Barbarians at the Gate vs The Constant Gardener: Which Should You Read?
Both live on shelves: Corporations, Business
Barbarians at the Gate
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Over six months on the New York Times bestseller list, Barbarians at the Gate is the definitive account of the largest takeover in Wall Street history. Bryan Burrough and John Helyar's gripping record of the frenzy that…
The Constant Gardener
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Frightening, heartbreaking, and exquisitely calibrated, John le Carré's new novel opens with the gruesome murder of the young and beautiful Tessa Quayle near northern Kenya's Lake Turkana, the birthplace of mankind. Her…
Side by side
The verdict
- Readers rate Barbarians at the Gate highest: Barbarians at the Gate 4.4 · The Constant Gardener 3.8.
- The Constant Gardener has the widest readership — 31802 ratings behind its score.
How to choose
Scores by source
| Barbarians at the Gate | The Constant Gardener | |
|---|---|---|
| Goodreads | — | 3.8 (31802) |
| Hardcover | 4.1 (80) | 3.7 (49) |
| Google Books | 5.0 (2) | — |
| Apple Books | 4.5 (548) | 4.0 (171) |
Reception
| Barbarians at the Gate | The Constant Gardener | |
|---|---|---|
| Ratings | 548 | 31802 |
| Editions | 12 | 30 |
| Film adaptations | 1 | 1 |
| Wikipedia attention | 6898 | 3597 |
| Pages | 549 | 557 |
Questions readers ask
Which is rated higher: Barbarians at the Gate or The Constant Gardener?
Barbarians at the Gate has the higher combined reader rating across sources (Barbarians at the Gate 4.4/5, The Constant Gardener 3.8/5).
Which is shorter to read: Barbarians at the Gate or The Constant Gardener?
Barbarians at the Gate is the quickest read. Estimated at 225 words per minute: Barbarians at the Gate (549 pages, ≈ 10 h 10 m); The Constant Gardener (557 pages, ≈ 10 h 19 m).
Which is harder to read: Barbarians at the Gate or The Constant Gardener?
Estimated difficulty, based on era, reader shelves and length — Barbarians at the Gate: Challenging; The Constant Gardener: Moderate.
Have both books been made into films?
Barbarians at the Gate: no film adaptation on record; The Constant Gardener: 2 film adaptations.