Big Little Lies vs Boy Swallows Universe: Which Should You Read?
Both live on shelves: Suburbs, Families, Friendship, Fiction
Big Little Lies
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Pirriwee Public is a beautiful little beachside primary school where children are taught that ‘sharing is caring.’ So how has the annual School Trivia Night ended in full-blown riot? Sirens are wailing. People are…
Boy Swallows Universe
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Raw, whimsical, existential, heartbreaking, modern mythology
Side by side
The verdict
- Ratings are close across the board — any is a safe pick by score.
- Boy Swallows Universe has the widest readership — 102318 ratings behind its score.
How to choose
Scores by source
| Big Little Lies | Boy Swallows Universe | |
|---|---|---|
| Goodreads | — | 4.3 (102318) |
| Hardcover | 4.5 (2) | 4.4 (104) |
| Google Books | 5.0 (1) | 4.0 (1) |
| Apple Books | 4.5 (7847) | 4.5 (92) |
Reception
| Big Little Lies | Boy Swallows Universe | |
|---|---|---|
| Ratings | 7847 | 102318 |
| Editions | 24 | 11 |
| Citations | 5 | — |
| Film adaptations | 1 | 1 |
| Want to read | — | 80 |
| Reading it now | — | 35 |
| Written reviews | — | 2 |
| Wikipedia attention | 5810 | 2439 |
| Pages | 482 | 472 |
Questions readers ask
Which is rated higher: Big Little Lies or Boy Swallows Universe?
Big Little Lies has the higher combined reader rating across sources (Big Little Lies 4.5/5, Boy Swallows Universe 4.3/5).
Which is shorter to read: Big Little Lies or Boy Swallows Universe?
Boy Swallows Universe is the quickest read. Estimated at 225 words per minute: Boy Swallows Universe (472 pages, ≈ 8 h 44 m); Big Little Lies (482 pages, ≈ 8 h 56 m).
Which is harder to read: Big Little Lies or Boy Swallows Universe?
Estimated difficulty, based on era, reader shelves and length — Big Little Lies: Moderate; Boy Swallows Universe: Moderate.
Have both books been made into films?
Big Little Lies: 1 film adaptation; Boy Swallows Universe: 1 film adaptation.