By the Rivers of Babylon vs The Secret Agent: Which Should You Read?
Both live on shelves: Bombings, Terrorism, Thriller, Fiction
By the Rivers of Babylon
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Lod Airport, Israel: Two Concorde jets take off for a U.N. conference that will finally bring peace to the Middle East. Covered by F-14 fighters, accompanied by security men, the planes carry warriors, pacifists,…
The Secret Agent
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The Secret Agent: A Simple Tale is a novel by Joseph Conrad, first published in 1907. The story is set in London in 1886 and deals with Mr. Adolf Verloc and his work as a spy for an unnamed country (presumably Russia).…
Side by side
The verdict
- Readers rate By the Rivers of Babylon highest: By the Rivers of Babylon 4.0 · The Secret Agent 3.6.
- The Secret Agent is the quickest read — about 4 hours vs 8 for By the Rivers of Babylon.
- The Secret Agent has the widest readership — 25537 ratings behind its score.
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How to choose
Scores by source
| By the Rivers of Babylon | The Secret Agent | |
|---|---|---|
| Goodreads | 4.0 (9249) | 3.6 (25537) |
| Hardcover | — | 3.2 (46) |
| Google Books | 4.5 (2) | — |
| Apple Books | 4.0 (208) | 4.0 (283) |
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Reception
| By the Rivers of Babylon | The Secret Agent | |
|---|---|---|
| Ratings | 9249 | 25537 |
| Editions | 36 | 335 |
| Citations | — | 5 |
| Film adaptations | 1 | 1 |
| Want to read | — | 30202 |
| Written reviews | — | 2131 |
| Wikipedia attention | 325 | 5228 |
| Pages | 460 | 240 |
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Questions readers ask
Which is rated higher: By the Rivers of Babylon or The Secret Agent?
By the Rivers of Babylon has the higher combined reader rating across sources (By the Rivers of Babylon 4.0/5, The Secret Agent 3.6/5).
Which is shorter to read: By the Rivers of Babylon or The Secret Agent?
The Secret Agent is the quickest read. Estimated at 225 words per minute: The Secret Agent (240 pages, ≈ 4 h 27 m); By the Rivers of Babylon (460 pages, ≈ 8 h 31 m).
Which is harder to read: By the Rivers of Babylon or The Secret Agent?
Estimated difficulty, based on era, reader shelves and length — By the Rivers of Babylon: Moderate; The Secret Agent: Challenging.
Have both books been made into films?
By the Rivers of Babylon: no film adaptation on record; The Secret Agent: 5 film adaptations.