How fast can you read a book?

[Darcy Wishard]

I'm asking this question because my husband thinks I'm some freak of nature.

Yesterday I started the book Riding the Universe by Gaby Triana (267 pages) at about 4:30 in the afternoon and finished it by about 9:00 p.m. It was a good book!

Anyway, I know there are faster readers out there and it just made me curious...Are you a slow reader or a fast reader...how long does it usually take you to read a book?
I know that if I really like a book I read it fast but if I'm reading a book that is so-so then it can take me forever!
So comment away!!!

[Lusty Reader]

I read about 100 pages an hour, but can get above that if I skim. *shame face* I really don't skim that much, I promise! Just things like the Twilight books, etc. ones where every word doesn't really matter, or ones that have long, overly detailed passeges of description/philosophy etc. and I want to get to the action/dialogue.

[Barbara Desmond]

I vary from book to book. I've never really kept track of how many hours it takes me to read a book. I did start 3rd Degree last night and didn't read for very long before bed and read about 84 pages and today I only have a little over 100 pages left which I'll likely finish reading tonight. For the most part I average around a 100 pages a day but sometimes depending on the text in the book since smaller text means slower reading or if I can't really get into a book I'll take longer. So sometimes I end up reading a couple hundred pages in a day. It depends on how much I'm reading and of course whether or not I have a headache or if I'm writing something.

[Sheila DeChantal]

It depends on the book. :) I picked up a short read in the Honduras airport in February of this year. I was in a hurry, needed to catch my plane looked at the cover and grabbed. The book did not hold me enough to keep reading it, yet I wanted to know how it all came together in the end. I finally finished it just a week or so ago.

On the other hand, last summer I was cleaning around the house and picked up a copy of Suzanne's Diary for Nicholas by James Patterson. I thought I would just take a little break and crack open this book to see what it was about... 3 hours later I got out of the chair, teary eyed and book - completed.

The final Harry Potter book I read in 2 days - but didn't everybody?

[Elena]

HI,

I don't know how fast, but in the last two weeks I have read 10 books of various genre's some were fiction, others non-fiction and some fictionalized true stories. Most of the books were 340 to 400 pages short. At the moment I am without a book to read or one to write. Have written ten books of my own as well as my husband's book and my brother's book. All are published. Looking forward to picking up another book to read and to start writing my newest novel. :-) !

[Karen Boutilier Kendall]

I have been accused of being a freak because of how fast I read. I don't read straight through due to interruptions like cooking or eating or bathroom breaks. But, usually a 267 page book I could finish in a night's read. I am a bit of an insomniac, so my reading is usually begins in the evening and runs into early morning.
Karen www.kbkendall.com

[Angie]

The amount of time it took you sounds pretty similar to how long it takes me. On average I read about a page a minute.

[Laura Baker]

I definitely feel that interest is a big factor, however, I also believe the pace set by the author can make a different. High intrigue, holding you on a wire regarding plot, and even sentence structure can make a difference in the speed with which I move along. I remember reading James Frey's " A Million Little Pieces", and I felt like I was listening to a manic on high. I finally had to put the book down. I have read books in 3 to 4 hours depending on how awake I am.

[Debbie]

Wow, I'm a slow reader, then, compared to a lot of people here. Or I simply read longer, denser books than most people here. For high word-count per page books (like fantasy/sci-fi), I can read 30 pages/hour. For low word-count per page books (like romance or YA and some thrillers), I can read 45-50 pages/hour.

I read when I have time scheduled, so no matter how good the book, it always takes 3-7 days (depending on book length) per book. However, books that I find confusing or difficult to read because of writing style do take longer for me to read than the average novel.

[Cynthia]

For me, it depends on how good the book is. If it is really good and captures my attention, I will zoom through it. I read Twighlight in about 10 hours straight. Same with Harry Potter - once I picked up one of those, I would read clear through till the end - the 7th book I started at 10 am in the morning and finished somewhere around 3 the next morning. If its laborious, it could take me days. If its too bad, I more than likely won't finish it.

[MomSavesMoney]

I read about a page a minute for a typical novel. When I read it's like a movie playing in my head, so the more into the book I am, the quicker I read. This is why nonfiction takes me about twice as long to read, because I don't usually visualize the content.

[Chrysa]

I CAN read very fast, but I prefer to read slowly and really savor a good book. If it is a book that I just "have" to read and I'm not really that interested in it, then I will fly through it.

[Jess]

I read really fast. I finished the last Harry Potter book in less than 5 hours or so. I also remember everything I read (for the most part)