The Importance of Being Earnest vs The Stolen Bacillus and Other Incidents: Which Should You Read?
Both live on shelves: Fiction
The Importance of Being Earnest
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Set in England during the late Victorian era, the play's humour derives in part from characters maintaining fictitious identities to escape unwelcome social obligations. It is replete with witty dialogue and satirises…
The Stolen Bacillus and Other Incidents
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The Stolen Bacillus and Other Incidents was H. G. Wells' first collection of short stories, published in 1895. These fantasy and science fiction tales were all written between 1893 and 1895 and published in various…
Side by side
The verdict
- Readers rate The Importance of Being Earnest highest: The Importance of Being Earnest 4.2 · The Stolen Bacillus and Other Incidents 3.6.
- The Importance of Being Earnest has the widest readership — 415055 ratings behind its score.
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How to choose
Scores by source
| The Importance of Being Earnest | The Stolen Bacillus and Other Incidents | |
|---|---|---|
| Goodreads | 4.2 (415055) | 3.5 (450) |
| Hardcover | 4.2 (612) | — |
| Google Books | 4.0 (136) | — |
| Apple Books | 4.5 (3163) | — |
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Reception
| The Importance of Being Earnest | The Stolen Bacillus and Other Incidents | |
|---|---|---|
| Ratings | 415055 | 450 |
| Editions | 455 | 33 |
| Film adaptations | 1 | 1 |
| Want to read | 279372 | 451 |
| Reading it now | 6560 | 53 |
| Written reviews | 18557 | 42 |
| Wikipedia attention | 30760 | 163 |
| Pages | 94 | 156 |
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Questions readers ask
Which is rated higher: The Importance of Being Earnest or The Stolen Bacillus and Other Incidents?
The Importance of Being Earnest has the higher combined reader rating across sources (The Importance of Being Earnest 4.2/5, The Stolen Bacillus and Other Incidents 3.6/5).
Which is shorter to read: The Importance of Being Earnest or The Stolen Bacillus and Other Incidents?
The Importance of Being Earnest is the quickest read. Estimated at 225 words per minute: The Importance of Being Earnest (94 pages, ≈ 1 h 44 m); The Stolen Bacillus and Other Incidents (156 pages, ≈ 2 h 53 m).
Which is harder to read: The Importance of Being Earnest or The Stolen Bacillus and Other Incidents?
Estimated difficulty, based on era, reader shelves and length — The Importance of Being Earnest: Moderate; The Stolen Bacillus and Other Incidents: Demanding.
Have both books been made into films?
The Importance of Being Earnest: 5 film adaptations; The Stolen Bacillus and Other Incidents: no film adaptation on record.