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Cover of Daniel Deronda by George EliotDaniel Deronda
Classic · Fiction, Classics, Religion

Daniel Deronda

by George Eliot
19 · 796 pages · Fiction
62.1Must-Read
Score Classic
Critics' pick
≈ 20 hours to read · about 6 weeks at 30 minutes a day

What it's about

Gwendolen Harleth loses her family fortune at the roulette table and becomes trapped in an oppressive marriage. Daniel Deronda, the young Englishman who watched her gamble, meets a young Jewish woman named Mirah and is drawn into the search for her lost family.

Why it's worth reading

It's on the Guardian's list of 1,000 novels everyone must read. It's a major novel from the author of Middlemarch.

You'll love it if you liked

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MiddlemarchGeorge Eliot
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The Mill on the FlossGeorge Eliot
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Good to know

It's long, with two intertwined storylines.

By the numbers

62.1Must-Read Score
  • Readers42 out of 100 · counts 42%
  • Critics30 out of 100 · counts 34% (its stronger lane)
  • Bestseller8 out of 100 · counts 14%
  • Buzz0 out of 100 · counts 10%

Critics and Bestseller are two ways to earn a place: a book's stronger one counts more. Buzz rewards recent bestseller weeks and prizes, so older books start at zero. The parts combine into the Must-Read Score, shown on a scale where the best book we found scores 99 and the last book to make the ranking scores 50.

Where it ranks

Why it made the list

On the lists
Guardian 1000 Novels Everyone Must Read

Reads as

Epic

How we rank

Already read it? Upload your Goodreads or StoryGraph history and get the 50 best books you haven't read, tuned to your taste.Get my 50

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Explore the best-of lists

All 36 best-of lists →
Classic booksTop 25 · 924 rankedFantasy booksTop 25 · 504 rankedMysteries and thrillersTop 25 · 623 rankedLiterary novelsTop 25 · 325 rankedMemoirs and biographiesTop 25 · 290 rankedScience fiction booksTop 25 · 333 rankedRomancesTop 25 · 246 rankedHistorical novelsTop 25 · 124 ranked

Quick answers

Is Daniel Deronda worth reading?

Yes. It's on the Guardian's list of 1,000 novels everyone must read. It ranks #2,322 of the 3,057 books in our ranking, with a Must-Read Score of 62.1 (the best book we found scores 99).

What is Daniel Deronda about?

Gwendolen Harleth loses her family fortune at the roulette table and becomes trapped in an oppressive marriage. Daniel Deronda, the young Englishman who watched her gamble, meets a young Jewish woman named Mirah and is drawn into the search for her lost family.

How long does it take to read Daniel Deronda?

About 20 hours (796 pages), or about 6 weeks at 30 minutes a day.

What should I read after Daniel Deronda?

If you liked it, try Middlemarch by George Eliot, The Mill on the Floss by George Eliot or The Way We Live Now by Anthony Trollope.