Henry IV, Part 1 vs King Henry VI. Part 2: Which Should You Read?

Both live on shelves: Shakespeare, In literature, British and irish drama, Kings and rulers, Drama, History

Henry IV, Part 1 William Shakespeare · 1598 ★★★★☆ 3.8 122 pages · ≈ 2 h 16 m · Challenging

“Following the battle of Shrewsbury (where King Henry and Prince Hal were victorious and Hotspur killed), Rumor spreads the false information that Hotspur was the victor and the King and Prince were killed.”

Presents the original text of Shakespeare's play side by side with a modern version, discusses the author and the theater of his time, and provides quizzes and other study activities.

1 film adaptation

Juvenile drama Sources English drama English literature

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King Henry VI. Part 2 William Shakespeare · 1600 ★★★★☆ 3.6 158 pages · ≈ 2 h 56 m · Demanding

King Henry VI by William Shakespeare

Henry vi English Historical drama Historical drama American literature

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Side by side

The verdict

Ratings are close across the board — any is a safe pick by score.
Henry IV, Part 1 has the widest readership — 34291 ratings behind its score.

How to choose

Want the crowd-tested pick? Henry IV, Part 1 34291 ratings vs 8690 for King Henry VI. Part 2 New to the genre? Henry IV, Part 1 Challenging vs Demanding for King Henry VI. Part 2

Scores by source

	Henry IV, Part 1	King Henry VI. Part 2
Goodreads	3.8 (34291)	3.6 (8690)
Hardcover	3.9 (54)	—
Google Books	2.0 (2)	—
Apple Books	4.5 (18)	—

Reception

	Henry IV, Part 1	King Henry VI. Part 2
Ratings	34291	8690
Editions	782	315
Film adaptations	1	—
Want to read	16609	—
Reading it now	650	—
Written reviews	2103	—
Wikipedia attention	9387	—
Pages	122	158

Questions readers ask

Which is rated higher: Henry IV, Part 1 or King Henry VI. Part 2?

Henry IV, Part 1 has the higher combined reader rating across sources (Henry IV, Part 1 3.8/5, King Henry VI. Part 2 3.6/5).

Which is shorter to read: Henry IV, Part 1 or King Henry VI. Part 2?

Henry IV, Part 1 is the quickest read. Estimated at 225 words per minute: Henry IV, Part 1 (122 pages, ≈ 2 h 16 m); King Henry VI. Part 2 (158 pages, ≈ 2 h 56 m).

Which is harder to read: Henry IV, Part 1 or King Henry VI. Part 2?

Estimated difficulty, based on era, reader shelves and length — Henry IV, Part 1: Challenging; King Henry VI. Part 2: Demanding.

Have both books been made into films?

Henry IV, Part 1: 5 film adaptations; King Henry VI. Part 2: no film adaptation on record.