How many words are in The Wonderful Wizard of Oz?
by L. Frank Baum · 1900 · Fantasy
39,649
Word count
2 hr 47 min
Reading time
159
Est. pages
1900
Published
The Wonderful Wizard of Oz by L. Frank Baum is approximately 39,649 wordslong. At an average reading speed of 238 words per minute, that's about 2 hr 47 min of reading spread across several sittings. First published in 1900, it sits in the Fantasy category.
Typical fantasy novels run 70,000–150,000 words, with a sweet spot around 90,000–120,000. At 39,649 words, The Wonderful Wizard of Oz comes in below the typical range — closer to a novella in length.
Source: Word count computed from the Project Gutenberg plain-text edition (eBook #55, public domain) · referenceVerified 2026-06-21
Fantasy novels of similar length
| Title | Author | Word count |
|---|---|---|
| The Marvelous Land of Oz | L. Frank Baum | 41,878 |
| The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe | C.S. Lewis | 36,363 |
| Peter Pan | J.M. Barrie | 47,268 |
| Through the Looking-Glass | Lewis Carroll | 29,752 |
| The Princess and the Goblin | George MacDonald | 50,960 |
| Alice's Adventures in Wonderland | Lewis Carroll | 26,525 |