Read books in the Books app on iPad

In the Books app , you can view the books you’re currently reading, want to read, book collections, and more

The following are available in the sidebar. Tap or turn iPad to landscape view to automatically view the sidebar.

Home: Tap to access the books, audiobooks, and PDFs you’re currently reading, get personalized suggestions for your next read, find books you’ve marked as want to read, and more. You can also set daily reading goals and keep track of the books you finish throughout the year.
Library: Tap All to view all of the books, audiobooks, samples, series, and PDFs you either got from the Book Store or manually added to Books. You also see your books sorted into collections, such as Want to Read, Finished, and Downloaded.
My Collections: Organize your books in collections that you create. See Create a collection.

The Home screen in the Books app, showing the Current, Recent, and Want to Read sections.

Read a book

Tap or turn iPad to landscape view to automatically view the sidebar, then tap a category such as Home, Books, or Audiobooks. Navigate to a book, tap the cover to open it, then do any of the following:

Turn the page: Tap the right margin or swipe right to left.
To allow either the left or right margin to turn the page, go to Settings > Books, then turn on Both Margins Advance.
Go back to the previous page: Tap the left margin or swipe left to right.
Go back to previous reading location: Tap the page, then tap the rounded arrow in the top-left corner of the page. Tap the rounded arrow again, but in the top-right corner, to go back to your current location.
Go to a specific page or location: Tap the page, tap , tap Search Book, enter a word, phrase, or page number, then tap a result.
Use the table of contents: Tap the page, tap , then tap Contents.
Tip: To quickly move through a book, touch and hold Contents, then drag your finger left or right; release your finger to go directly to that location in the book.
Close a book: Tap the page, then tap in the top-right corner, or swipe down from the top of the page.

A page of a book in the Books app. At the top of the screen are the buttons for returning to the page on which you began reading and for closing the book. At the bottom right of the screen is the Menu button.

Change text and page appearance

Tap the page, tap at the bottom of the page, tap Themes & Settings, then do any of the following:
- Change the font size: Tap the large A to increase the font size or tap the small A to decrease it.
- Turn on vertical scrolling: Tap , then tap Scroll .
  For PDFs, tap at the top of the screen, then turn on Vertical Scrolling.
- Change the page turn style: Tap , then tap an option.
- Adjust the background color: Tap , then tap an option.
- Adjust the display brightness: Touch the brightness bar, then drag your finger in either direction.
- Change the page theme Tap a page theme such as Quiet or Bold.
- Change the font: Tap Customize, then tap Font. Tap a font name, such as Original or Palatino, to see a preview at the top of the screen. Tap Done to apply the font.
- Make the font bold: Tap Customize, tap the button next to Bold Text (green is on), then tap Done.
- Customize spacing and justification: Tap Customize, then below Accessibility & Layout Options, turn on Customize (green is on). Drag the sliders left or right to adjust line spacing, character spacing, and word spacing. You can also turn Justify Text on or off (green is on). Tap Done to apply your changes.
Tap the page, then tap in the top-right corner. Or swipe down from the top of the page (not available if vertical scrolling is turned on).
Note: You can choose on which side of the screen the menu button appears. Go to Settings > Books, then choose Left or Right below Reading Menu Position.

To undo text and layout customizations, tap , tap Customize, then tap Reset Theme.

Bookmark a page

When you close a book, your place is saved automatically—you don’t need to add a bookmark. Bookmark pages you want to return to again.

Tap the page, tap , then tap ; tap it again to remove the bookmark.

To access all your bookmarks, tap the page, tap , tap Bookmarks & Highlights, then tap Bookmarks.

Share a text selection or book link

You can send text selections using AirDrop, Mail, or Messages, or you can add the selection to Notes. If the book is from the Book Store, a link to the book is included with the selection. (Sharing may not be available in all countries or regions.)

Touch and hold a word, then move the grab points to adjust the selection.
Tap Share, then Mail, Messages, or another app or service to share the selection.

You can also share a link to view the book in the Book Store. Tap a page, tap , tap , then tap how you want to share the link.

Helpful?

iPad User Guide

Read books in the Books app on iPad

Read a book

Change text and page appearance

Bookmark a page

Share a text selection or book link