BIG BOOKS DONT HAVE TO BE SCARY!! (500+ page books that are easy to read)

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  • Опубліковано 8 січ 2025

КОМЕНТАРІ • 170

  • @mehr4545
    @mehr4545 3 місяці тому +8

    1:58 A Tree Grows In Brooklyn
    5:51 1Q84
    8:31 The World According To Garp
    10:41 A Little Life
    12:31 White Teeth
    13:24 East of Eden

  • @orangeelliot
    @orangeelliot 4 місяці тому +81

    "Because you know what? I haven't read 'em, OK?" is beautiful

  • @courtenaywrites
    @courtenaywrites 4 місяці тому +120

    The Count of Monte Cristo is my favourite book of all time, a book over 1,000 pages, and super easy to read!

  • @MrRosebeing
    @MrRosebeing 4 місяці тому +49

    I've read big books and I cannot lie, but there's a special thing I can't deny about an itty-bitty short story in your face when you're busy and on the fly.
    I like novellas, come on fellas give 'em a try...
    but if you really, really have to read a big 500+ page book, then just remember the clock is ticking and it may not be a good one.
    Here endeth my comment that gave novels a bad rap.

  • @gonesavage
    @gonesavage Місяць тому +1

    1Q84 - I was riveted when it started! I thought this is going to really be great, then it just fizzled out and turned into something different.
    World According to Garp - I read the final week of my first year at college and so happy to read it then. I loved reading that book, it brings back many great memories.
    East of Eden - mentioned in every video because it's the greatest book of all time! I wish I could read it again for the first time. Like you said, every page is a work of genius. The language is like a warm blanket or fire. It took me forever to read as I was just savoring it. Love it so much.

  • @ReadingIDEAS.-uz9xk
    @ReadingIDEAS.-uz9xk 4 місяці тому +18

    Read the Count of Monte Cristo earlier this year. A different experience being with a book and a writer for so long. Excellent book. Happy reading to you.

  • @sausana2501
    @sausana2501 4 місяці тому +15

    East of Eden is Phenomenal! I read it because of you and now I want to read this mans entire work! It’s literally the PERFECT book! Great message, amazing characters, impressive language thats easy to read at the same time.. dude its my new bible!

  • @SheriMaple
    @SheriMaple 4 місяці тому +12

    A Tree Grows in Brooklyn and The World According to Garp are excellent for fall reading.

  • @johnbarry7874
    @johnbarry7874 4 місяці тому +18

    I finished East Of Eden about a week ago, and loved it a whole lot. An epic tale. I recall reading White Teeth when it came out, maybe 2000’ish 🤔 (yes, I am like, 137 years old). Thanks for another tremendous vid.

  • @manshinagar614
    @manshinagar614 3 місяці тому +10

    The Count of Monte Cristo is book no one ever regretted reading....

  • @FishareFriendsNotFood972
    @FishareFriendsNotFood972 4 місяці тому +10

    My favorite part of long books is the feeling of weight in my hand when I hold them

  • @louis_66
    @louis_66 4 місяці тому +23

    Moby Dick reads like a blog called, THE WHALE, by username: Ishmael. I was very surprised by how readable it is, in short installments, and how much of it I read on my phone commuting to work.
    Random others: Underworld (Don DeLillo), House of Leaves (Mark Danielewski), The Throat (Peter Straub).

  • @given2501
    @given2501 3 місяці тому +2

    Before starting Anna Karenina, that book was hauntingly big for me (around 963 to 980 pages in Everyman's library edition) but then I started it and it was such a ride because the translation wasn't as difficult as I expected it to be. Then I read Jane Eyre (520 pages, Penguin Clothbound aka worst classics edition) and again such an awesome book.

  • @JacquesSauniere3
    @JacquesSauniere3 4 місяці тому +25

    This channel is the most original on UA-cam!!!

  • @pennPi
    @pennPi 4 місяці тому +9

    Im a slow reader. But when it comes to Robin Hobbs, I will fly through those hefty books. Her writing is so beautiful and the characters are so well developed that I don't want the stories to end.

  • @JesusChristisLord77777
    @JesusChristisLord77777 4 місяці тому +20

    Also consider Larry McMurtry’s Lonesome Dove. It’s a biggun and it’s incredible.

  • @AnSe902
    @AnSe902 4 місяці тому +7

    I'm from Germany but watch many english and american Booktubers. You're the first one to ever mention John Irving. He is quite popular here so I was surprised to learn that his novels aren't reviewed at all.

  • @GodheadNee
    @GodheadNee 4 місяці тому +32

    I know you said you haven't read 'em, but I got excited clicking on this for someone else to realize that War and Peace is incredibly readable and a lot of the time super funny. It feels more like The Office to me, a lot of the time, except it's 1830 Russia and everyone has a lot of opinions about Napoleon.

    • @JoeRobson
      @JoeRobson 4 місяці тому +2

      I agree! most of the chapters are a couple of pages long and the most recent translation by Anthony Briggs makes it an easy read. Its reputation as an intimidating book is undeserved.

  • @bossdeman
    @bossdeman 3 місяці тому

    You're a star .. youuu...i love watching you perform as much as enjoying the content on books...

  • @freshair5358
    @freshair5358 4 місяці тому +3

    The World According to Garp! Absolutely my fav. I haven't read it in a long time. I guess I will be checking it out at the library again!

  • @_thebeigelord
    @_thebeigelord 4 місяці тому

    You are one of my favourite people on the internet. Thank you for being here, there and everywhere. Love your videos so much!

  • @stephenbertino8373
    @stephenbertino8373 4 місяці тому +4

    War and Peace. Seeing Natasha grow up was unforgettable and prepared me for being a teacher.

  • @TalkAsSoftAsChalk
    @TalkAsSoftAsChalk 3 місяці тому +2

    A recent 500+ page book that I absolutely sped through (except for a few parts) was The God of the woods. Incredible storytelling! I couldn't possibly recommend it more.

  • @TerryJ950
    @TerryJ950 4 місяці тому +3

    A Tree Grows in Brooklyn was the first book I read from the adult book section of the public library. I’m 74 so a very long time ago. I don’t remember it being that big and now I want to reread it after all these years. I also read World According to Garp and East of Eden, which is in my top five favorite books of all time. Two big books I’d recommend are Prince of Tides, and a very little talked about book call Boys and Girls Together by William Goldman. Very popular in the 60’s and I’m sure out of print, but also in my top five. My most reread book. Great video and love the glasses on you!

    • @evangelinepoe8952
      @evangelinepoe8952 4 місяці тому

      Oh...Prince of Tides...I was hooked from the first paragraph of the prologue. Two small sentences, but what an impact. I now own and have read his entire oeuvre.

  • @cassietower9694
    @cassietower9694 2 місяці тому

    I read and loved East of Eden and A Tree Grows in Brooklyn! Just added the others to my wishlist - thanks!

  • @emmmailaqua
    @emmmailaqua 4 місяці тому

    Big books are the best. The older I get, the more I've grown to appreciate them. I actually find it easier to read more consistently when I'm devouring a big book, because I don't have to get acquainted with a new world the way you do when you're reading lots of shorter books.
    Currently reading I Know This Much Is True by Wally Lamb and my goodness.. this book is something else. HIGHLY recommend, i think you'd love it.

  • @DávidHomola-k6v
    @DávidHomola-k6v 4 місяці тому

    I am so glad that you have mentioned John Irving! He is the best and nobody is talking about him enough nowadays! His books are just safe space for me. I could read anything, but if I come back to him after other books, it is just a pleasure!

  • @styxcreek
    @styxcreek 4 місяці тому +3

    Biggest book I’ve read is Jubilee Hitchhiker - a biography of Richard Brautigan by William Hjortsberg. 1400 pages of very small print. Took me the best part of 6 months.

  • @daisee12
    @daisee12 4 місяці тому +4

    i’ve gotta add the shards by bret easton ellis here !! it’s so fun and addictive that you forget it’s over 500 pages long

  • @amandang__
    @amandang__ 4 місяці тому +1

    1Q84 is my favourite book of all time. I’m so glad you mentioned it ❤️

  • @sitka0516
    @sitka0516 2 місяці тому

    a tree grows in brooklyn has been my favorite book since i read it freshman year of high school (formative time to read a story like that!). i feel very validated that you also find it so perfect lol. i’m reading east of eden next, and i hope i haven’t hyped it up too much for myself!

  • @josryder7841
    @josryder7841 4 місяці тому

    I read A Tree Grows in Brooklyn and was surprised at how much I enjoyed the story and experience of reading it! Great list!

  • @ReadingAde
    @ReadingAde 10 днів тому

    The only Steinbeck I’ve read is Grapes of Wrath. It’s in my top 3. Also one of the few books that left me in tears. East of Eden has been on my TBR for a while. I’m gonna pick it up next.

  • @nobbynoris
    @nobbynoris 4 місяці тому +1

    Lady, you always look fabulous in your videos, with or without glasses.

  • @Emmavalerie16
    @Emmavalerie16 4 місяці тому +1

    Just finished east of Eden and god it’s one of the only books where I really did want to take my time reading every page but I truly raced through it…

  • @tarquinmidwinter2056
    @tarquinmidwinter2056 4 місяці тому +4

    Great video and book suggestions. My own favourite long book? Kristin Lavransdatter by Sigrid Undset, head and shoulders above the rest.

    • @PeeweeM80
      @PeeweeM80 3 місяці тому

      Read Kristin Lavransdatter this year and loved it! I came here to recommend it too.

  • @bex262
    @bex262 4 місяці тому +1

    i dont read long books too often but when i do it's just brilliant the way you connect to the characters and the world is just so much more intimate! i read 'Light in August' by Faulkner which if you like Steinbeck i think you will looove he's truly a master writer!

  • @Goolop77
    @Goolop77 4 місяці тому +1

    You have such a refreshing personality, Ana! I truly suggest you read Lonesome Dove by Larry McMurtry. It is in fact a big book (~850 pages). It’s a western epic, but it is the most exciting journey I’ve ever been on and the characters are incredible. I want to eat it like a big paper sandwich so it lives in me forever and I hope it does the same for you.

  • @ashleyelizabeth8335
    @ashleyelizabeth8335 4 місяці тому +1

    Fortress of Solitude! A Bildungsroman doorstopper that eerily captures the feeling of being a child in 1970s Brooklyn. (Never been to Brooklyn, wasn’t around in the ‘70s). I like your picks. I am going to start East of Eden today.

  • @remingtongraves
    @remingtongraves 4 місяці тому +2

    Ooo, my first big book was The Witching Hour by Anne Rice. I read a repress of the original hardcover which is 976 pages long. There were a couple slow parts here and there but for the most part I breezed thru it because it was so wild and captivating and fun. I’ve read it three times in my life since. - Great video. I always look forward to your content and click on new posts immediately.

  • @allancooke400
    @allancooke400 4 місяці тому

    The Gold Bug Variations. 600+ pages. Very challenging at times (Molecular Biologists discussing DNA, Bach, Art and then falling in love playing intellectual games). But so worth a bit of patience and perseverance. Beautifully sculpted characters.

  • @lindac3395
    @lindac3395 4 місяці тому +1

    A Tree Grows in Brooklyn, I cried too. East of Eden, I cried harder! Cheers, 💕

  • @caras4766
    @caras4766 3 місяці тому

    Loved this video! I'd like to read all of these apart from A Little Life. Some of my favourite big books that you might like are Middlesex by Jeffery Eugenides, The Women's Room by Marilyn French, and The Secret History by Donna Tartt

  • @ell-111
    @ell-111 4 місяці тому +1

    anaa!! you're at 52k alreadyy? i remember when you were still expressing your wish for 10k at least for months haha congrats girll

  • @rubyanddelilahandnani
    @rubyanddelilahandnani 4 місяці тому +3

    I love when a book is delicious. I definitely have East of Eden on my list. I own it actually.

  • @digitalbookworm5678
    @digitalbookworm5678 3 місяці тому

    About 5 years ago I read Shadow Country by Peter Matthiessen (890 pgs). I couldn't put it down. So good, less than a year later I read it again.

  • @stefashaler8340
    @stefashaler8340 4 місяці тому

    Wow. I love your generosity and intelligence. Thank you for all the videos.

  • @deadbudrita
    @deadbudrita 4 місяці тому

    Ana, your energy is what I’m in for. You’re so fun and so cool. I could watch your videos on a loop.
    Love love. ❤️

  • @Upthehillaroundacorner
    @Upthehillaroundacorner 3 місяці тому

    I stumbled upon your channel and boy am i glad i did!! Good to know that im not the only one who wears blue light glasses to put together a look. I must binge watch your videos you are absolutely stunning 😊

  • @KirahsUltraFavs101
    @KirahsUltraFavs101 3 місяці тому

    Came across your channel and instantly subscribed within 5 mins. Love your wit! 🩶

  • @yessica3420
    @yessica3420 4 місяці тому

    A True Novel by Minae Mizumura is slow paced but such a great read. You get pulled into the world of the characters and it all feels so real

  • @paytonturkeltaub4720
    @paytonturkeltaub4720 4 місяці тому

    Feeling like a true fan for immediately knowing the last one was gonna be east of Eden!

  • @danielgarlock2074
    @danielgarlock2074 4 місяці тому +3

    I was so hoping for "Gravity's Rainbow," to hear your thoughts; in all my years including some working in bookstores I've only encountered one other person who'd finished it.

  • @jacquelineisaac2731
    @jacquelineisaac2731 Місяць тому

    Yes 🙌 John Irving all his novels and yes 🙌 to East of Eden I recommend this to anyone and everyone who reads! Awesome 👏😎

  • @cunningba
    @cunningba 4 місяці тому +1

    I just finished a big book that I’ve been working on for a while. Sense of Wonder: A Century of Science Fiction, edited by Leigh Grossman. An anthology designed as a text book for science fiction survey. The Kindle edition clocks in at 5,645 pages. (I understand that there is a much abridged paperback edition with less than 20% of the content that will still probably break your wrist.)

  • @LittleMew133
    @LittleMew133 4 місяці тому +2

    I have been reading Braiding Sweet Grass, for what felt like, 82 years.

    • @daisee12
      @daisee12 4 місяці тому

      lol pray for me i’m only 30 pages in 🥲

  • @Bloooopppp
    @Bloooopppp 16 днів тому

    Not the screaming when she showed us a little life 😂

  • @hy.a.cinthh
    @hy.a.cinthh 4 місяці тому

    yesss. I've only recently found your channel but I LOVE it. amazing nail polish btw !!

  • @crvlad
    @crvlad 4 місяці тому +8

    For me, a slow reader of small books, a big book is every book with more than 250 pages 😩🥵. I recently finished a book - September (by Rosamunde Pilcher)- with 630 pages and I'm exhausted.😅

  • @snehapradhan5591
    @snehapradhan5591 4 місяці тому

    The intro just made me fall in love

  • @rm3325
    @rm3325 4 місяці тому +1

    Seconding some comments I'm seeing that mention The Wind Up Bird Chronicle by Murakami which is also 600+ pages! So still a biggun and I think a better intro to his work than 1Q84.

  • @caterosa3893
    @caterosa3893 4 місяці тому

    Valley of the Dolls would have to be my rec! I could NOT put that down...i was entranced by those lovely ladies' lives!

  • @NicoleB-f4w
    @NicoleB-f4w 4 місяці тому

    The Way the Crow Flies by Ann-Marie McDonald is a long one (800ish pages), but I absolutely couldn’t put it down - one of my favourites.

  • @epiphoney
    @epiphoney 4 місяці тому

    Here's the reading times according to the kobo website, which is based on word count. Page counts can be deceptive.
    A tree grows in Brooklyn, 12-13
    1Q84 33-36
    The world according to Garp 15-16
    A little life 24-26
    White teeth 13-14
    East of Eden 18-19

  • @nate7081
    @nate7081 3 місяці тому +1

    i read a little life really quickly because i hated it so deeply i needed to finish it as quickly as possible lol

  • @icxc1999
    @icxc1999 4 місяці тому

    I finished Lonesome Dove this summer, that was quite a journey!

  • @LifeisGoodLiveFully
    @LifeisGoodLiveFully 4 місяці тому

    Try Ken Follet also. Fabulous reads that you don't want to end, even though some books are over 1,000 pages.

  • @bex262
    @bex262 4 місяці тому

    all of sarah water's books are looong but so readable im currently reading 'The Fingersmith' which is so quick to read and exciting and i would really recommend 'The Little Stranger'

  • @williambissell972
    @williambissell972 4 місяці тому +2

    John Irving's latest book, "the Last Chairlift", is extraordinary... and a doorstop

  • @hippyvanmug
    @hippyvanmug 3 місяці тому +2

    Jane eyre, long but very readable and great story

  • @stdwynwen
    @stdwynwen 4 місяці тому +1

    Last week, finished for the first time 'The Count of Monte Cristo'. 1243 pages. Am I glad I read it; did I enjoy it? Yes. Will I ever read it again? No. My next big never read book, pegged for next year, is 'Bleak House' 989 pages.

  • @OldManReads-c9r
    @OldManReads-c9r 4 місяці тому

    I loved 1Q84, and Murakami for that matter. I haven't seen the 3 book edition in English, but the book was released in 3 parts in Japan. Another long books that absolutely amazing is Stephen King's 11/22/63...I couldn't put It down...sooo good.

  • @loriehaisen9555
    @loriehaisen9555 3 місяці тому

    The longest book I ever read was "Gone with the Wind" and it was a chonker...but the story was very good and I couldn't put it down.

  • @joshbryant6366
    @joshbryant6366 4 місяці тому

    one of my fav toe smashers: the goldfinch💛

  • @EmiliaLou
    @EmiliaLou 3 місяці тому

    I just added White Teeth to my physical tbr the other day telling myself “it is time now“ and now seeing your video was like the universe telling me, yes, it is REALLY time now, so thank you for that 😂

  • @cindyurban150
    @cindyurban150 4 місяці тому +1

    East of Eden one of my favorite books !

  • @WarningDontReadThis
    @WarningDontReadThis 4 місяці тому

    i made a video yonks ago where i feature multiple big books i love but to name a few Lonesome Dove, A Place of Greater Safety. Love a big ol' tome.

  • @jjcabello1
    @jjcabello1 4 місяці тому +3

    I love 1Q85! Love! Do a whole Murakami video…The Wind Up Bird Chronicle at least🙏

  • @deblawrence8341
    @deblawrence8341 4 місяці тому +1

    Great bookends: "A Tree Grows in Brooklyn" and "East of Eden" and yes! ... " ... do I NEEEEED to say it?" ~ha ha, for us regulars, you did not! 😆 Since we're on the subject of books that hold interest on each and every page, may I suggest "Mala's Cat" by Mala Kacenberg? Not a boring page in the entire memoir.

  • @ThoughtfulTomes-channel
    @ThoughtfulTomes-channel 2 місяці тому

    Every day I will spend 1 hour to read all those books. It will reduce stress and fatigue.

  • @PhungThanhNhung
    @PhungThanhNhung 4 місяці тому

    the book that changed everything for me was Magnetic Aura from Borlest

  • @neonoires
    @neonoires 4 місяці тому +1

    Wow. You're really doing it, aren't you? I read 1Q84 and White Teeth, those are fab.
    I read Anna Karenina and War & Peace and surprisingly.... those were easy to read. ESPECIALLY Anna K. War and Peace is easy but I highly recommend watching at least one of the miniseries before. I watched the 2016 BBC version and I really enjoyed it. It took me about a week to finish War and Peace but I was surprised that I got through it. Yes, it can be a slog in some parts because I hate reading about war... I just can never get into it but the more social aspects of the book kept me drawn in. At a certain point I was happy to spend that time in War and Peace at the end of a long day.
    Another long book that doesn't feel like it that everyone either loves or hates these days.... The Secret History. I'm always surprised to realize that book is over 500 pages because it doesn't feel like it at all.

  • @ZohraMaura
    @ZohraMaura 4 місяці тому

    I like to use my copy of War and Peace as a yoga block when needs be (haven’t read it but listened to it on audiobook in 2020). Also read East of Eden in 2022 and it’s also my favourite book of all time! (Must admit that although I am a 36 year old woman, I think I picked it up because of Emma Chamberlain, lol.)

  • @johnsailorsgoat
    @johnsailorsgoat 3 місяці тому +3

    Anna Karenina and War & Peace are amazing, soul changing, doorstopping novels!

  • @TheSmellworthyReport
    @TheSmellworthyReport 4 місяці тому

    Just started East of Eden! If I’m intimated by a big book, I look at it as reading two or three shorter books in a series. A series in one volume. 🤷🏻

  • @joaoalmeida9993
    @joaoalmeida9993 4 місяці тому

    This video features my two favorite books/ authors. Garp and White Teeth. I read all of Irving and Smith’s novels when I was in my 20s and then read all of them again when I turned 30 but this time in chronological order.
    Might be an unpopular opinion but really recommend Until I find you by John Irving. Both times I read the ending just destroyed me. It has the kind of payoff a 1000 page book ought to have.

  • @michaelrichards669
    @michaelrichards669 3 місяці тому

    Im reading Stephen King's The Tommyknockers right now.... on page 482 out of 550. I enjoyed most of the book. But the end of the book was Slow in certain parts. I shall find out with these last 70 pages.

  • @dooma1530
    @dooma1530 4 місяці тому

    I just KNEW East of Eden will be on this list! (and yet I still haven’t read it, it still is in my book pile of shame)

  • @alexisclark9232
    @alexisclark9232 3 місяці тому

    Barkskins by Annie Proulx. 717 pages and I was swept through!

  • @brianlehman710
    @brianlehman710 4 місяці тому

    The Power Broker - stunning. 1163 pages.

  • @poetrybysuhashani__
    @poetrybysuhashani__ 4 місяці тому +2

    i needed this video ☕

  • @shmizzleshmazzle9830
    @shmizzleshmazzle9830 4 місяці тому +3

    im reading the oxford annotated bible with apocrypha and then im following it up with the norton complete shakespeare. pls dont talk to me about big books 😭

  • @kayrashi3673
    @kayrashi3673 24 дні тому

    3 months late but I need lippy details.. gorgeous 😍

  • @sylviaeneriz4808
    @sylviaeneriz4808 4 місяці тому

    Ana, I would love to hear your opinion on The Grapes of Wrath by John Steinbeck. I also loved East of Eden but The Grapes of Wrath blew me even more away. Stunning writing.

  • @callmeliska
    @callmeliska 4 місяці тому

    Hi Ana, I loved the video!!
    I feel quite passionate about the Cairo Trilogie by Nagib Mahfuz, who is an egyptian author that won a nobel prize. So far I have only read the first of three books called "Palace Walk" (I read it in German: "Zwischen den Palästen"). It tells the story of a family, living in Cairo during 1917 to 1990, while Egypt was still occupied by the British. The life of the family is shaped by the father and head of the family who is patriarchal tyrant at home, but is singing and drinking with his friends after work as well as dating belly dancers. The story basically tells us about his double life and how all the family members deal with his tyranny at home. The only thing that was scary about this book was my reaction to it, as his behavior made my very angry multiple times. But that's also what I loved about the book. I would love to know your opinion (or other people in the comment section) on the literature of Nagib Mahfuz, even if you don't like it. If you ever find time to read any of it :)

  • @Tetsujin-28
    @Tetsujin-28 4 місяці тому

    Thumbnail: I'm getting Big Swiss font vibes.
    1Q84: Knocked Pillars of the Earth off of the #1 best book I have ever read.

  • @prescilla201
    @prescilla201 3 місяці тому

    Lonesome Dove by McMurtry is another big book worth checking out

  • @MaelysCha
    @MaelysCha 2 місяці тому

    Have you read any novels by Jonathan Franzen yet? Truly incredible! Definitely one of the best American writers ♥️

  • @suredeydo
    @suredeydo 4 місяці тому +1

    This is adorable 🥰😇📚

  • @laurent.1548
    @laurent.1548 4 місяці тому

    I love this look on u!