The Color Purple by the numbers
Alice Walker · first published 1982 · dataset 2026-10-24
Who it is not for: readers below 11th grade: no school list in our data assigns it earlier.
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Length and reading time
| Pages (dataset edition) | 304 |
|---|---|
| Estimated words | 84,000 |
| Reading time, 300 wpm (fast) | 4 h 39 min |
| Reading time, 250 wpm (average adult) | 5 h 34 min |
| Reading time, 200 wpm (careful / younger reader) | 6 h 58 min |
| Days at 20 minutes a day | 17 |
| Lexile measure | 670L |
At 304 pages, The Color Purple is longer than 78.5% of the 2,330 books on the reading lists we track whose page count we know (2,809 books are tracked in all). It is longer than the median book listed for grades 9-12 (273 pages).
The Color Purple is 304 pages; the median book listed for grades 9-12 is 273 pages and the median of all 2,330 listed books with a page count is 187.
Source: Page counts of 2,330 books on U.S. school reading lists, bookstatistics.com · Dataset snapshot 2026-10-24
Show the numbers
| Book | Pages |
|---|---|
| The Color Purple | 304 pages |
| Median book listed for grades 9-12 | 273 pages |
| Median of all listed books | 187 pages |
Word counts and reading times are estimates: pages × 275 words, divided by the reading speed. Your edition's page count and your own pace will differ.
Where The Color Purple is on school reading lists
4 appearances (0.0% of all 20,804 listings in the dataset), drawn from 2 published lists, in grades 11th–12th. 4 of the 4 carry a link to the published source document.
| Grade | Listings |
|---|---|
| 11th | 2 |
| 12th | 2 |
Sources
- Alice Walker is on the IB Diploma Programme English A: Literature Prescribed Reading List (author-eligible; schools select from the full PRL). Verified via independent author-roster cross-reference, 2026-09-04. · checked 2026-09-04
- AP Lit representative text · checked 2026-06-16
Questions
How many pages is The Color Purple?
The Color Purple by Alice Walker is 304 pages in the edition recorded in our dataset. Page counts vary by edition and format; at about 275 words per page that is roughly 84,000 words.
How long does it take to read The Color Purple?
About 5 h 34 min at an average adult pace of 250 words per minute (4 h 39 min at 300 wpm, 6 h 58 min at 200 wpm). At 20 minutes a day that is about 17 days.
Is The Color Purple on school reading lists?
Yes. It appears 4 times on the U.S. school reading lists, award lists and curricula in our dataset, in 2 national curricula (no single state), most often in grades 9-12. That ranks it #2,070 of 2,809 listed books.
Related
- The Color Purple: reading level, grades and similar booksOn ReadingList, our sister site for school reading lists.
- Books of about the same lengthGround Zero (304 pp.) · Just Mercy (Adapted for Young Adults) (304 pp.) · Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone (309 pp.) · Flowers for Algernon (311 pp.)
- The most assigned books, rankedAll 2,809 listed books start here.
- Book length statisticsHow long assigned books are, by grade.
Cite this page
<a href="https://bookstatistics.com/books/the-color-purple/">The Color Purple statistics</a>. Book Statistics, a Figures Bureau site. [The Color Purple statistics](https://bookstatistics.com/books/the-color-purple/). Book Statistics, a Figures Bureau site. [url=https://bookstatistics.com/books/the-color-purple/]The Color Purple statistics[/url]. Book Statistics, a Figures Bureau site.