A Tree Grows in Brooklyn vs The Lovely Bones: Which Should You Read?
Both live on shelves: Muchachas adolescentes, Teenage Girls, Fiction
A Tree Grows in Brooklyn
The beloved American classic about a young girl's coming-of-age at the turn of the century, Betty Smith's A Tree Grows in Brooklyn is a poignant and moving tale filled with compassion and cruelty, laughter and…
1 film adaptation
vs
The Lovely Bones
This deluxe trade paperback edition of Alice Sebold's modern classic features French flaps and rough-cut pages.Once in a generation a novel comes along that taps a vein of universal human experience, resonating with…
1 film adaptation
The verdict
- Readers rate A Tree Grows in Brooklyn highest: A Tree Grows in Brooklyn 4.3 · The Lovely Bones 3.9.
- The Lovely Bones is the quickest read — about 6 hours vs 9 for A Tree Grows in Brooklyn.
- The Lovely Bones has the widest readership — 2485963 ratings behind its score.
How to choose
Want a one-evening read?
The Lovely Bones
≈ 6h vs 9h for A Tree Grows in Brooklyn
Want the crowd-tested pick?
The Lovely Bones
2485963 ratings vs 531353 for A Tree Grows in Brooklyn
Just want the better-reviewed one?
A Tree Grows in Brooklyn
4.3 vs 3.9 from readers
New to the genre?
The Lovely Bones
Moderate vs Challenging for A Tree Grows in Brooklyn
Scores by source
| A Tree Grows in Brooklyn | The Lovely Bones | |
|---|---|---|
| Goodreads | 4.3 (531353) | 3.9 (2485963) |
| Hardcover | 4.2 (333) | 3.6 (1100) |
| Google Books | — | 4.0 (13) |
| Apple Books | 4.5 (161) | 4.5 (1880) |
Reception
| A Tree Grows in Brooklyn | The Lovely Bones | |
|---|---|---|
| Ratings | 531353 | 2485963 |
| Editions | 87 | 88 |
| Film adaptations | 1 | 1 |
| Want to read | 612125 | 807125 |
| Reading it now | 27918 | — |
| Written reviews | 35617 | 50918 |
| Wikipedia attention | 12059 | 43439 |
| Pages | 512 | 345 |