How Green Was My ValleyHow Green Was My Valley
Score Classic
What it's about
Huw Morgan, about to leave his home valley in South Wales forever, remembers his childhood there in the late 1800s, when it was green and the coal mines made men proud. He recalls his strong father, his loving mother, his brothers, the chapel, the singing and the slow ruin of the valley as the slag heaps grew and the mines turned against the miners.
Why it's worth reading
It spent weeks at #1 on the New York Times list, and the film won the Oscar for Best Picture. It's a warm, sad, lyrical portrait of a family and a lost world.
You'll love it if you liked
A Tree Grows in Brooklyn
Angela's Ashes
The Grapes of WrathGood to know
The prose imitates Welsh speech patterns, which gives it a distinctive rhythm. It's long and nostalgic.
By the numbers
- Readers79 out of 100 · counts 42%
- Critics0 out of 100 · counts 14%
- Bestseller49 out of 100 · counts 34% (its stronger lane)
- 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
Reads as
Adventurous, Moving
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Quick answers
Is How Green Was My Valley worth reading?
Yes. It spent weeks at #1 on the New York Times list, and the film won the Oscar for Best Picture. It ranks #819 of the 2,816 books in our ranking, with a Must-Read Score of 74.8 (the best book we found scores 99).
What is How Green Was My Valley about?
Huw Morgan, about to leave his home valley in South Wales forever, remembers his childhood there in the late 1800s, when it was green and the coal mines made men proud. He recalls his strong father, his loving mother, his brothers, the chapel, the singing and the slow ruin of the valley as the slag heaps grew and the mines turned against the miners.
How long does it take to read How Green Was My Valley?
About 14 hours (573 pages), or about 4 weeks at 30 minutes a day.
What should I read after How Green Was My Valley?
If you liked it, try A Tree Grows in Brooklyn by Betty Smith, Angela's Ashes by Frank McCourt or The Grapes of Wrath by John Steinbeck.