3 h 39 minAudiobook14 minSummaryRead it, hear it, the 15-minute summary, and print and large print at cost
Audiobook edition · 3 h 39 minPaperback · 6 × 9 in · printing soonHardcover · 6 × 9 in · printing soonAbout this book
What if kindness and clear thinking make you a target rather than keep you safe?
In ancient Babylon, Zadig wants to live justly. He is clever, curious and kind, yet those gifts keep bringing trouble. King Moabdar notices his talents and raises him to high office. But fairness breeds envy at court, and the king who rewards him also has the power to ruin him.
Voltaire turns Zadig’s troubles into a quick, funny adventure with a serious question inside: why do good people suffer while the wicked prosper? Through failed love, corrupt judges and quarrelling priests, this short philosophical tale tests reason against injustice. Its half-imagined East gives sharp shape to the folly of calling every misfortune part of a wise plan.
What you’ll discover
- A good man under pressure Follow Zadig as he tries to act fairly in a world that punishes his gifts.
- The dangers of favour Enter a court where Zadig’s fairness stirs envy and his closeness to Queen Astarte brings danger.
- Virtue put to the test Meet Azora, whose admired virtue becomes the subject of a comic test arranged by Zadig.
- Wisdom beyond Babylon Travel with Zadig into exile and slavery, where the merchant Setoc comes to value his wisdom.
- Big questions, sharp humour Find short scenes that pair a joke with a lesson about reason, fate and human folly.
Who will love it
You will love this book if you enjoy quick, witty tales with a clever hero, or if you are curious how the Enlightenment turned questions about fate into entertainment.
What’s inside
The key ideas, in the 15-minute summary
- Good character cannot protect a man from bad luck
- Sharp observation can bring more trouble than praise
- A fair judge tests what people truly value
- Innocent affection can destroy a happy life
- In slavery, reason wins friends and enemies
- Robbers, a fisherman and a basilisk lead to Astarte
- Reason and tolerance answer custom and fanaticism
- Short chapters and a mock manuscript carry the satire
Who’s who
- ZadigA wise, kind young Babylonian who solves problems by sharp observation and keeps losing what he gains, while he searches for happiness and for the woman he loves.
- AstarteThe queen of Babylon, who loves Zadig in secret and must flee her jealous husband, then wishes only to be reunited with him.
- MoabdarThe king of Babylon, a ruler easily ruled by suspicion, who favors Zadig and then turns on him through jealousy.
- CadorZadig's loyal friend, who helps him and Astarte escape danger and works on their behalf from within the court.
- SetocAn Arabian merchant who buys Zadig as a slave, then comes to rely on him as his wisest friend.
- AlmonaA young widow bound to burn on her husband's pyre, who owes her life to Zadig and repays him with cunning.
- ArimazesZadig's envious neighbor, who hates his good name and seeks every chance to ruin him.
- ArbogadA cheerful robber lord on the Syrian border who admires Zadig's courage and tempts him to join his gang.
Formats and delivery
- eBook
- On your phone, tablet or computer, once the book texts are online.
- Large-print eBook
- The same book in bigger, clearer type, once the book texts are online.
- Audiobook
- Read by Lucas Linden, complete. It opens once the recording is online.
- 15-minute summary
- The key ideas in about 14 minutes, to read today.
- Paperback
- 6 × 9 in. Printing soon: leave your email under Paperback or Hardcover above.
- Hardcover
- 6 × 9 in. Printing soon: leave your email under Paperback or Hardcover above.
- Large print paperback
- 8.5 × 11 in. Printing soon: leave your email under Paperback or Hardcover above.
- Large print hardcover
- 8.5 × 11 in. Printing soon: leave your email under Paperback or Hardcover above.
Every printed copy is made when you order it and shipped worldwide; shipping is shown at checkout. The eBook and the audiobook open when the book texts go online.
How it works
- Start free. Nothing to pay today; the eBook of this book is yours to keep.
- Read, listen and print. 200,000+ classics as eBook, large-print eBook, audiobook and 15-minute summary, and any book printed at cost as a paperback, hardcover or large print, 5 accounts for the price of one.
- We remind you first. Free for 3 months, and we email you 7 days before your first payment. Then USD 0.14 a day in your first year on the yearly plan and USD 0.27 a day after, or USD 0.66 a day on the monthly plan. Cancel online in two clicks.
Bought on its own? Every eBook, audiobook and printed book you buy without the plan carries our 30-day money-back guarantee.
Zadig; Or, The Book of Fate
by Voltaire · 1747
Zadig reads a missing dog's tracks in the sand, and his sharp eyes start a chain of fines, flights and rescues.
Challenging2–5 hours to readEnglish
Excellent
Free for 3 months · starts right away, on any device
Read free3 months free · cancel anytimeFree for 3 months, then USD 0.14 a dayCancel anytimeHow it works
- Read or listen
- Print and large print at cost
- 5 accounts for the price of one
In short
Why would a man be punished for noticing too much? In Babylon, Zadig describes the Queen's lost dog and the King's missing horse without ever having seen either, and the court drags him in as a thief.
Zadig; Or, The Book of Fate at a glance
- Reading time
- About 1 h 55 min1 h 35 min fast, 2 h 20 min slow
- Length
- 27,800 words
- Library level
- Challenging long sentences, a rich vocabulary
- First published
- 1747by Voltaire
Reading time at 238 words a minute (fast 300, slow 200). How long the classics take to read · Updated
From the 15-minute summary · Key idea 1
Good character cannot protect a man from bad luck
Zadig lives in Babylon in the reign of King Moabdar. He is young, rich, handsome and calm, and he keeps his wit to himself.
He plans to marry Semira, the most sought-after woman in the city. By the Euphrates, guards sent by a nobleman named Orcan try to carry her off. Zadig drives them away, but an arrow wounds his eye. A famous doctor, Hermes, predicts the very hour the eye will be lost. The eye heals by itself, and Hermes writes a treatise to prove that it should not have. Semira cannot bear a one-eyed man, and she marries Orcan that night.
Free for 3 months · Cancel anytime
You looked at
Which edition is right for me
- 15-minute summary
- The key ideas of the whole book in about 14 minutes. A good first look, or a refresher.
Details
- First published
- 1747
- Language
- English
- Reading time
- 2 h 20 min
- Level
- Challenging
Cite this edition
Voltaire. Zadig; Or, The Book of Fate. Library of Alexandria, 2026, libraryofalexandria.com/products/zadig-or-the-book-of-fate.
Voltaire. (2026). Zadig; or, the book of fate. Library of Alexandria. https://libraryofalexandria.com/products/zadig-or-the-book-of-fate (Original work published 1747)
Voltaire. Zadig; Or, The Book of Fate. Library of Alexandria, 2026. https://libraryofalexandria.com/products/zadig-or-the-book-of-fate.
@book{voltaire2026zadig,
author = {Voltaire},
title = {Zadig; Or, The Book of Fate},
publisher = {Library of Alexandria},
year = {2026},
url = {https://libraryofalexandria.com/products/zadig-or-the-book-of-fate},
note = {First published 1747}
}
Free gifts
USD 580 in free gifts when you start
Every book in every format and in 25 languages, 5 accounts for the price of one. Nothing to pay today.
- 200,000+ classic eBooksIn 25 languages, side by side
USD 170FREE - Every audiobookIn 25 languages, any device
USD 120FREE - 15-minute summariesRead or listen, in 25 languages
USD 60FREE - Print at cost, no markupPaperback, hardcover, large print
USD 60FREE - 5 accounts for the price of oneA shelf for everyone at home
USD 170FREE - A part in rebuilding the libraryNew languages and books for all
FREE
Questions about Zadig; Or, The Book of Fate
Can I read it free?
Yes. The first key idea of the 15-minute summary is free with no sign-up. Start free and the whole book is yours for 3 months, with the eBook to keep, plus 200,000+ more classics and any book printed at cost as a paperback, hardcover or large print. Nothing to pay today: we email you 7 days before your first payment, and you can cancel online in two clicks.
Can I buy the printed book?
Soon. The paperback, hardcover and large print editions are being prepared. Choose Paperback or Hardcover above, leave your email, and we tell you the day you can order it, printed at cost.
How many accounts do I get?
Five, for the price of one: you and 4 more people, each with their own login, shelf and their own place in every book.
Can I cancel anytime?
Yes. Cancel online in two clicks at any time and nothing more is charged. Nothing is charged in your first 3 months, and we email you 7 days before your first payment.
What is Zadig by Voltaire about?
It follows Zadig, a wise young man of ancient Babylon, through lost love, unjust courts, slavery and travel, as he seeks happiness and the queen he loves, and the book asks whether life follows fate, chance or merit.
Is Zadig a true story and when was it written?
No, it is a fictional philosophical tale in an oriental setting, written by Voltaire in the eighteenth century. The Babylon and Arabia it shows are imagined places used to poke fun at the habits of his own world.
Is Zadig easy to read?
Yes, in the sense that matters. The chapters are brief, each tells one amusing episode, and the language is clear and lively, with a dry narrator who often smiles at the reader while the plot moves quickly.
The author
Voltaire
1694–1778 · French Enlightenment writer and philosopher
Voltaire was a French Enlightenment writer and philosopher, famous across Europe in his own lifetime for his wit and his campaigns against intolerance. Candide, his satirical tale of a naive optimist battered by the world, remains his most widely read work.
More by Voltaire
See all their booksMore like this
Our mission
The library burned once. We are building it back.
Every great book, in every language and every format, for every family. Every plan helps pay for new languages, new audiobooks and books for readers who have never had them. Join the movement.
Read our story- Every language25 languages today, side by side, and more every year
- No wastePrinted on demand: no warehouses, no unsold stock, no pulped copies
- For everyonePaperback, hardcover and large print at the cost of printing
