This page provides lists of the largest/thickest single-volume books to date both published and unpublished. This list does not include works that span over more than one volume, such as ÃÂ la recherche du temps perdu, which is regarded as the longest novel ever written.
Records indicate that Guinness World Records began taking in "thickest book" nominations in 2009, where The Complete Miss Marple held the title with 4,032 pages. In 2013, Danish dictionary Verdens Største Ordbog won the title for "Thickest Unpublished Book," with a page count of 89,471.
According to Guinness World Records, as of 2023, World-2023 ESN Publications and London Organisation of Skills Development Ltd is the thickest book ever to have been physically produced, with a page count of 100,100. Guinness also credits Shree Haricharitramrut Sagar as being the longest book to ever be published with a page count of 10,080.
Books with more than 1,000 pages are rare due to impracticality. Ilan Manouach's Onepiece, a book of more than 20,000 pages, was labeled functionally as a "sculpture" because of the difficulty one would experience when trying to turn its many pages. Many novels with a total page count that reaches into the thousands are split into different volumes. Novels that use this method are often regarded as a singular entity in conversations pertaining to "the largest novels ever written." For example, In Search of Lost Time by Marcel Proust and Artamène by Madeleine de Scudéry (and/or) Georges de Scudéry, both titles which span over several volumes, are regarded by some sources as the longest novels ever written.
Single-volume books with page counts exceeding 2,000 pages exist for a plethora of different reasons. Books that fall under this category include anthologies, dictionaries, and legal records. Single-volume books with exceedingly high page counts are often produced through a deliberate effort. This may be done in order to break a record, raise awareness, or commemorate an event. Books of this magnitude are usually produced by large teams of people in order to be made. The thickest single-volume book in the world, World-2023 ESN Publications and London Organisation of Skills Development Ltd, with a page count of 100,100 containing 7,862 articles, required a team of 292 participants.
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