List Challenges
Movies Books Travel Food Other
Sign In
Trending
New
Popular
Sign In
 Make a List Browse Lists Search Lists Leaders Help / Contact Newsletter

Really Hard-To-Read Books

Whether scholars, creative writers, or citizen book lovers, most readers agree on a canon of certain legendarily difficult books—books that are hard to read for their length, or their syntax and style, or their structural and generic strangeness, or their odd experimental techniques, or their abstraction. This post inaugurates a new Millions series devoted to identifying and describing these most difficult books: ones we've read/wrangled with ourselves, ones we've known students to struggle with time and again, ones that, more simply, "everyone knows" are hard to read—those works whose mere titles glisten with an aura of rarefied impenetrability.
348 users · 1,340 views
 
avg. score: 2 of 15 (13%)
required scores: 1, 2, 3, 4, 5 
type to search

How many have you read?

Page 1 of 1
1
The Anatomy of Melancholy (Robert Burton)
The Anatomy of Melancholy
Robert Burton
2
Paradise Lost (John Milton)
Paradise Lost
John Milton
3
A Tale of a Tub (Jonathan Swift)
A Tale of a Tub
Jonathan Swift
4
Clarissa (Samuel Richardson)
Clarissa
Samuel Richardson
5
The Life and Opinions of Tristram Shandy, Gentleman (Laurence Sterne)
The Life and Opinions of Tristram Shandy, Gentleman
Laurence Sterne
6
Moby Dick (Herman Melville)
Moby Dick
Herman Melville
7
Cantos
Cantos
8
To the Lighthouse (Virginia Woolf)
To the Lighthouse
Virginia Woolf
9
The Sonnets (Ted Berrigan)
The Sonnets
Ted Berrigan
10
The Dream Songs (John Berryman)
The Dream Songs
John Berryman
11
Ada or Ardor (Vladimir Nabokov)
Ada or Ardor
Vladimir Nabokov
12
Dhalgren (Samuel R. Delany)
Dhalgren
Samuel R. Delany
13
Ulysses (James Joyce)
Ulysses
James Joyce
14
As I Lay Dying (William Faulkner)
As I Lay Dying
William Faulkner
15
The History of the Decline and Fall of the Roman Empire (Edward Gibbon)
The History of the Decline and Fall of the Roman Empire
Edward Gibbon
Page 1 of 1
 Your Results
Click the SHOW MY RESULTS button
above to calculate your results.
Click books you've read
Lists Similar to 'Really Hard-To-Read Books'
Books A. Really, Really Wants to Read!
Books A. Really, Really Wants to Read!
433
61
32 Movies From the 2000s That Aged Really, Really, REALLY Badly
32 Movies From the 2000s That Aged Really, Really, REALLY Badly
457
33
Really Big, Really Long, Really Good - Part 1- Novels
Really Big, Really Long, Really Good - Part 1- Novels
396
85
20 Woke Films That Are Really Hard to Watch According to Espresso Communication/MSN
20 Woke Films That Are Really Hard to Watch According to Espresso Communication/MSN
155
20
Really Big, Really Long, Really Good Part 2: Non-Fiction
Really Big, Really Long, Really Good Part 2: Non-Fiction
154
87
Really, Really Difficult Books
Really, Really Difficult Books
40,784
155
Hard Cover Books AD Owns and Wants to Read
Hard Cover Books AD Owns and Wants to Read
182
22
Iris Reading's What Books Are Hard to Read?
Iris Reading's What Books Are Hard to Read?
172
19
Todd Has Tried Hard to Read More Since 1/1/2019 (5 Years of Books)
Todd Has Tried Hard to Read More Since 1/1/2019 (5 Years of Books)
168
1007
100 Books You Really Ought to Have Read
100 Books You Really Ought to Have Read
2,761
100
Have You Really Read These YA Books?
Have You Really Read These YA Books?
2,234
230
Reader's Digest - 20 Books You Really Should Have Read by Now
Reader's Digest - 20 Books You Really Should Have Read by Now
1,892
20
Books You Really Should Read
Books You Really Should Read
1,007
100
Keeping Up With the Penguins: Books I've Never Read (But Really Should)
Keeping Up With the Penguins: Books I've Never Read (But Really Should)
954
109
Reader's Digest - 14 Books You Really Should Have Read by Now
Reader's Digest - 14 Books You Really Should Have Read by Now
903
14
Books You Didn't Really Need to Read in Middle School
Books You Didn't Really Need to Read in Middle School
691
37
101 Detective/Mystery Books That You Really Should Read
101 Detective/Mystery Books That You Really Should Read
584
101
49 Underrated Books You Really Need to Read
49 Underrated Books You Really Need to Read
473
49
Books T. Really Wants to Read
Books T. Really Wants to Read
452
1240
Maureen's Really Humiliating List of Books She Has Not Read
Maureen's Really Humiliating List of Books She Has Not Read
440
100
Books Maddie Really Wants to Read but Keeps Putting off for Some Reason
Books Maddie Really Wants to Read but Keeps Putting off for Some Reason
367
89
The Books I'm Probably Really Going to Read in 2015!
The Books I'm Probably Really Going to Read in 2015!
342
100
100 Books Zsuzsanna Really Wants to Read
100 Books Zsuzsanna Really Wants to Read
330
100
30 Books SF Should Really Read Mini-Challenge
30 Books SF Should Really Read Mini-Challenge
329
30
18 Creepily Fascinating True Crime Books You Really Need to Read
18 Creepily Fascinating True Crime Books You Really Need to Read
315
18
Really Short Philosophy Books You Can Read to Sound Smart
Really Short Philosophy Books You Can Read to Sound Smart
308
30
Books Ali Really Should Have Read by Now
Books Ali Really Should Have Read by Now
320
40
Books That Kristen Really Wants to Read
Books That Kristen Really Wants to Read
252
160
Books I've Read as a Person Who Started (Really) Reading This Year (So Far)
Books I've Read as a Person Who Started (Really) Reading This Year (So Far)
248
106
50 Books L Really Wants to Read
50 Books L Really Wants to Read
240
50
All Similar Lists
Newsletter · Help/Contact · Privacy · Copyright Claim   © 2025 App Spring, Inc. · This product uses the TMDb API but is not endorsed or certified by TMDb.
Seen It - Movies & TV 
Android & iOS
Seen It is a new app from the creators of List Challenges. You can view movies and shows in one place and filter by streaming provider, genre, release year, runtime, and rating (Rotten Tomatoes, Imdb, and/or Metacritic). Also, you can track what you've seen, want to see, like, or dislike, as well as track individual seasons or episodes of shows. In addition, you can see the most watched/liked stuff amongst your friends. Learn more at SEENIT.FUN