Plain tales from the hills vs Within the tides: Which Should You Read?

Both live on shelves: British and irish fiction, Classic Literature, Short Stories, Fiction

Plain tales from the hills Rudyard Kipling · 1888 ★★★★☆ 3.7 194 pages · ≈ 3 h 36 m · Demanding

“SHE was the daughter of Sonoo, a Hill-man of the Himalayas, and Jadeh his wife.”

Originally written for the Lahore Civil and Military Gazette, the stories were intended for a provincial readership familiar with the pleasures and miseries of colonial life. For the subsequent English edition, Kipling…

India Correspondence Soldiers British

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Within the tides Joseph Conrad · 1915 ★★★★☆ 3.6 172 pages · ≈ 3 h 11 m · Challenging

In the private editorial office of the principal newspaper in a great colonial city two men were talking. They were both young. The stouter of the two, fair, and with more of an urban look about him, was the editor and…

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Side by side

The verdict

Ratings are close across the board — any is a safe pick by score.
Plain tales from the hills has the widest readership — 1843 ratings behind its score.
Plain tales from the hills reaches further in scholarship and criticism — cited 52 times.
Within the tides runs the darker storyline; Plain tales from the hills stays the lighter read.

How to choose

New to the genre? Within the tides Challenging vs Demanding for Plain tales from the hills In the mood for something dark? Within the tides a darker storyline than Plain tales from the hills Want something lighter? Plain tales from the hills an easier tone than Within the tides Want the literary heavyweight? Plain tales from the hills cited 52 times vs 11 for Within the tides

Scores by source

	Plain tales from the hills	Within the tides
Goodreads	3.7 (1843)	3.6 (194)
Hardcover	2.8 (4)	4.0 (1)
Apple Books	4.5 (8)	—

Reception

	Plain tales from the hills	Within the tides
Ratings	1843	194
Editions	303	46
Citations	52	11
Film adaptations	1	—
Want to read	1631	243
Reading it now	243	27
Written reviews	202	24
Wikipedia attention	488	—
Pages	194	172

Questions readers ask

Which is rated higher: Plain tales from the hills or Within the tides?

Plain tales from the hills has the higher combined reader rating across sources (Plain tales from the hills 3.7/5, Within the tides 3.6/5).

Which is shorter to read: Plain tales from the hills or Within the tides?

Within the tides is the quickest read. Estimated at 225 words per minute: Within the tides (172 pages, ≈ 3 h 11 m); Plain tales from the hills (194 pages, ≈ 3 h 36 m).

Which is harder to read: Plain tales from the hills or Within the tides?

Estimated difficulty, based on era, reader shelves and length — Plain tales from the hills: Demanding; Within the tides: Challenging.