So BigSo Big
Score Classic
What it's about
In the 1880s, Selina Peake, orphaned and penniless at nineteen, takes a teaching job in a Dutch farming community outside Chicago. She marries a farmer, is widowed, and turns a failing vegetable farm into a success through grit and a love of beauty. Her son Dirk, nicknamed So Big, grows up to choose easy money over the harder, richer life she hoped for him.
Why it's worth reading
It won the Pulitzer Prize. Selina is one of the great heroines of American fiction, and the book asks what makes a life truly rich.
You'll love it if you liked
The Age of Innocence
A Tree Grows in Brooklyn
To Kill a MockingbirdGood to know
It's short and gentle. The second half shifts focus to Dirk in 1920s Chicago.
By the numbers
- Readers61 out of 100 · counts 42%
- Critics67 out of 100 · counts 34% (its stronger lane)
- Bestseller35 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
Reads as
Thought-provoking
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Quick answers
Is So Big worth reading?
Yes. It won the Pulitzer Prize. It ranks #628 of the 2,816 books in our ranking, with a Must-Read Score of 76.8 (the best book we found scores 99).
What is So Big about?
In the 1880s, Selina Peake, orphaned and penniless at nineteen, takes a teaching job in a Dutch farming community outside Chicago. She marries a farmer, is widowed, and turns a failing vegetable farm into a success through grit and a love of beauty. Her son Dirk, nicknamed So Big, grows up to choose easy money over the harder, richer life she hoped for him.
How long does it take to read So Big?
About 6 hours (252 pages), or about 2 weeks at 30 minutes a day.
What awards has So Big won?
Pulitzer Prize for Fiction winner (1925).
What should I read after So Big?
If you liked it, try The Age of Innocence by Edith Wharton, A Tree Grows in Brooklyn by Betty Smith or To Kill a Mockingbird by Harper Lee.