Can Such Things Be? vs Growing Things and Other Stories: Which Should You Read?
Both live on shelves: American Short stories, American Horror tales
Can Such Things Be?
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Ambrose Bierce’s second major short story collection, Can Such Things Be? collected nearly all of Bierce’s supernatural horror stories. Bierce himself was a skeptic of the supernatural, having once written a satirical…
Growing Things and Other Stories
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A New York Times Notable BookWinner of the Bram Stoker Award"One of the best collections of the 21st century." — Stephen KingA chilling collection of psychological suspense and literary horror from the multiple…
Side by side
The verdict
- Readers rate Can Such Things Be? highest: Can Such Things Be? 3.9 · Growing Things and Other Stories 3.5.
- Can Such Things Be? is the quickest read — about 3 hours vs 6 for Growing Things and Other Stories.
- Growing Things and Other Stories has the widest readership — 48 ratings behind its score.
How to choose
Scores by source
| Can Such Things Be? | Growing Things and Other Stories | |
|---|---|---|
| Hardcover | 3.8 (7) | 3.2 (31) |
| Apple Books | 4.5 (5) | 3.5 (48) |
Reception
| Can Such Things Be? | Growing Things and Other Stories | |
|---|---|---|
| Ratings | 7 | 48 |
| Editions | 46 | 5 |
| Pages | 200 | 368 |
Questions readers ask
Which is rated higher: Can Such Things Be? or Growing Things and Other Stories?
Can Such Things Be? has the higher combined reader rating across sources (Can Such Things Be? 3.9/5, Growing Things and Other Stories 3.5/5).
Which is shorter to read: Can Such Things Be? or Growing Things and Other Stories?
Can Such Things Be? is the quickest read. Estimated at 225 words per minute: Can Such Things Be? (200 pages, ≈ 3 h 42 m); Growing Things and Other Stories (368 pages, ≈ 6 h 49 m).
Which is harder to read: Can Such Things Be? or Growing Things and Other Stories?
Estimated difficulty, based on era, reader shelves and length — Can Such Things Be?: Challenging; Growing Things and Other Stories: Moderate.