How long is it?
664 pages in the Loyola Press 2005 paperback edition.
Fiction · Novel · Literary Fiction · Religion & Spirituality
The Edge of Sadness
Highly regardedPulitzer Prize for Fiction, 1962Reading facts
✓ Checked- Reading effort
- 55 / 100High
- Length
- 664 pagesLoyola Press · 2005
- Reading time
- 13 h 15 minat 50 pages an hour ·
- Pace
- Measured
- Emotional intensity
- 3 / 5
About 13 h 15 min · at 30 minutes a day, about 27 days
Estimated from the page count of this edition. Dense books can take longer than the estimate.
About the book
In an unnamed New England city, Father Hugh Kennedy takes charge of the dwindling parish of Old St. Paul's after treatment for alcoholism. An invitation from wealthy Irish-American patriarch Charlie Carmody interrupts his quiet routine and renews his ties to a family he has known since childhood. Drawn into the difficult relationships between Charlie and his grown children, including fellow priest John and daughter Helen, Hugh confronts people and memories he has avoided.
Reader notes
Dryly humorous and reflective, Hugh's first-person narration develops through long conversations and flashbacks. The pace is unhurried, and the novel's concerns are intimate: alcoholism, faith and the difficulty of understanding oneself and other people.
How it reads
- Writing style
- Descriptive · Witty
- Tone
- Hopeful · Intimate · Melancholic · Reflective
- Structure
- Nonlinear
- Driven by
- Character · Ideas · Relationships
- Point of view
- First person
- Setting
- New England
Reading complexity
- Writing
- 3 / 5
- Ideas
- 3 / 5
- Structure
- 3 / 5
- Background knowledge
- 2 / 5
About this profile
Collected’s assessment, not reader ratings. Complexity runs from 1 (least demanding) to 5 (most demanding).
- Writing
- How much attention the sentences and language require.
- Ideas
- How much interpretation or abstract reasoning the book asks of you.
- Structure
- How much you need to keep track of speakers, timelines and connections.
- Background knowledge
- Prior knowledge needed to follow the book, beyond what it explains.
- Emotional intensity
- Emotional pressure, from gentle (1) to intense (5). Separate from difficulty.
Themes
- Addiction
- Belonging
- Friendship
- Isolation
- Redemption
- Religion and faith
Content notes
- Violence
- None
- Sexual content
- None
- Swearing
- Mild
- Substance use
- Strong
- Abuse
- Mild
- Self-harm or suicide
- None
Standing and awards
Highly regarded
- Pulitzer Prize for Fiction, 1962
Questions readers ask
Which edition is shown here?
Loyola Press · 2005 · Paperback. ISBN 9780829421231.
How long does it take to read The Edge of Sadness?
About 13 hours 15 minutes at 50 pages an hour, based on the 664-page Loyola Press edition. Dense books can take longer.
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Edition and details
- Publisher
- Loyola Press
- Publication year
- 2005
- Format
- Paperback
- Pages
- 664
- ISBN
- 9780829421231
- Edition language
- English
- Original language
- English
- First published
- 1961
- Genres and form
- Fiction · Novel · Literary Fiction · Religion & Spirituality · Literary fiction · Psychological fiction
- Editions
- 9
- Languages
- 2 (English, Unspecified)
The catalog does not yet include a matching edition. Details may differ between editions.