About 27 minutes
Mosada: A dramatic poem — Reading Companion
Science Fiction Utopias
6,062 recorded words. Selected by the catalog's stored reading-time estimate.
View Gutenberg source #33430
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Start with a reading choice
Three of the shortest recorded reading commitments in this catalog. Times are estimates, not quality ratings.
About 30 minutes
Rada: A Drama of War in One Act — Context and Discussion
Adventure Picaresque Fiction
6,680 recorded words. Selected by the catalog's stored reading-time estimate.
View Gutenberg source #12220About 35 minutes
Die Inshurance Business A serio-comic drama in the Pennsylvania German vernacular, "as she is spoke" in the German districts of Pennsylvania — Key Ideas to Explore
Adventure Picaresque Fiction
8,026 recorded words. Selected by the catalog's stored reading-time estimate.
View Gutenberg source #57044Search the excerpts stored with this catalog
90 of 90 catalog books have a stored excerpt with a Gutenberg source record. Search covers these excerpts only, up to 6,000 characters per book. A missing match does not mean the phrase is absent from the full work.
Read a catalog excerpt example: Lady Windermere's Fan — Reading Companion
LADY WINDERMERE’S FAN A PLAY ABOUT A GOOD WOMAN METHUEN & CO. LTD. 36 ESSEX STREET W.C. LONDON _First Published_ _1893_ _First Issued by Methuen & Co. Ltd._ (_Limited Editions on _1908_ Hand-made Paper and Japanese Vellum_) _February_ _Third Edition_ (_F’cap_ 8_vo_, 5_s._ _net_) _September_ _1909_ _Fourth Edition_ (5_s._ _net_) _June_ _1910_ _Fifth Edition_ (_F’cap_ 8_vo_, 1_s._ _net_) _November 3rd_ _1911_ _Sixth Edition_ (1_s._ _net_) _November_ _1911_ _Eighth Edition_ (1_s._ _net_) _1912_,…
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Compare two books and their available excerpts
| Book | Recorded words | Estimated minutes | Source |
|---|---|---|---|
| Mosada: A dramatic poem — Reading Companion | 6,062 | 27 | Gutenberg #33430 |
| Rada: A Drama of War in One Act — Context and Discussion | 6,680 | 30 | Gutenberg #12220 |
| Die Inshurance Business A serio-comic drama in the Pennsylvania German vernacular, "as she is spoke" in the German districts of Pennsylvania — Key Ideas to Explore | 8,026 | 35 | Gutenberg #57044 |
How these choices and excerpts are prepared
Choices use stored catalog measurements. Estimates vary with reading speed. A shared category is a catalog label, not a claim that two books have the same argument or literary quality.
Search reads excerpt text stored with this catalog and links to its associated Gutenberg record. The connection is stored in the site database; this tool does not recheck that every excerpt is word-for-word identical to that external record. Excerpt search does not cover every chapter and does not verify historical publication dates.
Catalog snapshot checked: 2026-09-26. Coverage: 90 public books, 90 available source excerpts.
Do more with this book catalog
This library offers a curated collection of public-domain literature, with a focus on plays and dramatic works. Use the tools below to explore the catalog, find works that match your interests, and plan your reading.
The catalog currently includes 90 books across four categories: Science Fiction Utopias, Historical Psychological Social Fiction, Fantasy Juvenile Worlds, and Adventure Picaresque Fiction. Each entry provides details such as word count, reading time, and subject headings to help you decide what to read.
90
books in this catalog
4
catalog categories
90
books with reading-time data
Made for this collection
Ways the catalog data becomes useful
Find Your Next Read
Answer a few questions about your preferences, and the finder will suggest books from the catalog that fit your interests. Explore by category, theme, or length.
Compare Works
See how different plays stack up side by side. Compare word counts, sentence complexity, and subject matter to understand what each work offers.
Plan Your Reading Time
Estimate how long a book will take to read based on its word count. Filter by quick reads, steady reads, immersive reads, or marathons.
Choosing a Path Through the Drama Collection
The IBEJE Public Domain Literature Library holds ninety plays and related works, with four categories that each contain roughly a fifth of the collection. With so many titles, the first question is usually where to start. The Book Finder narrows options by the features you care about, Compare Books sets two or three candidates side by side, and the Reading Tracker turns a chosen text into a sustainable daily plan.
These tools are meant to work together, not in isolation. A reader might begin with the Finder to see which plays fit an available evening, move to Compare to check how two finalists differ in sentence length, and then use the Tracker once a decision is made. For instance, Cromwell: A Drama, in Five Acts — A Closer Reading sits at 34,489 words with an average sentence of 12.4 words, which suggests a steady pace that the Tracker can help pace over several days.
When to Start with the Finder
The Finder is the natural entry point when you have a general sense of what you want but not a specific title. You might know you have time for a quick read, or you might be drawn to a particular subject such as Christmas plays. The Finder lets you combine those signals, and it will not penalize you for leaving a preference unset.
Because the catalog is small, the Finder can surface unexpected matches. For example, selecting the category Adventure Picaresque Fiction and a short length might bring up titles you had not considered, such as a one-act war drama. The tool is especially useful when you want to avoid the longer volumes that dominate the collection's word counts.
Comparing Before Committing
Once the Finder has produced a shortlist, Compare Books can highlight differences that affect your reading experience. Word count and estimated minutes are obvious, but sentence flow and chapter rhythm often matter more. A play with many short sections may feel easier to pause between scenes, while one with longer acts requires a larger block of time.
Compare does not judge quality; it simply lays out measurable facts. For example, you might compare a 6,680-word one-act play with a 25,185-word five-act history. The difference in reading minutes is about 80, which could be one sitting versus two. The Tracker then turns that estimate into a realistic schedule.