The Barrowfields vs The Book of Form and Emptiness: Which Should You Read?
Both live on shelves: Fathers, Death, Bildungsromans, Fiction
The Barrowfields
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"Just before Henry Aster's birth, his father -- outsized literary ambition and pregnant wife in tow -- reluctantly returns to the small Appalachian town in which he was raised and installs his young family in an immense…
The Book of Form and Emptiness
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The Book of Form and Emptiness is a novel by American author Ruth Ozeki, published in 2021 by Viking. Ozekis fourth novel, the book won the 2022 Women's Prize for Fiction. The story follows a boy who hears voices from…
Side by side
The verdict
- Readers rate The Book of Form and Emptiness highest: The Book of Form and Emptiness 4.0 · The Barrowfields 3.8.
- The Barrowfields is the quickest read — about 7 hours vs 10 for The Book of Form and Emptiness.
- The Book of Form and Emptiness has the widest readership — 41138 ratings behind its score.
- The Book of Form and Emptiness runs the darker storyline; The Barrowfields stays the lighter read.
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How to choose
Scores by source
| The Barrowfields | The Book of Form and Emptiness | |
|---|---|---|
| Goodreads | — | 4.0 (41138) |
| Hardcover | 5.0 (2) | 4.0 (97) |
| Apple Books | 3.5 (10) | — |
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Reception
| The Barrowfields | The Book of Form and Emptiness | |
|---|---|---|
| Ratings | 10 | 41138 |
| Editions | 6 | 8 |
| Want to read | — | 76956 |
| Reading it now | — | 4475 |
| Written reviews | — | 6040 |
| Wikipedia attention | — | 1178 |
| Pages | 400 | 560 |
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Questions readers ask
Which is rated higher: The Barrowfields or The Book of Form and Emptiness?
The Book of Form and Emptiness has the higher combined reader rating across sources (The Book of Form and Emptiness 4.0/5, The Barrowfields 3.8/5).
Which is shorter to read: The Barrowfields or The Book of Form and Emptiness?
The Barrowfields is the quickest read. Estimated at 225 words per minute: The Barrowfields (400 pages, ≈ 7 h 24 m); The Book of Form and Emptiness (560 pages, ≈ 10 h 22 m).
Which is harder to read: The Barrowfields or The Book of Form and Emptiness?
Estimated difficulty, based on era, reader shelves and length — The Barrowfields: Moderate; The Book of Form and Emptiness: Moderate.