Read books in Books on Mac
After you get books from the Book Store or download books you purchased on other devices, you can start reading and enjoying them.
If you’d rather have a book read to you, you might enjoy listening to audiobooks.
Open and move around in a book
In the Books app on your Mac, click Books (or another collection) in the sidebar, then double-click a book to open it.
Note: If the book has an iCloud status icon underneath it, you can double-click the book to download it from iCloud (you might need to sign in first).
Move around the book:
See the table of contents: Move the pointer to the top of the book, then click the Table of Contents button or the Thumbnails button , depending on the book.
Go to the next or previous page: Move the pointer to the right or left edge of the book, then click the arrow that appears.
You can also swipe right or left across a trackpad or Magic Mouse, use the Touch Bar, or use the arrow keys on the keyboard. See Use trackpad and mouse gestures.
Search in the book: Move the pointer to the top of the book, click the magnifying glass , then enter a word, phrase or page number. You can also select text, Control-click it, then choose Search.
See the last page you viewed: Click the Go Back icon at the lower-left corner of the page after a multipage jump. This is useful if you’re viewing search results or different sections in the book’s table of contents.
To return to the page you started on, click the Return icon in the lower-right corner of the page.
See what you’re currently reading
In the Books app on your Mac, click Home in the sidebar. Books you are currently reading appear in Continue. If you have not started reading a book, click All under Library in the sidebar to see a list of purchased books.
To remove a book or audiobook from Home, move the pointer over the title, click the More button , click Remove, then choose an option.
Save your place with a bookmark
In the Books app on your Mac, click Books (or another collection) in the sidebar, then double-click a book to open it.
On the page you want to bookmark, move the pointer to the top of the page, then click the Bookmark button (or use the Touch Bar).
If the page is already bookmarked, the Bookmark button is solid.
To see all the bookmarks in a book, click the Show Bookmarks button . If you want to remove a bookmark, click the Bookmark button .
Have a book read to you
In the Books app on your Mac, click Books (or another collection) in the sidebar, then double-click a book to open it.
Do one of the following:
For books that include the Read Aloud feature: Click the Play button in the toolbar at the top of the book (or use the Touch Bar). Click the pop-up menu next to the Play button, then choose a page turning option.
For any book: Go to the page you want, then choose Edit > Speech > Start Speaking. See Hear your Mac read documents.
Read information about a book or audiobook
You can view descriptions and details for content you purchased from the Book Store or Audiobook Store.
In the Books app on your Mac, click any collection below Library in the sidebar.
Click the More button for the item, then click View in Store.
Translate text in a book
In the Books app on your Mac, select the text you want to translate.
Control-click the selection, then choose Translate [selection]. (If you don’t see this option, you can’t translate this text in Books.)
Choose the current language, then choose which language you want to translate to.
To find books in a different language, see View books and audiobooks by language, country or region. To manage languages or change your primary language, see Change Language & Region settings.
Delay when the display sleeps while reading
In the Books app on your Mac, choose Books > Settings, then click Reading.
Select or deselect “Extend by 10 minutes while reading”.