The Naked and the DeadThe Naked and the Dead
Score Classic
What it's about
During the Second World War, a platoon of American soldiers fights to take a Japanese-held island in the Pacific. The novel follows a dozen men, their backgrounds told in flashbacks, under a brutal sergeant, and their commanding general, a brilliant man with dangerous ideas about power, who clashes with his liberal young aide. Finally the platoon is sent on a grueling patrol over a mountain.
Why it's worth reading
It spent 19 weeks at #1 on the New York Times list and is on the Modern Library list of the best novels. Mailer wrote it at twenty-five, and it's one of the great American war novels.
You'll love it if you liked
The Caine Mutiny
Catch-22
Tales of the South PacificGood to know
It's long, violent and profane; Mailer famously had to write the f-word as 'fug'. The soldiers' language is racist and crude.
By the numbers
- Readers35 out of 100 · counts 42%
- Critics59 out of 100 · counts 34% (its stronger lane)
- Bestseller56 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
Epic, Moving
More by Norman Mailer
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Quick answers
Is The Naked and the Dead worth reading?
Yes. It spent 19 weeks at #1 on the New York Times list and is on the Modern Library list of the best novels. It ranks #1,229 of the 2,816 books in our ranking, with a Must-Read Score of 70.6 (the best book we found scores 99).
What is The Naked and the Dead about?
During the Second World War, a platoon of American soldiers fights to take a Japanese-held island in the Pacific. The novel follows a dozen men, their backgrounds told in flashbacks, under a brutal sergeant, and their commanding general, a brilliant man with dangerous ideas about power, who clashes with his liberal young aide. Finally the platoon is sent on a grueling patrol over a mountain.
How long does it take to read The Naked and the Dead?
About 18 hours (738 pages), or about 5 weeks at 30 minutes a day.
What should I read after The Naked and the Dead?
If you liked it, try The Caine Mutiny by Herman Wouk, Catch-22 by Joseph Heller or Tales of the South Pacific by James A. Michener.