The Wheel of Time reading order

A plan for the whole series

15 volumes, 11,458 pages, about 210 hours. At 45 min a day that is about 9 months.

• The thickest volume runs 960 pages. One volume is one stage: a break after it, not the next volume.
• Readers scored volume 7, “A Crown of Swords”, below its predecessor (7.8 after 8.1). If you slow down there, that is on the book, not on you. From volume 11 the form returns.

Stages

14 stages, with 13 short books from outside the series between them. You finish around November 4, 2027, about 3 months later than in one go.

1. 1
   Stage 114 h19 daysby November 17, 2026

   • 1. The Eye of the World1990 · 782 pages · 14 h
2. Short breakThe Fire Next Time · James Baldwin · 120 pp. · score 8.82 h, by November 21, 2026. A short book from another shelf, so you come back to the series hungry.
3. 2
   Stage 213 h17 daysby December 8, 2026

   • 2. The Great Hunt1990 · 684 pages · 13 h
4. Short breakOn Tyranny: Twenty Lessons from the Twentieth Century · Timothy Snyder · 128 pp. · score 8.42 h, by December 12, 2026. A short book from another shelf, so you come back to the series hungry.
5. 3
   Stage 312 h16 daysby December 28, 2026

   • 3. The Dragon Reborn1991 · 670 pages · 12 h
6. BreakMaus · Art Spiegelman · 295 pp. · score 9.05 h, by January 6, 2027. A short book from another shelf, so you come back to the series hungry.
7. 4
   Stage 418 habout 3 weeksby January 30, 2027

   • 4. The Shadow Rising1992 · 960 pages · 18 h
8. BreakBorn a Crime · Trevor Noah · 304 pp. · score 8.96 h, by February 8, 2027. A short book from another shelf, so you come back to the series hungry.
9. 5
   Stage 516 habout 3 weeksby March 2, 2027

   • 5. The Fires of Heaven1993 · 894 pages · 16 h
10. BreakI'm Glad My Mom Died · Jennette McCurdy · 320 pp. · score 8.96 h, by March 12, 2027. A short book from another shelf, so you come back to the series hungry.
11. 6
    Stage 617 habout 3 weeksby April 4, 2027

    • 6. Lord of Chaos1994 · 940 pages · 17 h
12. BreakFlowers for Algernon · Daniel Keyes · 274 pp. · score 8.85 h, by April 13, 2027. A short book from another shelf, so you come back to the series hungry.
13. 7
    Stage 713 h17 daysby April 29, 2027

    • 7. A Crown of Swords1996 · 684 pages · 13 h
14. Short breakAnimal Farm · George Orwell · 128 pp. · score 8.32 h, by May 4, 2027. A short book from another shelf, so you come back to the series hungry.
15. 8
    Stage 811 h15 daysby May 18, 2027

    • 8. The Path of Daggers1998 · 608 pages · 11 h
16. Short breakTo Be Taught, If Fortunate · Becky Chambers · 153 pp. · score 8.33 h, by May 23, 2027. A short book from another shelf, so you come back to the series hungry.
17. 9
    Stage 912 h16 daysby June 9, 2027

    • 9. Winter's Heart2000 · 668 pages · 12 h
18. Short breakThe Importance of Being Earnest · Oscar Wilde · 102 pp. · score 8.22 h, by June 12, 2027. A short book from another shelf, so you come back to the series hungry.
19. 10
    Stage 1019 habout 4 weeksby July 7, 2027

    • 10. Crossroads of Twilight2003 · 704 pages · 13 h
    • 10.5. New Spring2004 · 336 pages · 6 h
20. BreakJames · Percival Everett · 320 pp. · score 8.76 h, by July 17, 2027. A short book from another shelf, so you come back to the series hungry.
21. 11
    Stage 1115 h20 daysby August 7, 2027

    • 11. Knife of Dreams2005 · 832 pages · 15 h
22. Short breakA Room of One's Own · Virginia Woolf · 144 pp. · score 8.23 h, by August 11, 2027. A short book from another shelf, so you come back to the series hungry.
23. 12
    Stage 1215 h20 daysby August 31, 2027

    • 12. The Gathering Storm2009 · 824 pages · 15 h
24. BreakHomegoing · Yaa Gyasi · 320 pp. · score 8.76 h, by September 10, 2027. A short book from another shelf, so you come back to the series hungry.
25. 13
    Stage 1317 habout 3 weeksby October 3, 2027

    • 13. Towers of Midnight2010 · 944 pages · 17 h
26. BreakStoner · John Williams · 293 pp. · score 8.65 h, by October 12, 2027. A short book from another shelf, so you come back to the series hungry.
27. 14
    Stage 1417 habout 3 weeksby November 4, 2027

    • 14. A Memory of Light2013 · 928 pages · 17 h
28. The end of the series

    November 4, 2027

We count 1.1 min per page, the pace of an average novel reader. Faster? Move the slider.

Does the series hold up

Shape of the series: a dip in the middle, then the form returns. Readers scored the middle volumes (7.6) below the opening (8.2); the ending (8.5) comes back up. If you slow down in the middle, there is still a reason to go on.

Best volume: A Memory of Light (9.0, 891 ratings). Weakest: Crossroads of Twilight (7.1). The series is complete; you can read it start to finish with no waiting. The last volume (9.0) scores close to the series average or above it.