How many pages is The Bell Jar?

234 pages, which is about 70,000 words and 4½ hrs of reading. Editions vary, so we use the figure two of our sources agree on.

Is The Bell Jar worth reading?

We score it 6.7 out of 10 for the time it takes — worth the time. Readers on Hardcover rate it 3.94 out of 5 from 1,549 ratings, which counts for 6.6; at about 4½ hrs at an average pace it earns +0.1 for being short.

How long is The Bell Jar audiobook?

About 8 hrs, estimated from the 70,000 words at a typical narration pace of 150 words a minute. Real editions vary by narrator, usually by well under an hour.

Find a copy Listen on Audible · ≈8 hrs

The Bell Jar

Name: The Bell Jar
Author: Sylvia Plath

Sylvia Plath

4½ hrsto read

6.7worth it

At your speed≈ 4½ hrs

Pages234

Audiobook≈ 8 hrs

Times shown for 250 words a minute (average)

234 pages works out to roughly 70,000 words. At an average 250 words a minute that is 4½ hrs — a day's reading.

Readers on Hardcover rate it 3.94 out of 5, from 1,549 ratings.

Worth-it score 6.7/10 — Worth the time. Readers 6.6 (Hardcover's 3.94★ from 1,549 ratings) + length 0.1 = 6.7. How the score works →

How long does it take to read The Bell Jar?

The Bell Jar is 234 pages, or roughly 70,000 words. How long that takes depends on how fast you read:

Estimated reading time for The Bell Jar at three reading speeds.
Your pace	Words per minute	Time to finish
Slow	175	6½ hrs
Average	250	4½ hrs
Fast	400	3 hrs

Estimated at about 300 words per page. Most adults read between 200 and 300 words a minute — set your own pace and every time on the site adjusts. Prefer to listen? At a typical narration pace of 150 words a minute the audiobook runs about 8 hrs — an estimate from the word count, since narrators vary.

Common questions

How long does it take to read The Bell Jar?: About 4½ hrs at an average reading speed of 250 words per minute. The Bell Jar runs 234 pages, roughly 70,000 words — so at a slower 175 wpm it is nearer 6½ hrs, and at 400 wpm closer to 3 hrs.
How many pages is The Bell Jar?: 234 pages, which is about 70,000 words and 4½ hrs of reading. Editions vary, so we use the figure two of our sources agree on.
Is The Bell Jar worth reading?: We score it 6.7 out of 10 for the time it takes — worth the time. Readers on Hardcover rate it 3.94 out of 5 from 1,549 ratings, which counts for 6.6; at about 4½ hrs at an average pace it earns +0.1 for being short.
How long is The Bell Jar audiobook?: About 8 hrs, estimated from the 70,000 words at a typical narration pace of 150 words a minute. Real editions vary by narrator, usually by well under an hour.

From the publisher

Working in New York one hot summer, Esther Greenwood is on the brink of her future. Yet she is also on the edge of a darkness that makes her world increasingly unreal. In this vivid and unforgettable novel about the struggles of growing up, Esther's world shines through: the wide-eyed country girls, her crazed men-friends, hot dinner…

dances and nights in New York, and a slow slide into breakdown.

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