450,000 words. The 2004 edition of "A Lifelong Reading Plan" published by Guangming Daily Press has a word count of approximately 450,000 words. "A Lifetime Reading Plan" was written by the American writer Clifton Fidiman. This book is a recommended reading plan, covering more than 100 world literary masterpieces from the Homeric period to modern times. These works include dramas, poems, novels, essays, histories, biographies, autobiographies and other literary forms.