Heartburn vs Stoner: Which Should You Read?
Both live on shelves: Marital conflict, Adultery, Domestic fiction, Fiction
Heartburn
“The first day I did not think it was funny.”
Is it possible to write a sidesplitting novel about the breakup of the perfect marriage? If the writer is Nora Ephron, the answer is a resounding yes. For in this inspired confection of adultery, revenge, group therapy,…
vs
Stoner
“William Stoner entered the University of Missouri as a freshman in the year 1910, at the age of nineteen.”
William Stoner is born at the end of the nineteenth century into a dirt-poor Missouri farming family. Sent to the state university to study agronomy, he instead falls in love with English literature and embraces a…
The verdict
- Readers rate Stoner highest: Stoner 4.4 · Heartburn 3.6.
- Heartburn is the quickest read — about 3 hours vs 6 for Stoner.
- Stoner has the widest readership — 295163 ratings behind its score.
- Heartburn runs the darker storyline; Stoner stays the lighter read.
How to choose
Want a one-evening read?
Heartburn
≈ 3h vs 6h for Stoner
Want the crowd-tested pick?
Stoner
295163 ratings vs 93691 for Heartburn
Just want the better-reviewed one?
Stoner
4.4 vs 3.6 from readers
In the mood for something dark?
Heartburn
a darker storyline than Stoner
Want something lighter?
Stoner
an easier tone than Heartburn
Scores by source
| Heartburn | Stoner | |
|---|---|---|
| Goodreads | 3.6 (93691) | 4.4 (295163) |
| Hardcover | 3.6 (95) | 4.0 (1) |
| Google Books | — | 4.5 (2) |
| Apple Books | 4.0 (40) | 4.5 (771) |
Reception
| Heartburn | Stoner | |
|---|---|---|
| Ratings | 93691 | 295163 |
| Editions | 19 | 49 |
| Film adaptations | 1 | 1 |
| Want to read | 81845 | — |
| Reading it now | 5081 | — |
| Written reviews | 10977 | — |
| Wikipedia attention | 20686 | 33354 |
| Pages | 188 | 336 |