So you love reading, but just when you are getting right into a book, getting to know the characters and loving the writing, suddenly it ends! Does this ever happen to you? Well me neither, but it does raise the question, what are books where this would never happen? What are the world’s longest books? Some searching around on the Internet suggests that its these:
1. In Search of Lost Time by Marcel Proust
Although it is published in several volumes which is kind of cheating, this 4,800 page brick is still considered a single novel and is in the Guinness Book of World Records for being the longest. What’s more is, according to a recent poll of 125 contemporary authors, In Search of Lost Time is the eighth greatest novel ever written. You would want it to be after reading it!
2. The Man Without Qualities by Robert Musil
Set in Europe just before World War One, this 1,774 page novel is usually divided up in to at least two so that doesn’t break your arm off when you try to read it in bed at night. It took Robert Musil 20 years to write it and it wasn’t even published until after he died. How annoying.
3. Clarissa by Samuel Richardson
This is a story about an extremely beautiful young lady whose family tries to get her to marry into money. It is generally thought to be the longest novel written in the English language.
We should probably finish by reminding you that these are all grown-up books, that they take ages to read and that they might be very boring. Also, we could be wrong about them being the longest in the world because firstly, we found this information on the Internet which is not always right, and secondly, people are always writing new books. So we could be completely wrong.
Anyway, here are what we think might be the 3 shortest books in the world:
- Different Ways to Spell "Bob",
- Staple Your Way to Success,
- Everything you ever wanted to know about ironing but were too afraid to ask.
