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Book · by Sylvia Plath · first published 2006

How many pages is The Bell Jar?

The Bell Jar by Sylvia Plath has a median of 240 pages across 35 English-language print editions with a recorded page count; the middle half of editions run 216 to 280 pages.

Median pages
240
35 editions counted
Range
136–416
shortest to longest edition
Reading time
4.2h
at 260 wpm (fiction average)
Words (est.)
66k
at 275 words per page

How long will The Bell Jar take you?

Starts at the fiction average of 260 words per minute and 275 words per page. Move the slider to your own speed.

Reading time
4 h 14 min
At 30 min a day
9 days
At 1 hour a day
5 days

Page count of every edition, by year

Each dot is one English-language print edition. Shaded: middle half of editions. Line: median.

1002003004001960198020001948: 326 pages1963: 258 pages1964: 268 pages1966: 258 pages1966: 258 pages1971: 258 pages1971: 216 pages1971: 216 pages1972: 216 pages1972: 216 pages1972: 216 pages1972: 216 pages1976: 216 pages1980: 216 pages1981: 216 pages1981: 216 pages1983: 216 pages1996: 336 pages1998: 229 pages1999: 272 pages2001: 234 pages2003: 264 pages2003: 416 pages2005: 288 pages2005: 234 pages2006: 288 pages2009: 336 pages2013: 296 pages2013: 240 pages2015: 288 pages2017: 188 pages2018: 136 pages2018: 370 pages2018: 136 pages2019: 240 pagesmedian 240
1002003004001950197520001948: 326 pages1963: 258 pages1964: 268 pages1966: 258 pages1966: 258 pages1971: 258 pages1971: 216 pages1971: 216 pages1972: 216 pages1972: 216 pages1972: 216 pages1972: 216 pages1976: 216 pages1980: 216 pages1981: 216 pages1981: 216 pages1983: 216 pages1996: 336 pages1998: 229 pages1999: 272 pages2001: 234 pages2003: 264 pages2003: 416 pages2005: 288 pages2005: 234 pages2006: 288 pages2009: 336 pages2013: 296 pages2013: 240 pages2015: 288 pages2017: 188 pages2018: 136 pages2018: 370 pages2018: 136 pages2019: 240 pagesmedian 240
Open Library edition records (2026-09-30 dump).

Pages by format

Hardcover, paperback and mass-market editions are typeset differently, so the same text can run to more or fewer pages.

FormatMedian pagesEditionsReading time
Hardcover24444 h 18 min
Paperback26884 h 43 min
Mass market21683 h 48 min

Editions counted

The 35 editions behind the figures above, newest first. Open Library lists 177 editions of this work in all languages and formats.

YearPublisherFormatPagesOpen Library
2019Faber & Faber, Limited–240OL28719809M
2018CreateSpace Independent Publishing Platform–136OL55469976M
2018CreateSpace Independent Publishing Platform–370OL54930099M
2018CreateSpace Independent Publishing Platform–136OL56530644M
2017CreateSpace Independent Publishing Platform–188OL56241412M
2015HarperCollins Canada, Limited–288OL29722176M
2013HarperCollinsHardcover296OL51637904M
2013Faber & Faber, Limited–240OL28509735M

Questions

How many pages is The Bell Jar?
About 240 pages: that is the median of 35 English-language print editions on Open Library. Editions range from 136 to 416 pages.
How long does it take to read The Bell Jar?
About 4 h 14 min at 260 words per minute, assuming 275 words per page. At 30 minutes a day that is 9 days.
How many words is The Bell Jar?
Roughly 66,000 words, estimated from the median page count at 275 words per page. Open Library does not record word counts, so this is an estimate.

Data: Open Library monthly data dumps (works, editions, authors, reading log, ratings) (Open Library / Internet Archive); How many words do we read per minute? A review and meta-analysis of reading rate (Marc Brysbaert, Journal of Memory and Language 109 (2019)).