Tender Is the Night vs The Europeans: Which Should You Read?

Both live on shelves: American Manuscripts, Facsimiles, Manuscripts, Fiction

Tender Is the Night F. Scott Fitzgerald · 1933 ★★★★☆ 3.8 399 pages · ≈ 7 h 23 m · Challenging

A psychiatrist, Dick Diver, treats and eventually marries a wealthy patient, Nicole. Eventually, this marriage destroys him.

1 film adaptation

Moral and ethical aspects Wealth Psychological fiction Classics

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The Europeans Henry James · 1878 ★★★★☆ 3.6 196 pages · ≈ 3 h 38 m · Challenging

The Europeans concerns an expatriate American, Eugenia, and her artist brother, Felix Young. Eugenia is the morganatic wife of a German prince, but she is to be repudiated in favor of a state marriage; thus she leaves…

1 film adaptation

Novellas Upper class Massachusetts Boston

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Side by side

The verdict

Ratings are close across the board — any is a safe pick by score.
The Europeans is the quickest read — about 3 hours vs 7 for Tender Is the Night.
Tender Is the Night has the widest readership — 153550 ratings behind its score.
Tender Is the Night runs the darker storyline; The Europeans stays the lighter read.

How to choose

Want a one-evening read? The Europeans ≈ 3h vs 7h for Tender Is the Night Want the crowd-tested pick? Tender Is the Night 153550 ratings vs 5606 for The Europeans In the mood for something dark? Tender Is the Night a darker storyline than The Europeans Want something lighter? The Europeans an easier tone than Tender Is the Night

Scores by source

	Tender Is the Night	The Europeans
Goodreads	3.8 (153550)	3.6 (5606)
Hardcover	3.7 (148)	3.4 (5)
Apple Books	4.0 (163)	4.0 (33)

Reception

	Tender Is the Night	The Europeans
Ratings	153550	5606
Editions	312	142
Film adaptations	1	1
Want to read	239033	4264
Reading it now	10782	277
Written reviews	8884	568
Wikipedia attention	12232	811
Pages	399	196

Questions readers ask

Which is rated higher: Tender Is the Night or The Europeans?

Tender Is the Night has the higher combined reader rating across sources (Tender Is the Night 3.8/5, The Europeans 3.6/5).

Which is shorter to read: Tender Is the Night or The Europeans?

The Europeans is the quickest read. Estimated at 225 words per minute: The Europeans (196 pages, ≈ 3 h 38 m); Tender Is the Night (399 pages, ≈ 7 h 23 m).

Which is harder to read: Tender Is the Night or The Europeans?

Estimated difficulty, based on era, reader shelves and length — Tender Is the Night: Challenging; The Europeans: Challenging.

Have both books been made into films?

Tender Is the Night: 1 film adaptation; The Europeans: 1 film adaptation.