Mr. Standfast vs The Thirty-Nine Steps: Which Should You Read?

Both live on shelves: Hannay, Richard Hannay, World War I, Intelligence service, World War, Great Britain

Mr. Standfast John Buchan · 1918 ★★★★☆ 3.9 319 pages · ≈ 5 h 54 m · Challenging

Published in 1919, Mr. Standfast is a thriller set in the latter half of the First World War, and the third of John Buchan’s books to feature Richard Hannay. Richard Hannay is called back from serving in France to take…

War stories Classic Literature

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The Thirty-Nine Steps John Buchan · 1915 ★★★★☆ 3.6 104 pages · ≈ 1 h 56 m · Challenging

Richard Hannay has just returned to England after years in South Africa and is thoroughly bored with his life in London. But then a murder is committed in his flat, just days after a chance encounter with an American…

1 film adaptation

Textbooks for foreign speakers Fugitives from justice Secret societies English language

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Side by side

The verdict

Readers rate Mr. Standfast highest: Mr. Standfast 3.9 · The Thirty-Nine Steps 3.6.
The Thirty-Nine Steps is the quickest read — about 1 hours vs 5 for Mr. Standfast.
The Thirty-Nine Steps has the widest readership — 48698 ratings behind its score.

How to choose

Want a one-evening read? The Thirty-Nine Steps ≈ 1h vs 5h for Mr. Standfast Want the crowd-tested pick? The Thirty-Nine Steps 48698 ratings vs 2112 for Mr. Standfast

Scores by source

	Mr. Standfast	The Thirty-Nine Steps
Goodreads	3.9 (2112)	3.6 (48698)
Hardcover	3.7 (6)	4.0 (1)
Apple Books	4.5 (31)	4.0 (492)

Reception

	Mr. Standfast	The Thirty-Nine Steps
Ratings	2112	48698
Editions	437	881
Film adaptations	1	1
Want to read	1870	25610
Reading it now	192	2384
Written reviews	217	4315
Wikipedia attention	629	9861
Pages	319	104

Questions readers ask

Which is rated higher: Mr. Standfast or The Thirty-Nine Steps?

Mr. Standfast has the higher combined reader rating across sources (Mr. Standfast 3.9/5, The Thirty-Nine Steps 3.6/5).

Which is shorter to read: Mr. Standfast or The Thirty-Nine Steps?

The Thirty-Nine Steps is the quickest read. Estimated at 225 words per minute: The Thirty-Nine Steps (104 pages, ≈ 1 h 56 m); Mr. Standfast (319 pages, ≈ 5 h 54 m).

Which is harder to read: Mr. Standfast or The Thirty-Nine Steps?

Estimated difficulty, based on era, reader shelves and length — Mr. Standfast: Challenging; The Thirty-Nine Steps: Challenging.

Have both books been made into films?

Mr. Standfast: no film adaptation on record; The Thirty-Nine Steps: 4 film adaptations.