How long does it take to read Astoria?
or, Anecdotes of an enterprise beyond the Rocky Mountains
Astoria by Washington Irving takes about 7 hours 33 minutes to read at 250 words a minute.
About 7 hours 33 minutes
A weekend read
First published 1800. 412 pages, about 113,300 words.
16 days at 30 minutes a day
Estimate based on 275 words per page.
At other speeds
| Slow, 150 words a minute | 12 hours 35 minutes |
| Average, 250 words a minute | 7 hours 33 minutes |
| Fast, 400 words a minute | 4 hours 43 minutes |
The page count is the median across 321 editions, so your copy may differ. How we calculate.
About the book
In 1811 a group of American traders built a fort at the mouth of the Columbia River, named Fort Astoria in honor of its financier, John Jacob Astor. Envisioned as the spur of a fur-trading empire, by 1813 the project was a business failure and the fort was surrendered to the British. But in its short life Astoria rendered incalculable benefits to public understanding of the Great Northwest. The exploration of trade routes, the description of various Indian tribes and their customs, and an American claim on the Northwest coast were among many of its legacies. Astor never relinquished his pride in the enterprise and insisted that the West would one day be a dominating factor in national politics. To drive his point home he asked Washington Irving, the country's most renowned and respected author, to transform the papers of Fort Astoria into a unified and readable history. Irving accepted the offer and published Astoria in 1836. From its first appearance--when it was hailed by no less a reviewer than Edgar Allan Poe--to the present day, Astoria has been read as a vivid and fascinating history, comparable indeed to the finest of romances, but rooted in the rough and hardy life of trapping, hunting, and exploration.
Subjects: Overland journey to the Pacific coast, Fur trade, Descriptions et voyages, Pacific Fur Co, Fourrures, Description and travel
