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How long does it take to read the classics?

75 great books, timed at your reading speed. Word counts are approximate, for standard unabridged editions.

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BookLengthHoursDays to finish
War and PeaceLeo Tolstoy 560k 37 h 75 days
Les MisérablesVictor Hugo 530k 35 h 71 days
The Count of Monte CristoAlexandre Dumas 460k 31 h 62 days
The Brothers KaramazovFyodor Dostoevsky 365k 24 h 49 days
David CopperfieldCharles Dickens 355k 24 h 48 days
Anna KareninaLeo Tolstoy 350k 23 h 47 days
Don QuixoteMiguel de Cervantes 345k 23 h 46 days
MiddlemarchGeorge Eliot 316k 21 h 43 days
The Three MusketeersAlexandre Dumas 275k 18 h 37 days
UlyssesJames Joyce 265k 18 h 36 days
The IdiotFyodor Dostoevsky 240k 16 h 32 days
Crime and PunishmentFyodor Dostoevsky 211k 14 h 29 days
Moby-DickHerman Melville 209k 14 h 28 days
The Hunchback of Notre-DameVictor Hugo 195k 13 h 26 days
Great ExpectationsCharles Dickens 185k 12 h 25 days
Jane EyreCharlotte Brontë 185k 12 h 25 days
Little WomenLouisa May Alcott 185k 12 h 25 days
DraculaBram Stoker 160k 11 h 22 days
EmmaJane Austen 160k 11 h 22 days
Oliver TwistCharles Dickens 155k 10 h 21 days
The IliadHomer 155k 10 h 21 days
A Tale of Two CitiesCharles Dickens 135k 9.0 h 18 days
Lord JimJoseph Conrad 130k 8.7 h 18 days
Pride and PrejudiceJane Austen 122k 8.1 h 17 days
Sense and SensibilityJane Austen 120k 8.0 h 16 days
Robinson CrusoeDaniel Defoe 120k 8.0 h 16 days
The OdysseyHomer 120k 8.0 h 16 days
The RepublicPlato 118k 7.9 h 16 days
The Divine ComedyDante Alighieri 115k 7.7 h 16 days
Madame BovaryGustave Flaubert 115k 7.7 h 16 days
WaldenHenry David Thoreau 114k 7.6 h 16 days
Twenty Thousand Leagues Under the SeasJules Verne 110k 7.3 h 15 days
The Adventures of Huckleberry FinnMark Twain 110k 7.3 h 15 days
Wuthering HeightsEmily Brontë 107k 7.1 h 15 days
The Adventures of Sherlock HolmesArthur Conan Doyle 105k 7.0 h 14 days
Gulliver's TravelsJonathan Swift 105k 7.0 h 14 days
Grimms' Fairy TalesThe Brothers Grimm 100k 6.7 h 14 days
Anne of Green GablesL. M. Montgomery 97k 6.5 h 13 days
Thus Spoke ZarathustraFriedrich Nietzsche 95k 6.3 h 13 days
PersuasionJane Austen 87k 5.8 h 12 days
A Portrait of the Artist as a Young ManJames Joyce 85k 5.7 h 12 days
The Secret GardenFrances Hodgson Burnett 81k 5.4 h 11 days
Paradise LostJohn Milton 80k 5.3 h 11 days
The Picture of Dorian GrayOscar Wilde 78k 5.2 h 11 days
FrankensteinMary Shelley 75k 5.0 h 10 days
Faust (both parts)J. W. von Goethe 75k 5.0 h 10 days
White FangJack London 72k 4.8 h 10 days
Silas MarnerGeorge Eliot 71k 4.7 h 10 days
The Adventures of Tom SawyerMark Twain 70k 4.7 h 10 days
DublinersJames Joyce 68k 4.5 h 10 days
Treasure IslandRobert Louis Stevenson 67k 4.5 h 9 days
Beyond Good and EvilFriedrich Nietzsche 65k 4.3 h 9 days
Journey to the Center of the EarthJules Verne 65k 4.3 h 9 days
Around the World in Eighty DaysJules Verne 63k 4.2 h 9 days
The Scarlet LetterNathaniel Hawthorne 63k 4.2 h 9 days
The War of the WorldsH. G. Wells 60k 4.0 h 8 days
The Hound of the BaskervillesArthur Conan Doyle 59k 3.9 h 8 days
MeditationsMarcus Aurelius 50k 3.3 h 7 days
The Invisible ManH. G. Wells 50k 3.3 h 7 days
A Study in ScarletArthur Conan Doyle 44k 2.9 h 6 days
Notes from the UndergroundFyodor Dostoevsky 42k 2.8 h 6 days
The Wonderful Wizard of OzL. Frank Baum 39k 2.6 h 6 days
Heart of DarknessJoseph Conrad 38k 2.5 h 6 days
CandideVoltaire 35k 2.3 h 5 days
The Call of the WildJack London 32k 2.1 h 5 days
The Time MachineH. G. Wells 32k 2.1 h 5 days
The PrinceNiccolò Machiavelli 30k 2.0 h 4 days
A Christmas CarolCharles Dickens 29k 1.9 h 4 days
Alice's Adventures in WonderlandLewis Carroll 27k 1.8 h 4 days
Dr Jekyll and Mr HydeRobert Louis Stevenson 26k 1.7 h 4 days
The MetamorphosisFranz Kafka 22k 1.5 h 3 days
The Importance of Being EarnestOscar Wilde 22k 1.5 h 3 days
The SymposiumPlato 20k 1.3 h 3 days
The Art of WarSun Tzu 11k 0.7 h 2 days
Tao Te ChingLaozi 6k 0.4 h 1 day

Every book above is in the public domain and included free in Seven Reads — with an AI companion that answers questions from the pages you've read and structurally cannot spoil what's ahead. Click any title for its reading guide.

Whatever your speed, the streak is what finishes books. Seven Reads tracks honest reading time, keeps your place, and answers your questions along the way — all 75 books above are on the shelf, free.

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Frequently asked questions

How is reading time calculated?

Hours = the book’s approximate word count ÷ your reading speed in words per minute. Word counts are commonly cited figures for standard unabridged English editions (translations vary a few percent either way), and the default speed is 250 words per minute — a typical adult pace for fiction.

What is the average reading speed?

Most adults read fiction at roughly 200–300 words per minute with full comprehension; 250 is a fair default. Dense philosophy reads slower, page-turners faster — drag the slider to match how you actually read.

What is the longest classic novel?

Among widely read classics, War and Peace (~560,000 words) and Les Misérables (~530,000) top the list — roughly 35 hours each at typical pace. At the other end, the Tao Te Ching is about 6,000 words: one evening.