score: 663,
and
7 people voted
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| 49 |
|
The Wind-Up Bird Chronicle
by
4.14 avg rating — 312,226 ratings
score: 648,
and
7 people voted
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| 50 |
|
The Republic
by
3.97 avg rating — 224,001 ratings
score: 642,
and
7 people voted
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| 51 |
|
Against the Day
by
4.05 avg rating — 10,166 ratings
score: 582,
and
6 people voted
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| 52 |
|
The Pickwick Papers
by
3.85 avg rating — 31,887 ratings
score: 556,
and
6 people voted
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| 53 |
|
Watership Down (Watership Down, #1)
by
4.09 avg rating — 503,439 ratings
score: 555,
and
6 people voted
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| 54 |
|
The Three Musketeers
by
4.10 avg rating — 348,431 ratings
score: 551,
and
6 people voted
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| 55 |
|
The Red and the Black
by
3.86 avg rating — 82,757 ratings
score: 547,
and
6 people voted
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| 56 |
|
A Clockwork Orange
by
really liked it 4.00 avg rating — 763,931 ratings
score: 543,
and
6 people voted
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| 57 |
|
The Idiot
by
4.21 avg rating — 213,922 ratings
score: 540,
and
6 people voted
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| 58 |
|
The Wings of the Dove
by
3.78 avg rating — 17,484 ratings
score: 532,
and
6 people voted
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| 59 |
|
The Shock Doctrine: The Rise of Disaster Capitalism
by
4.29 avg rating — 53,145 ratings
score: 482,
and
5 people voted
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| 60 |
|
Shōgun (Asian Saga, #1)
by
4.41 avg rating — 210,283 ratings
score: 470,
and
5 people voted
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| 61 |
|
Doctor Faustus
by
4.08 avg rating — 13,755 ratings
score: 454,
and
5 people voted
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| 62 |
|
The Chronicles of Narnia
by
4.28 avg rating — 703,111 ratings
score: 450,
and
5 people voted
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| 63 |
|
The Once and Future King (The Once and Future King, #1-5)
by
4.07 avg rating — 117,329 ratings
score: 448,
and
5 people voted
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| 64 |
|
Critique of Pure Reason
by
3.96 avg rating — 41,892 ratings
score: 446,
and
5 people voted
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| 65 |
|
The Way of Kings (The Stormlight Archive, #1)
by
Brandon Sanderson (Goodreads Author)
4.66 avg rating — 654,118 ratings
score: 439,
and
5 people voted
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| 66 |
|
The Man Without Qualities
by
4.19 avg rating — 7,327 ratings
score: 388,
and
4 people voted
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| 67 |
|
A Fine Balance
by
4.38 avg rating — 158,959 ratings
score: 380,
and
4 people voted
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| 68 |
|
The Pale King
by
3.97 avg rating — 19,706 ratings
score: 376,
and
4 people voted
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| 69 |
|
The Recognitions
by
4.21 avg rating — 6,295 ratings
score: 373,
and
4 people voted
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| 70 |
|
The Life of Samuel Johnson
by
3.80 avg rating — 5,328 ratings
score: 371,
and
4 people voted
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| 71 |
|
Joseph and His Brothers
by
4.44 avg rating — 2,178 ratings
score: 369,
and
4 people voted
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| 72 |
|
Kushiel's Justice (Imriel's Trilogy, #2)
by
Jacqueline Carey (Goodreads Author)
4.28 avg rating — 19,805 ratings
score: 354,
and
4 people voted
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| 73 |
|
Mary Queen of Scots
by
3.99 avg rating — 17,422 ratings
score: 341,
and
4 people voted
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| 74 |
|
East of Eden
by
4.44 avg rating — 625,164 ratings
score: 332,
and
4 people voted
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| 75 |
|
Possession
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3.90 avg rating — 84,015 ratings
score: 331,
and
4 people voted
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| 76 |
|
The Unbearable Lightness of Being
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4.11 avg rating — 537,406 ratings
score: 328,
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4 people voted
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| 77 |
|
The Ambassadors
by
3.63 avg rating — 12,950 ratings
score: 327,
and
4 people voted
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| 78 |
|
The Last Cavalier: Being the Adventures of Count Sainte-Hermine in the Age of Napoleon
by
3.66 avg rating — 847 ratings
score: 291,
and
3 people voted
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| 79 |
|
Leviathan
by
3.70 avg rating — 52,406 ratings
score: 288,
and
3 people voted
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| 80 |
|
Little Women (Little Women, #1)
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4.17 avg rating — 2,431,420 ratings
score: 286,
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3 people voted
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| 81 |
|
Master of the Senate (The Years of Lyndon Johnson, #3)
by
4.43 avg rating — 23,982 ratings
score: 278,
and
3 people voted
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| 82 |
|
Holy Bible: The New King James Version
by
4.42 avg rating — 8,072 ratings
score: 271,
and
3 people voted
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| 83 |
|
Kushiel's Dart (Phèdre's Trilogy, #1)
by
Jacqueline Carey (Goodreads Author)
4.02 avg rating — 83,894 ratings
score: 265,
and
3 people voted
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| 84 |
|
Under the Dome
by
Stephen King (Goodreads Author)
3.93 avg rating — 321,966 ratings
score: 261,
and
3 people voted
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| 85 |
|
Anne of Green Gables (Anne of Green Gables, #1)
by
4.33 avg rating — 1,101,219 ratings
score: 260,
and
3 people voted
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| 85 |
|
Life: A User's Manual
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4.18 avg rating — 10,041 ratings
score: 260,
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3 people voted
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| 87 |
|
The History of the Decline and Fall of the Roman Empire (Allen Lane History, 3 Volume Set)
by
4.02 avg rating — 15,396 ratings
score: 238,
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3 people voted
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| 88 |
|
Walden and Civil Disobedience
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3.93 avg rating — 38,912 ratings
score: 235,
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3 people voted
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| 88 |
|
The Anatomy of Melancholy
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4.10 avg rating — 1,892 ratings
score: 235,
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3 people voted
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| 90 |
|
Lucifer's Hammer
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really liked it 4.00 avg rating — 45,285 ratings
score: 197,
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2 people voted
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| 90 |
|
Of Grammatology
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3.97 avg rating — 5,333 ratings
score: 197,
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2 people voted
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| 90 |
|
It
by
Stephen King (Goodreads Author)
4.24 avg rating — 1,252,041 ratings
score: 197,
and
2 people voted
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| 93 |
|
O Lost: A Story of the Buried Life
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4.36 avg rating — 194 ratings
score: 194,
and
2 people voted
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| 94 |
|
The Man in the Iron Mask (Le vicomte de Bragelonne, #4)
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really liked it 4.00 avg rating — 66,097 ratings
score: 193,
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2 people voted
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| 95 |
|
J R
by
4.32 avg rating — 3,773 ratings
score: 188,
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2 people voted
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| 96 |
|
The Toilers of the Sea
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4.05 avg rating — 4,995 ratings
score: 187,
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2 people voted
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| 97 |
|
Fear and Trembling
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really liked it 4.00 avg rating — 30,942 ratings
score: 183,
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2 people voted
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| 98 |
|
Camilla
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3.75 avg rating — 2,912 ratings
score: 182,
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2 people voted
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| 99 |
|
Ethics
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4.10 avg rating — 20,966 ratings
score: 180,
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2 people voted
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| 100 |
|
Kushiel's Chosen (Phèdre's Trilogy, #2)
by
Jacqueline Carey (Goodreads Author)
4.30 avg rating — 41,733 ratings
score: 179,
and
2 people voted
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Tags:
intimidating
Comments Showing 1-7 of 7 (7 new)
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message 1:
by
[deleted user]
(last edited Feb 11, 2010 11:22AM)
(new)
Feb 11, 2010 11:19AM
Oh no! The Count (of Monte Cristo) is just plain fun!! don't be intimidated... now Moby Dick on the other hand gives me the jim jams!!
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The Count may be quite thick, but he really does read fast. Promise!
I may take you up on that. I'm currently reading Pickwick Papers by Dickens. I figure 800+ pages on the tiniest type is the least daunting reason for not finishing the 'intimidating' books on my list. Perhaps Count will be next.
What is said of the Count applies equally to Gone with the Wind! Only daunting in size, not matter. It is pretty heartwrenching (in my opinion) which makes its re-read daunting, but I still love it, and would recommend it to anyone, not just avid readers. All those pages fly by fast and are completely worth it!
Don Quixote is not hard to read at all. It's an extremely funny and intriguing text. Everyone should take a closer look at it.
Excellent List. How can i save this list on my computer.
War and Peace is long, slow paced at times and may be a bit boring but amazing. I hope you'll give it a chance. (I was scared of the size, too, so I bought it in 3 or 4 poket sized books)
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