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How long does it take to read Arcadia?

Sir Philip Sidney

Arcadia by Sir Philip Sidney takes about 10 hours 34 minutes to read at 250 words a minute.

About 10 hours 34 minutes

A week or two of reading

First published 1598. 576 pages, about 158,400 words.

22 days at 30 minutes a day

Estimate based on 275 words per page.

At other speeds

Slow, 150 words a minute 17 hours 36 minutes
Average, 250 words a minute 10 hours 34 minutes
Fast, 400 words a minute 6 hours 36 minutes

The page count is the median across 61 editions, so your copy may differ. How we calculate.

About the book

Basilus, a foolish old duke, consults an oracle as he imperiously wishes to know the future, but he is less than pleased with what he learns. To escape the oracle's horrific prophecies about his family and kingdom he withdraws into pastoral retreat with his wife and two daughters. When a pair of wandering princes fall in love with the princesses and adopt disguises to gain access to them, all manner of complications, both comic and serious, ensue. Part-pastoral romance, part-heroic epic, Sidney's long narrative work was hugely popular for centuries after its first publication in 1593, inspiring two sequels and countless imitations, and contributing greatly to the development of the novel.

Subjects: Fiction, Poetry, Poetry (poetic works by one author), Long Now Manual for Civilization

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