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What's the longest book you've ever read?
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Gone With the Wind, I think. And I enjoyed it. :-)
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What's the longest book you've ever read, and was it worth the huge number of pag..."
The Stand by Stephen King
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Gone with the Wind by Margaret Mitchell
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The Lord of the Rings by J.R.R. Tolkien three books in one and loved every word of its 1216 pages. Would love to read it again one day.
I think mine is probably The Far Pavilions (1289pp), which I read a couple of years ago. It was ok, but felt like such a weight on my shoulders, I was willing it to end. It wasn’t boring though - being such a lengthy book, it switched genres a few times before the end!!
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Did you read it all Ryan? I'd imagine you'd figure out early in the 1198 pages that it wasn't to your liking?
A Suitable Boy by Vikram Seth 1474 pages, I think it took me a week... and I definitely did enjoy it.
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Okay I have read that too so that may be my longest!
Brenda wrote: "Did you read it all Ryan? I'd imagine you'd figure out early in the 1198 pages that it wasn't to your liking?"I hate not finishing books. I feel like a quitter, which is pretty stupid I guess.
Also, I've read books that were made better by their ending. This one was mildly interesting until the end when I realised there was nothing profound here. It was all just propaganda. And I say this as someone who doesn't reject Rand's point of view outright. I just don't like being lectured.
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I hate not finishing books. I feel like a quitter, which is pretty stu..."
Ha! I do know what you mean - but I figured that there are so many good books out there that it's a waste of my time to read something I'm not enjoying.
Brenda wrote: "Ha! I do know what you mean - but I figured that there are so many good books out there that it's a waste of my time to read something I'm not enjoying. "That would certainly be a better use of my time Brenda.
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That would certainly be a ..."
That it would 😃
Phrynne wrote: "Marianne wrote: "A Suitable Boy by Vikram Seth 1474 pages, I think it took me a week..."Okay I have read that too so that may be my longest!"
Oh I read that too!
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I have read it but today it is published in separate volumes.
Phrynne wrote: "Marianne wrote: "A Suitable Boy by Vikram Seth 1474 pages, I think it took me a week..."Okay I have read that too so that may be my longest!"
I remember it because at the beginning Seth makes a joke apology for maybe breaking the reader's wrist with the weight of it.
Gone with the Wind - 1037 pages, War and Peace was longer 1300+ pages and then more recently The Passage by Justin Cronin which was a tiny 800 pagesAvoid such huge books nowadays. Don’t have the strength to hold them up - although eBooks certainly make things easier in that regard.
Longest for me is A Fine Balance by Rohinton Mistry at 614p so modest compared to many of you.I have The Passage by Justin Cronin lined up to read in my holidays in two weeks time. It weighs in at 963p.
According to my read list on Goodreads, the longest book I've read is A Breath of Snow and Ashes by Diana Gabaldon at 1410 pages, but the biggest in size would be my copy of The Sunne in Splendour although only a mere (LOL) 1080 pages it is a Hardcover and could easily pass for a doorstop or maybe a brick. It was very hard to read but I did love the story. One that definitely needs to be purchased on Kindle, so I can re-read one day without the physical exertion :)
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Although it's really three books, I first read 'Lord of the Rings' in a single volume paperback version. I don't recommend reading it that way, - it was falling apart by the time I finished it.
Diana wrote: "Longest for me is A Fine Balance by Rohinton Mistry at 614p so modest compared to many of you.I have The Passage by Justin Cronin lined up..."
I have the The Passage to read and have been putting off until I finished my yearly challenge. Aim to have it read by the end of the year.
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The Lord of the Rings
Stella wrote: "Although it's really three books, I first read 'Lord of the Rings' in a single volume paperback version. I don't recommend reading it that way, - it was falling apart by the time I finished it."The Stand started falling apart on me too! The last twenty pages started coming loose as I got close to the end.
War and Peace at 1392 pages but that was many years ago. In recent years, The Goldfinch by Donna Tartt (771 pages), and A Little Life by Hanya Yanagihara (720 pages) have been both my longest, and MOST favourite, reads!!
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American Tabloid by James Ellroy
Hitler: 1889-1936 Hubris by Ian Kershaw
The Red Queen by Isobelle Carmody clocks in at 1108 pages and is definitely the longest I've read. Sadly, the entire first half of the book was very boring and unnecessary to the series arc, so it took me quite a while to read it.
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Anything by Dorothy Dunnett , but since I have to put a title The Game of Kings by Dorothy Dunnett - best book ever, read it three times so far.
I think War and Peace was the first book over 1000 pages that I read but A Suitable Boy by Vikram Seth is probably the longest I've ever read.
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The Game of Kings by Dorothy Dunnett
Virginia wrote: "Anything by Dorothy Dunnett , but since I have to put a title The Game of Kings by Dorothy Dunnett - best book ever, read it three times so far."Dunnett's Lymond chronicles are one of my favourite series too Virginia - although huge, the books were never long enough for me!
The longest, and my most favourite book of all time, at 776 pages would be The Hitch Hiker's Guide to the Galaxy: A Trilogy in Five Parts
If I dismiss books like LoTR which are omnibuses, then I'd have to say Words of Radiance by Brandon Sanderson.
I'm a bit late on the bandwagon here, but for me It - Stephen King. The version I read (and own) is 1,376 pages. I found it well worth the read!
Discounting omnibus editions of fantasy series books, and working from memory, probably James A. Michener books:
- 1136 pages
- 1104 pages
- 1056 pagesThe man knew how to churn out a hefty book!
The longest books I have read more than once - Ken Follett:
- 973 pages (3 times I think)
- 1014 pages (twice I think)
- only once at 916 pages.It is not impossible that I would one day read all three again :)
☼♄Jülie wrote: "Phrynne wrote: "Marianne wrote: "A Suitable Boy by Vikram Seth 1474 pages, I think it took me a week..."Okay I have read that too so that may be my longest!"
Oh I rea..."
I read that as well, when it first came out. It was a huge tome, and hardcover...the weight of it! But worth it.
I read War and Peace which, on kindle, was 1074 pages but, like you Ken, I also read The Stand in the unabridged paperback which was 1424 pages so this must be my longest so far - and I loved it!
The Stand (uncut edition) is under 500,000 words, making it shorter than War and Peace which is 587,287 words. (Without commentary, etc.)A Suitable Boy has 591,552 words.
Les Miserables has 655,478 words.
À la recherche du temps perdu by Proust holds the Guinness World Record for the longest novel at 1,267,069 words, although it spans 7 original volumes.
Looks like I haven't hit the 1k mark yet, with my longest read ever being Kingdom of Ash by Sarah J. Maas with 980 pages. (Read Nov this year). Now I have a challenge for next year!!
Aussie Readers
Books mentioned in this topic
Kingdom of Ash (other topics)War and Peace (other topics)
The Stand (other topics)
A Suitable Boy (other topics)
Hawaii (other topics)
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Authors mentioned in this topic
Sarah J. Maas (other topics)Vikram Seth (other topics)
Ken Follett (other topics)
James A. Michener (other topics)
Stephen King (other topics)
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What's the longest book you've ever read, and was it worth the huge number of pages inside?
NOTE: The book must have been printed in a single volume, not split into multiple - eg. the hardback version of A Storm of Swords would count, but not the two volume paperback version. Thanks.