The Brown Fairy Book vs The Red Fairy Book: Which Should You Read?
Both live on shelves: Folklore, Fairy Tales, Children's fiction, Fiction
The Brown Fairy Book
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Thirty-two fairy tales from the folklore of Africa, Australia, Brazil, India, New Caledonia, and Persia.
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Side by side
The verdict
- Ratings are close across the board — any is a safe pick by score.
- The Brown Fairy Book is the quickest read — about 3 hours vs 6 for The Red Fairy Book.
- The Red Fairy Book has the widest readership — 3631 ratings behind its score.
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Scores by source
| The Brown Fairy Book | The Red Fairy Book | |
|---|---|---|
| Goodreads | 4.1 (1324) | 4.1 (3631) |
| Hardcover | 3.3 (8) | 3.6 (10) |
| Apple Books | 4.0 (5) | 4.0 (10) |
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Reception
| The Brown Fairy Book | The Red Fairy Book | |
|---|---|---|
| Ratings | 1324 | 3631 |
| Editions | 312 | 480 |
| Citations | — | 13 |
| Film adaptations | 1 | 1 |
| Want to read | 2701 | 5262 |
| Reading it now | 150 | 749 |
| Written reviews | 43 | 188 |
| Wikipedia attention | 3679 | 3679 |
| Pages | 215 | 348 |
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Questions readers ask
Which is rated higher: The Brown Fairy Book or The Red Fairy Book?
The Red Fairy Book has the higher combined reader rating across sources (The Red Fairy Book 4.1/5, The Brown Fairy Book 4.1/5).
Which is shorter to read: The Brown Fairy Book or The Red Fairy Book?
The Brown Fairy Book is the quickest read. Estimated at 225 words per minute: The Brown Fairy Book (215 pages, ≈ 3 h 59 m); The Red Fairy Book (348 pages, ≈ 6 h 27 m).
Which is harder to read: The Brown Fairy Book or The Red Fairy Book?
Estimated difficulty, based on era, reader shelves and length — The Brown Fairy Book: Moderate; The Red Fairy Book: Moderate.