East of Eden vs The God of Small Things: Which Should You Read?
Both live on shelves: Literary Fiction, Domestic fiction, Fiction
East of Eden
“The Salinas Valley is in Norther California.”
Steinbeck considered East of Eden to be his masterpiece. In his journal, Journal of a Novel (often read as a companion to the novel) he notes that “this is the book I have always wanted and have worked and prayed to be…
1 film adaptation
vs
The God of Small Things
The God of Small Things is the debut novel of Indian writer Arundhati Roy. It is a story about the childhood experiences of fraternal twins whose lives are destroyed by the "Love Laws" that lay down "who should be…
The verdict
- Readers rate East of Eden highest: East of Eden 4.5 · The God of Small Things 4.0.
- The God of Small Things is the quickest read — about 6 hours vs 11 for East of Eden.
- East of Eden has the widest readership — 711929 ratings behind its score.
How to choose
Scores by source
| East of Eden | The God of Small Things | |
|---|---|---|
| Goodreads | 4.5 (711929) | 4.0 (339654) |
| Hardcover | 4.5 (1033) | 3.8 (396) |
| Google Books | — | 4.5 (7) |
| Apple Books | 4.5 (1809) | 4.0 (287) |
Reception
| East of Eden | The God of Small Things | |
|---|---|---|
| Ratings | 711929 | 339654 |
| Editions | 104 | 65 |
| Film adaptations | 1 | 1 |
| Want to read | 1172774 | 372719 |
| Written reviews | 58563 | 25201 |
| Wikipedia attention | 137425 | 25165 |
| Pages | 602 | 347 |