About 22 minutes
Brief Account of the English Character — Text and Context
Modern Nations
4,849 recorded words. Selected by the catalog's stored reading-time estimate.
View Gutenberg source #54820
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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
Wichita — Edition Insights
Modern Nations
6,685 recorded words. Selected by the catalog's stored reading-time estimate.
View Gutenberg source #57620About 35 minutes
The Communist Threat in the Taiwan Area — Background and Themes
Modern Nations
7,824 recorded words. Selected by the catalog's stored reading-time estimate.
View Gutenberg source #16142Search the excerpts stored with this catalog
99 of 99 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: History of Friedrich II of Prussia — Volume 10 — A Reader’s Guide
Beginning was the Word; and the Word was with God, and the Word was--"_ Which somewhat took the Prince by surprise, as Formey reports; though he rallied straightway, and got good conversation out of the old gentleman. To whom, we perceive, he writes once or twice, [_OEuvres de Frederic,_ 121-126. Dates are all of 1737; the last of Beausobre's years.]--a copy of his own verses to correct, on one occasion,--and is very respectful and considerate. Formey tells us of another French sage, personally…
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Compare two books and their available excerpts
| Book | Recorded words | Estimated minutes | Source |
|---|---|---|---|
| Brief Account of the English Character — Text and Context | 4,849 | 22 | Gutenberg #54820 |
| Wichita — Edition Insights | 6,685 | 30 | Gutenberg #57620 |
| The Communist Threat in the Taiwan Area — Background and Themes | 7,824 | 35 | Gutenberg #16142 |
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: 99 public books, 99 available source excerpts.
Do more with this book catalog
The OOVBA Modern History Library offers 99 public-domain books that trace the making of the modern world. The collection is organized into four categories: Modern Nations, Revolutions, Social History, and World Events. Whether you are exploring national development, revolutionary change, or everyday life, these works provide firsthand accounts and detailed histories.
This library is more than a list of titles. The interactive tools help you find books that match your interests, compare similar works, and estimate your reading commitment. Use the Finder to narrow by subject, Compare to weigh related histories, and the Reading tool to plan your time.
99
books in this catalog
4
catalog categories
99
books with reading-time data
Made for this collection
Ways the catalog data becomes useful
Finder
Search 99 books by category, subject, or length. With 8 subject options, you can quickly locate works on topics such as the French court, Prussia under Frederick II, or the Jacobite Rebellion.
Compare
Compare up to three books side by side. Examine word count, reading time, and subject coverage to decide which history suits your needs.
Reading
Estimate your reading time based on book length. From quick reads under an hour to marathon sessions, plan your next historical journey.
Choosing a Starting Point: Book Finder, Compare Books, and Reading Tracker
The OOVBA Modern History Library holds 99 titles spread across four categories, with word counts that range from a few thousand to well over 400,000. The three working tools here—Book Finder, Compare Books, and Reading Tracker—address different stages of reading: narrowing the field, weighing specific options, and sustaining progress once a choice is made. None of them rates literary quality; they are practical instruments for a collection that rewards deliberate selection.
Consider a title like "The Irish Crisis — Reading Notes" (id 308). At roughly 44,600 words and an estimated 194 minutes of reading, it sits in the middle range of the catalog. A reader might use the Finder to locate it by subject, then turn to Compare to see how its sentence flow or chapter rhythm differ from a longer work, and finally set a daily page goal in the Tracker. The tools work best in sequence, not in isolation.
When to Use Book Finder
Book Finder is the entry point. It lets you filter by category, word-count length, estimated reading time, chapter rhythm, sentence flow, and subject. With 69 titles in Modern Nations, 10 in Revolutions, 10 in Social History, and 10 in World Events, the category filter alone can cut the field dramatically. The length and time filters are particularly useful if you have a specific amount of reading time available.
The Finder also accommodates vaguer preferences. If you are unsure whether you want a quick read or a long immersion, you can leave those criteria on no preference, and the tool will not penalize any book. That flexibility makes it a good first step, even when you are only browsing.
When to Use Compare Books
Compare Books is for the moment when two or three titles seem equally plausible. It lays out word count, estimated reading time, text sections, sentence flow, chapter rhythm, subjects, and page information side by side. This is where differences that matter to your schedule become visible. A 50,000-word book and a 150,000-word book may both be appealing, but the time commitment is not the same.
For instance, comparing "The Irish Crisis — Reading Notes" (id 308) with a longer volume such as "Narrative and Critical History of America, Vol. 5" (id 297) would show a gap of over 300,000 words and more than 1,300 estimated minutes. That comparison is not a judgment of worth; it is a practical reality about pacing.
When to Use Reading Tracker
Reading Tracker is for the commitment phase. It records progress in pages, with a current page, total pages, and a daily page goal. The default goal is 20 pages per day, but you can adjust it. The tracker estimates remaining time and finish days based on your goal, and it stores history in your browser—no account required.
Using "The Irish Crisis — Reading Notes" (id 308) as an example: with an estimated total of around 179 pages (using the 250-word-per-page default), a 20-page daily goal would suggest finishing in about 9 days. That concrete number can help you decide whether the book fits your current schedule.