History Doorstopper / Literature

* William Shirer's ''Literature/The RiseAndFallOfTheThirdReich'' is about 1143 pages long, with the index and footnotes adding 102 more pages. This tends to be par for the course in histories of UsefulNotes/NaziGermany: see also William Burleigh's ''The Third Reich: A History'' (992 pages), Richard Evans' ''The Third Reich'' trilogy (a collective 2576 pages in three volumes) and Joachim Fest's various works for other examples.

* William Shirer's ''The Rise and Fall of the Third Reich'' is about 1143 pages long, with the index and footnotes adding 102 more pages. This tends to be par for the course in histories of UsefulNotes/NaziGermany: see also William Burleigh's ''The Third Reich: A History'' (992 pages), Richard Evans' ''The Third Reich'' trilogy (a collective 2576 pages in three volumes) and Joachim Fest's various works for other examples.

** And then he published ''Literature/TheFamiliar'', which is 880 pages and weighs a hefty 3.6 pounds (it is printed on much thicker paper than ''House of Leaves'' was). It's taken UpToEleven, or even [[IncrediblyLamePun Up To Twenty-Seven]], considering that that was ''only the first'' book of a series of twenty-seven. Like this series? Reserve at least three shelves of your bookcase, and expect to only lift three of the twenty-seven at a time![[note]]As with ''House of Leaves'', Kindle / digital editions ''do'' exist, but due to the UnconventionalFormatting of the books, paper(back) versions are recommended over that.[[/note]]

* ''Literature/WhateleyUniverse'': The series has a bit over 9 million words for the first year of Generation 1 alone. The Phase story "Ayla and the Tests" is long.

* ''Literature/LesMiserables'' by Victor Hugo, which has caused many to wonder if he was paid by the word.[[note]]in case you're wondering, while Victor Hugo had been paid by the word earlier in his career, by this time he was not![[/note]]

** ''Literature/TheThreeMusketeers'' is only one of ''three'' novels that comprise the ''D'Artagnan Romances'' -- the other two being ''Twenty Years After'' and ''The Vicomte de Bragelonne''. The first two are over 900 pages in most editions. ''The Vicomte de Bragelonne'' meanwhile is usually divided into ''three books'', and each one of them is over 800 pages long.

** ''Literature/NiineStarHegemonBodyArt'' has 4,329 chapters and is still on-going.

* Creator/JamesEllroy's ''Literature/LAConfidential'' is just barely short of 500 pages, but is still pretty fast paced with its LoadsAndLoadsOfCharacters all ending up with some important role in the story. His next book, ''Literature/WhiteJazz'', was originally around 700 pages. When the publisher asked Ellroy to trim it down, he responded by removing every single word that could even remotely be considered extraneous, resulting in a 350-something page book which is insanely dense and has to be read incredibly carefully. There are even a few conversations where it takes quite a while to get any hints outside of the dialogue itself about who's talking.

* ''Literature/OneThousandAndOneMoviesYouMustSeeBeforeYouDie'' is 960 pages and has been updated annually since 2003.

* The ''Literature/TheHeroesOfOlympus'' books, particularly compared to similar middle grade books (and even other books by Creator/RickRiordan). All of them are over 500 pages in hardcover and over 600 in paperback; the longest, ''The House of Hades'', is 597 pages in hardcover. This is mainly because they juggle the POV of many different characters compared to a single characters POV. In comparison, its predecessor, ''Literature/PercyJacksonAndTheOlympians'', range from about 300-400 pages depending on the edition and it's successor, ''Literature/TheTrialsOfApollo'', are a bit longer but still all come in under 500 pages.

* ''Literature/AnAmericanTragedy" by Theodore Dreiser, with more than 800 pages, is a classical example.

* The omnibus editions of ''Literature/{{Discworld}}'' (collecting three novels on a theme, such as three about the Lancre Witches, Rincewind, or the gods) tend to be this. Around ''Literature/GoingPostal'' onward, some of the the individual novels count as well, breaking the 500 page mark. ''Literature/{{Snuff}}'' is about the same thickness as an omnibus of ''Literature/TheColourOfMagic'' and ''Literature/TheLightFantastic''.

* Creator/BrandonSanderson's. His early novels such as ''Literature/{{Elantris}}'' and ''Literature/MistbornTheOriginalTrilogy'' were in the already bulky range of 500-600 pages, however the ''Literature/TheStormlightArchive'' take this to extreme degrees. The second book ''Literature/WordsOfRadiance'' comes in at 1088 pages, the maximum the publisher was physically capable of printing at the time (the original title was ''The Book of Endless Pages'', named after an in-universe book, but his editor thought it was a bit [[ExactlyWhatItSaysOnTheTin on the nose]] considering its length). Apparently they worked out a new system, as ''Literature/{{Oathbringer}}'' and ''Literature/RhythmOfWar'' clock in at an enormous 1248 pages and 1212 pages, respectively. Sanderson has said he treats Stormlight books the same way he treats a ''trilogy'' of regular books, which the page count certainly reflects.

* The original novel of ''Literature/ThePrincessBride'' is stated in character to be William Goldman's "good bits" [[TheAbridgedSeries abridgment]] of a 1000 page novel.

* Creator/JamesEllroy's ''Literature/LAConfidential'' is just barely short of 500 pages, but is still pretty fast paced with its LoadsAndLoadsOfCharacters all ending up with some important role in the story. His next book, ''Literature/WhiteJazz'', was originally around 700 pages. When the publisher asked Ellroy to trim it down, he responded by removing every single word that could even remotely be considered extraneous, resulting in a 350-something page book which is insanely dense and has to be read incredibly carefully. There’s even a few conversations where it takes quite a while to get any hints outside of the dialogue itself about who's talking.

* In France, the immensely prestigious critical editions of the Bibliothèque de la Pléiade should be this... However, the print is tiny, and the pages are Bible paper, which means that although you do get a huge amount of text, they probably wouldn't make very good door-stoppers...
* Most of Creator/MelanieRawn's works. She just doesn't do less than 800 pages in paperback with 8 point type, which just might be why you've never heard of her. Both ''Literature/DragonPrince'' and ''Literature/DragonStar'' are trilogies of incredible length, with a frustrating number of similarly-named characters. Not works for the faint of heart, or sound of mind.

* ''Literature/TheFaerieQueene'' by Edmund Spenser; over 1000 pages of verse poetry. And, like Chaucer, he didn't get close to finishing it before [[DiedDuringProduction dying]]; he planned 24 'books', and finished only 6 of them.

* ''The Invention of Hugo Cabret'' by Brian Selznick is 533 pages. An homage to silent movies, the novel seamlessly alternates between prose and illustrations to the point where if you skip the pictures you will not know what is going on. As a result it is the longest book to win the Caldecott Medal (best illustrations), an award that normally goes to picture books.

* While most of the books in Literature/TheRiftwarCycle do not qualify, the first book, ''Magician'', had to be divided into two books, ''Magician: Apprentice'', and ''Magician: Master'' in paperback format due to it's length. And that was ''after'' the editor told the author to shorten the story by 50,000 words. The Author's Preferred Edition, which has the 50,000 words of various minor scenes put back in, definitely qualifies.

* ''Forever Amber'' by Kathleen Winsor isn't quite as long a historical romance as ''Gone With the Wind'', but still runs to over 900 pages.

* Ian Irvine's ''Literature/TheThreeWorldsCycle''. The first book alone, ''A Shadow On The Glass'', is over 600 pages long, and the rest of the series doesn't let up either in terms of size. As of this post being written, the series stands at ELEVEN books of roughly equal length, with at least three more planned.

* A lot of epics - by definition - are doorstoppers. (But not all of them.) i.e. Spenser's ''Literature/TheFaerieQueene'' or Milton's ''Literature/ParadiseLost''. The one that takes the cake - and is THE longest piece of literature in the world - has never been definitively compiled. This is because the work, ''The Epic of King Gesar'', is some 20 million words long and would take an estimate of 120 volumes to complete.

* ''[[http://stolen-projects.myshopify.com/collections/frontpage/products/game-design-companion-a-critical-analysis-of-wario-land-4 Game Design Companion: A critical analysis of Wario Land 4]]'' is a 600 page eBook that pretty much does ExactlyWhatItSaysOnTheTin.

* Many many occult books and grimoires could be considered this. The two most well known examples are probably Aleister Crowley's magnum opus, ''[[http://www.amazon.com/Magick-Liber-ABA-Book-4/dp/0877289190/ref=sr_1_7?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1458175502&sr=1-7&keywords=magick 'Magick: Liber ABA, Book 4']]'' which is a whopping 844 pages, and is affectionately referred to by many a Crowley-student as the 'Big Blue Brick'. The other is Israel Regardie's ''[[http://www.amazon.com/Golden-Dawn-Original-Teachings-Ceremonies/dp/0738743992/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1458176289&sr=1-1&keywords=the+golden+dawn 'The Golden Dawn: The Original Account of the Teachings, Rites, and Ceremonies of the Hermetic Order']]'' its most recent edition standing at 960 pages. Both are chock full of details on meditation, yoga, ceremonies and rituals, methods of creating, consecrating and using ritual tools and circles, outlines of rituals, spells, designs for talismans, and everything else needed to ensure that these two books go on to become two of the largest influences on modern ceremonial magic.

* ''The Joy of Cooking'' is one of the most famous cookbooks in America. The 75th anniversary edition is over 1000 pages long. Unlike many other cookbooks of the time it was a much more foundational book, focused on easier, relatively quick recipes that would be appropriate for the average family. It also includes general advice on different ingredients, how to use cooking utensils, how to store foods, and other things beginner cooks would need to learn, as well as first-person conversational narration from the author (Irma Rombauer), although this was dropped in some later editions.

*** The largest copies are the 939 page German {{Omnibus}} translations by Creator/{{Heyne}} in 1991 and 1994.

** ''Science Fiction Special 1'' is made from three novels; 192 pages, 180 pages, and 175 pages respectively, totaling 547 pages.
** ''Science Fiction Special 2'' is made from three novels; 192 pages, 192 pages, and 188 pages respectively, totaling 572 pages.
** ''Science Fiction Special 3'' is made from three novels; 284 pages, 182 pages, and 192 pages respectively, totaling 658 pages.
** ''Science Fiction Special 4'' is made from three novels; 190 pages, 191 pages, and 192 pages respectively, totaling 573 pages.
** ''Science Fiction Special 5'' is made from three novels; 254 pages, 190 pages, and 191 pages respectively, totaling 635 pages.
** ''Science Fiction Special 7'' is made from two previous {{Omnibus}}es; 447 pages and 428 pages respectively, totaling 875 pages.
** ''Science Fiction Special 8'' is made from three novels; 156 pages, 253 pages, and 190 pages respectively, totaling 599 pages.
** ''Science Fiction Special 10'' is made from three novels; 190 pages, 189 pages, and 159 pages respectively, totaling 538 pages.
** ''Science Fiction Special 11'' is made from two novels and a GenreAnthology; 140 pages, 191 pages, and 280 pages respectively, totaling 611 pages.
** ''Science Fiction Special 12'' is made from three novels; 210 pages, 235 pages, and 192 pages respectively, totaling 637 pages.
** ''Science Fiction Special 43'' is made from a 200 page novel and a 317 page anthology, totaling 517 pages.

* ''Literature/OneThousandAndOneMoviesYouMustSeeBeforeYouDie'' is 960 pages, and has been updated annually since 2003.

* ''Literature/TheGreatSFStories'': Each of the {{omnibus}} volumes exceeded six hundred pages, ''Third Series'' is the shortest, due to omitting five stories.

** Hamilton's 2012 standalone ''Great North Road'' is vast even by his usual standards, weighing in at over 1000 pages in hardback. By comparison, the Void Trilogy hardbacks had ~700. It didn't pick up the FanNickname "Great Big Book" for nothing.

* ''Literature/LesMiserables'' by Victor Hugo—which its fans have (affectionately!) [[FanNickname dubbed]] "The Brick", and has caused many to wonder if he was paid by the word.[[note]]in case you're wondering, while Victor Hugo had been paid by the word earlier in his career, by this time he was not![[/note]]

** Her adult foray ''Literature/TheHost'' is no slouch either, having 619 pages.

** ''Literature/VideoHoundMovieRetriever'', which for quite some time was also updated annually, included not only thousands of reviews but indexed them all by cast members, genre, location, and many other categories.

** The works of Creator/MoXiangTongXiu: ''Literature/MoDaoZuShi'' has 113 chapters and 13 extras, ''Literature/TianGuanCiFu'' has 244 chapters and 8 extras, and the main novel of ''Literature/RenZhaFanPaiZiJiuXiTong'' has only 81 chapters, but it has 20 extras.

* Samantha Shannon's ''Literature/ThePrioryOfTheOrangeTree'' is 830 page. Reportedly, she's working on another book that takes place within the same universe... that will be ''even longer''.

** ''Literature/ErHaHeTaTeBaiMaoShiZun'' has 311 chapters and 39 extras.

* George R. R. Martin's ''Literature/ASongOfIceAndFire'' books are often split into several novels that each look pretty sizable in their own right. The first book is the shortest, coming in at 694 pages, while ''Literature/ADanceWithDragons'' is a bit over 1088 pages.

* The entire Shadowhunter Chronicles (''Literature/TheMortalInstruments'', ''Literature/TheInfernalDevices'', ''Literature/TheDarkArtifices'', and the ongoing ''The Last Hours''). There's no book that is less than 400 pages. Special mention goes to ''The Dark Artifices'' series, whose books seem to be designed to cram as much space in a bookshelf as they can. The first two books (''Lady Midnight'' and ''Lords of Shadows'') are around 700 pages long, while the final one ''Queen of Air and Darkness'' has 912 pages, more than twice as long as the franchise's shortest book, ''City of Fallen Angels'' (432 pages).

* ''Literature/ADanceWithDragons'' is infamously long--including a sample of the [[ScheduleSlip eventual sequel]] ''The Winds of Winter'' and all the extra pages for the copyright disclosure, etc., the US edition of the book clocks in at 1056 pages. Perhaps not as long as other examples on this page, but the story behind the book as published is an interesting one. Basically, ''Dance'' is forced to end right before the climaxes of several plotlines because George R.R. Martin's editor had to cut him off before he exceeded the physical limits of a typical bookbinding, and he had already blown through his deadlines so many times that it was no longer feasible to find a way to include those climaxes and trim enough fat to stay within the page limit.

* ''Literature/TheCanterburyTales''. Notably, it’s still a Doorstopper even though Chaucer was a long way from completing it when he [[AuthorExistenceFailure died]]. Each pilgrim was supposed to tell four stories: not all of them got to tell one, and none of them got past their first. However, it’s only a Doorstopper when it's kept in verse. A prose edition is about 370 pages.

* At 1.5 million words, Creator/MarcelProust's ''À la Recherche du Temps Perdu,'' [[note]](''In Search of Lost Time'', earlier translated as ''Remembrance of Things Past'')[[/note]] holds the Guinness Book of Records title as Longest Novel. ''Series/MontyPythonsFlyingCircus'' did a sketch on [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uwAOc4g3K-g summarizing the whole thing in 15 seconds.]]
** And Proust was still adding to it and revising the last three volumes at [[AuthorExistenceFailure the time of his death]]. One can only imagine how long the novel would have become if Proust had finished it to his liking.

* Mervyn Peake's ''Literature/{{Gormenghast}}'' novels are available in omnibus form, which is in the neighbourhood of 1000 pages of novel and 150-odd of critical essays. He had planned to write seven volumes, [[AuthorExistenceFailure but couldn't finish them]].

* ''Literature/TheFaerieQueene'' by Edmund Spenser; over 1000 pages of verse poetry. And, like Chaucer, he didn't get close to finishing it before AuthorExistenceFailure; he planned 24 'books', and finished only 6 of them.

* ''Literature/TheGoodSoldierSvejk'' by Jaroslav Hašek is over 700 pages long, and it's not even finished, due to [[AuthorExistenceFailure Hašek's death]].

** ''Literature/MoDaoZuShi'' has 113 chapters and 13 extras.
** ''Literature/TianGuanCiFu'' has 244 chapters and 8 extras.
** The main novel of ''Literature/RenZhaFanPaiZiJiuXiTong'' has only 81 chapters, but it has 20 extras.

** ''Literature/ErHaHeTaTeBaiMoShiZun'' has 311 chapters and 39 extras.