Influence vs Siddhartha: Which Should You Read?
Influence
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Influence, the classic book on persuasion, explains the psychology of why people say "yes"—and how to apply these understandings. Dr. Robert Cialdini is the seminal expert in the rapidly expanding field of influence and…
Siddhartha
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Hermann Hesse wrote Siddhartha after he traveled to India in the 1910s. It tells the story of a young boy who travels the country in a quest for spiritual enlightenment in the time of Guatama Buddha. It is a compact,…
Side by side
The verdict
- Ratings are close across the board — any is a safe pick by score.
- Siddhartha is the quickest read — about 2 hours vs 5 for Influence.
- Siddhartha has the widest readership — 912012 ratings behind its score.
How to choose
Scores by source
| Influence | Siddhartha | |
|---|---|---|
| Goodreads | — | 4.1 (912012) |
| Hardcover | 4.2 (253) | 4.0 (1) |
| Google Books | 4.0 (15) | — |
| Apple Books | 4.5 (11) | 4.5 (109) |
Reception
| Influence | Siddhartha | |
|---|---|---|
| Ratings | 253 | 912012 |
| Editions | 28 | 206 |
| Film adaptations | — | 1 |
| Want to read | — | 585732 |
| Reading it now | — | 34903 |
| Written reviews | — | 37480 |
| Wikipedia attention | 640 | 31996 |
| Pages | 302 | 124 |
Questions readers ask
Which is rated higher: Influence or Siddhartha?
Influence has the higher combined reader rating across sources (Influence 4.1/5, Siddhartha 4.1/5).
Which is shorter to read: Influence or Siddhartha?
Siddhartha is the quickest read. Estimated at 225 words per minute: Siddhartha (124 pages, ≈ 2 h 18 m); Influence (302 pages, ≈ 5 h 36 m).
Which is harder to read: Influence or Siddhartha?
Estimated difficulty, based on era, reader shelves and length — Influence: Moderate; Siddhartha: Challenging.
Have both books been made into films?
Influence: no film adaptation on record; Siddhartha: 5 film adaptations.