Do we 'value' long books more than short books? || Response to 1book1review || BookTube Discussion

"I like big books and I cannot lie"... but is that always true? Do we see big books as being more "valuable" or "impressive" than short books? Do long books ramble on and should we appreciate concision more? Do we read shorter books in order to get through our Goodreads goals? And are longer books more value for money because we get more pages for what we pay? I'd love to know what you think in the comments below, or maybe in your own video response!

Books mentioned in this video:
- The Wise Man's Fear by Patrick Rothfuss (Kingkiller Chronicle #2)
- Wide Sargasso Sea by Jean Rhys
- The Great Gatsby by F. Scott Fitzgerald

My social media links:

[LeanneRose]

I definitely agree with your point about precision being impressive! I adore when a writer can pack a punch with a smaller page count. I definitely know a lot of people have judged me in the past for reading some shorter books. I've had many people say things along the lines of 'oh I wish I read poetry like you, then I would read loads of books in a month'. And it's odd because a) they could read poetry if they wanted to, and b) I'm still normally reading more pages per month when all my 'short' books are added together. But regardless the number of pages and quantity of what we read shouldn't matter at all! I think there can be an elitism on both sides of length preference, which is a shame.

Great discussion!

[KirstyWardBooks]

This is a really interesting discussion. I wish I didn’t fall into the traps of book sizes, but it’s something I have been increasingly aware of this year. I admire people for making it through long books, I know I can do it myself and yet I rarely do. It’s not that I don’t enjoy longer books, it’s more that reading average length books makes it easier to create consistent content. I’m trying to get to the point where I’m so far ahead of my reading goal, and where I have plenty of content created in advance so that I can start tackling longer books again. I’m sure I used to prefer longer books before Booktube, as indeed I felt like I was getting more for my money, and there was no pressure of must read books to create content.

[gilbertestrada]

Hi Jack. Interesting topic. The size or girth of a book shouldn't matter. What does matter: Is the reader interested in the topic? the author? some other appeal of a specific edition? After all, most everyone has purchased a book for its cover; there is a tactile experience for some of us, so I have indeed purchased books for the book itself. I agree that so long as readers are enjoying or learning something from literature, that is the essence of what it should be about. Looking forward to your next video!

[bookreview]

Great response. I definitely feel the "admire me I read a big book", too. It's so arbitrary but real.

[NurEineStimme]

I like both of them. I really like long epic fantasy and I enjoy big, detailed world which I can dive into and enjoy. Loads of characters and an epic story that keeps my busy reading it, e. g. "The Farseer-Trilogy" by Robin Hobb or John Gwynnes "The Faithful and the Fallen". On the other hand I also enjoy shorter books when the content and the writing is intense enough. A good example for that is "The Road" by Cormac McCarthy or "Wonder" by R. J. Palacio. So, I think it really doesn't matter whether a book is long or short as long as the content is good and enjoyable. Even a good written children's book can be a good read. :)

[ThomasWright_]

this is a great topic i would say i value bigger books over shorter books because i feel a sense of accomplishment for example i am currently reading harry potter and the goblet of fire which is a huge book tho i know the next book is even bigger really we should value all books equally regardless of number of pages i my self have done a video on good and bad book cover design maybe that could be a topic for a future video for you