I used to adore long books: the longer, the better.
As I’ve gotten older, and reluctantly come to terms with the fact that I’m never, ever going to cross every book off my TBR list, my love of long books has waned: if I can only make it through so many pages in my life, I can make it through more books if I choose shorter ones.
However. I still love a big, fat, meaty doorstop of a book, especially in the summertime. A 500+ page behemoth can pack in more characters, more meaty plot lines, and more interesting complications than your standard 300 page novel, simply because it has the space to do so.
The thick books invite you to enter a new world and camp out for a good, long while.
And the most compelling reason, at least in my book: if you’re reading a great book, why would you want it to end?
Here I’ve gathered a few of my favorite 500+ page novels, plus several that have been hanging out on my TBR list a while. I’d love to hear your take on these titles and your other favorite lengthy reads in comments.
Series: Big fat books for your summer reading
All the Light We Cannot See
Author: Anthony Doerr
Genre: My Favorites
A captivating story, well-told. The characters in this war novel are fascinating and altogether unexpected, and the book’s setting couldn’t be lovelier: much of the action takes place in Saint-Malo, France, a unique walled port city on the English Channel. It doesn't feel overlong: its 500+ pages give Doerr plenty of room to build a believable world, and give his characters depth and feeling. An intelligent, detailed, literary novel that will stay with you long after you turn the last page. More info →
Outlander: A Novel
Author: Diana Gabaldon
Genre: Historical Fiction
Talk about big fat books: This time-travel romance series has 8 books to date, totaling 8,479 pages, and 300+ hours on Audible. If you read the words "time-travel romance" and rolled your eyes, you're not alone: I did the same, until I read the backstory. As she tells it, Gabaldon intended to write a realistic historical novel, but a modern woman kept inserting herself into the story! She decided to leave her for the time being—it's hard enough to write a novel, she'd edit her out later—but would YOU edit out Claire? I didn't think so. You could happily lose yourself in this series for a whole summer (but heads up for racy content and graphic torture scenes). More info →
11/22/63: A Novel
Author: Stephen King
Genre: Contemporary Fiction
In King's beloved Maine, high school English teacher Jake Epping discovers a doorway into the past: into 1958, to be precise. Epping soon realizes he has the ability to change the past: any action he takes in 1958 inevitably changes the present day. Before long, Epping commits himself to a bold mission: to tinker with the past and prevent the Kennedy assassination. King's weird blend of history is decidedly creepy, but not scary, and I found it enthralling, if a wee bit long. More info →
The Brothers K
Author: David James Duncan
Genre: Literary Fiction
This one spent years on my TBR list, because so many friends with great taste called it THE best book they ever read. I finally read it this year and am so glad I did. It's a great book, but it's not the un-put-down-able sort: it took me almost two months to get through it. (It is 645 pages, but I've finished much longer Outlander books in a week. This is an incredible, heart-wrenching story, remarkable for its ability to reveal the deep joy present in a family's lowest moments. Due to some tough themes, this one isn't for the faint of heart. More info →
Angle of Repose
Author: Wallace Stegner
Genre: Classic Literature
I nearly included this Pulitzer winner in the Summer Reading Guide but decided maybe not too many of you would be interested in a 672-page book published in 1971, at least not for beach reading. This enthralling story spanning four generations is based on real events, and offers a fascinating look at both one family's history and the history of the American West. I loved the structure, which invites the reader to come alongside the narrator and examine what makes a friendship or a marriage work—and what may cause it to fail. More info →
The Thorn Birds
Author: Colleen McCullough
Genre: Contemporary Fiction
This sweeping Australian saga tops many a reader's favorite books list, and its overall rating on Goodreads is an impressive 4.19. McCullough's modern classic tracks an Australian family across three generations. (It should be noted that for every two people who adore this book there's one who considers it a schmaltzy romance. Read it and decide for yourself.) More info →
The Shell Seekers
Author: Rosamunde Pilcher
Genre: Contemporary Fiction
This thick paperback seems to be a permanent fixture at beach condo rentals, and I've never touched it—solely because of its cover. (I know, I know!) But recently several of my favorite reader friends have told me that if I just look past the cheesy cover I'll be rewarded with a captivating story about love and heartbreak across a family's three generations. They tell me there's a reason it's one of the top 100 novels in the BBC's Big Read, but I haven't found out for myself—yet. More info →
Cutting for Stone
Author: Abraham Verghese
Genre: Literary Fiction
This engrossing story—which has been on my TBR list for ages—combines medicine, family, and politics to great effect. I've heard to start this book with no preconceptions because the description doesn't do it justice. I've also been told the writing is beautiful, that there are some difficult scenes, and that it starts slowly—but that it is 100% worth its 667 pages. More info →
Wolf Hall
Author: Hilary Mantel
Genre: Historical Fiction
A hefty, believable, meticulously researched fictional take on Tudor England in the Cromwell era. Cromwell is one of the more mysterious characters of history, and Mantel does a solid job of filling in the blanks. The readers with great taste I rely on for recommendations are split on this one: some love it, some hate it. Either way, this 2009 Man Booker Prize winner is widely praised for its inventiveness. I picked a beautiful red copy up at a library book sale a few years ago and its been mocking me from my shelves ever since: I'm hoping to knock it off this summer. More info →
Middlemarch
Author: George Eliot
Genre: Classic Literature
Eliot’s hefty masterpiece combines her “study of provincial life” with a close look at several young couples who fall (or think they fall) in love. Who will find lasting happiness, and who won’t, and why? By focusing on the narrow disappointments and particular joys of this small community, Eliot cuts to the heart of human nature. A novel about love, happiness, and second chances. More info →
The Poisonwood Bible
Author: Barbara Kingsolver
Genre: Literary Fiction
Southern Baptist Missionary Nathan Price heads off to the African Congo with his wife and 4 daughters in 1959, and nothing goes as planned. Though they bring with them everything they think they will need from their home in Bethlehem, Georgia--right down to the Betty Crocker cake mixes--the Prices are woefully unprepared for their new life among the Congolese, and they all pay the price. I've read this several times, yet it's so good I never realized it was a LONG book until a fellow book-lover pointed out the page count to me. More info →
City on Fire
Author: Garth Risk Hallberg
Genre: Literary Fiction
I had heard good things about this one from a few readers I trust (which surprised me, given the book's solid 3-star rating on Amazon) but was hesitant to invest 944 pages of my reading life in it. But then I interviewed Seth Haines for What Should I Read Next? and he convinced me to give it a try. I'm so glad he did. The novel revolves around a punk-rock band, a wealthy, dysfunctional NYC family, a pyrotechnics expert and his daughter, and the invisible threads that bind them all together in 1976 Manhattan. If you're deciding if this one's for you, you should know that it's being compared to Wallace, Wolfe, Franzen, and DeLillo, and is full of sex, drugs, and rock and roll. More info →
East of Eden
Author: John Steinbeck
Genre: Classic Literature
This is Steinbeck's most ambitious novel, and in his opinion, his finest work. ("I think everything else I have written has been, in a sense, practice for this.") My high school English teacher assigned us The Grapes of Wrath instead, so I didn't read this until a few years ago. The title references the fall of Adam and Eve, and the subsequent embattled relationship between brothers Cain and Abel. Grounded thoroughly in its California setting, interweaving the stories of two Salinas Valley families, Steinbeck's magnum opus feels tragic, yet hopeful. More info →
The Goldfinch
Author: Donna Tartt
Genre: Literary Fiction
This Pulitzer winner begins with a terrorist attack: an explosion at The Met that kills 13-year-old Theo Decker’s mother and forever changes his life. The novel takes on an epic feel as it winds and twists through New York City, then Vegas, then Amsterdam. I would have given it up during the dark and depressing Vegas sojourn if I hadn’t read that The Goldfinch was Donna Tartt’s artistic response to 9/11. I’m not certain that’s even true, yet framing it that way fundamentally changed the way I read the book, and kept me from abandoning it during the unrelentingly gritty middle. More info →
A Prayer for Owen Meany: A Novel
Author: John Irving
Genre: Contemporary Fiction
Irving is a masterful storyteller, and has a knack for drawing compelling characters. This novel, which gently addresses heavy themes of fate and faith, is widely believed to be his finest. Read it and see why it’s on so many readers’ desert island lists. (My own copy is on my nightstand right now, poised for a re-reading.) More info →
Gone With the Wind
Author: Margaret Mitchell
Genre: Classic Literature
This 1936 epic novel and Pulitzer winner is enjoying a resurgence, and for good reason. More than a Civil War novel, this is a tale of the breadth and depth of human emotions, set against the backdrop of the Old South from the dawn of the war through Reconstruction, and is told through the eyes of Scarlett O'Hara, a beautiful, vivacious Southern Belle pressed into the unforeseen challenges of war. Scarlett is but one of a cast of many unforgettable characters that has been bringing readers back to this book for 75 years. Don't let the word "classic" make you think this can't be a beach read: it's a real page-turner. (Psst—Scarlett's strong ESTP personality landed GWTW on the popular the perfect summer reading for every Myers-Briggs personality type list.) More info →
Lonesome Dove
Author: Larry McMurtry
I'm reading this book this summer for the 2016 Reading Challenge. It's not my typical genre but I keep hearing how fabulous it is: essential reading not for Western-lovers only, but for all fiction-lovers. The title comes from a dusty Texas border town. The story revolves around a 3000 mile cattle drive in the 1880s, and features a motley cast of characters including illustrious captains, notorious outlaws, ex-slaves, Texas Rangers, sheriffs, and more. More info →
What are your favorite big, fat books?