Learn languages
Learn a language with the classics
Read great books in the language you are learning, with your own language beside them, paragraph by paragraph, and hear every page read aloud. Any two of 25 languages, 200,000+ classics, chapter 1 of every book free.
- Any two of 25 languages
- Hear both languages
- Easy to Challenging
Try it: Pride and Prejudice, chapter 1
MediumIt is universally acknowledged that a single man with a good fortune must be looking for a wife.
Es una verdad universalmente reconocida que un hombre soltero, dueño de una gran fortuna, debe de estar buscando esposa.
However little the feelings or views of such a man may be known when he first arrives in a neighborhood, this truth is so firmly fixed in the minds of the surrounding families that they consider him the rightful property of one daughter or another.
Por poco que se conozcan los sentimientos o las opiniones de ese hombre cuando llega por primera vez a un vecindario, las familias de los alrededores tienen tan firmemente arraigada esta verdad que lo consideran propiedad legítima de una u otra de sus hijas.
“My dear Mr. Bennet,” his wife said to him one day, “have you heard that Netherfield Park has finally been rented?”
—Mi querido señor Bennet —le dijo su esposa un día—, ¿se ha enterado de que por fin han alquilado Netherfield Park?
What are you learning?
Every book is in all 25 languages, side by side in any two. Also:
- Nederlands
- Polski
- Русский
- 한국어
- Dansk
- Svenska
- Norsk
- Suomi
- Čeština
- Türkçe
- Română
- Magyar
- Hrvatski
- العربية
- 简体中文
- हिन्दी
- Bahasa Indonesia
- Català
The method
How to learn a language with the classics
Reading real books with the translation beside you builds vocabulary in context, and hearing them read aloud trains your ear at the same time.
- Pick a book at your level.Start with an Easy story, ideally one you already know.
- Read side by side.The language you are learning on one side, one you know on the other, paragraph by paragraph.
- Listen as you read.Hear it read aloud, and slow it down when you need to.
- Check, don’t translate.Read a paragraph in the new language first, then look across or tap it.
- Read a little every day.Ten minutes a day takes you through a short book in a few weeks.
Why learners read with us
- Any two of 25 languagesThe language you learn beside one you know, paragraph by paragraph.
- Hear every pageEvery book is an audiobook too, in both of your languages.
- Real books, never shortenedThe complete classics, from short fairy tales to great novels.
- Read, listen, printeBook, audiobook and 15-minute summary, and any book printed at cost, large print too.
Questions learners ask
What level are these books?
Most classics read at an intermediate level. We sort every book as Easy, Medium or Challenging by its sentences and its length, so you can start where you are comfortable.
Which languages can I put side by side?
Any two of our 25 languages, on any book: the language you are learning on one side, one you know on the other.
Can I hear the books read aloud?
Yes. Every book is also an audiobook in every language. Listen while you read, slow it down, or listen on its own.
How does side-by-side reading work?
Each paragraph sits next to its translation, so your eyes move straight across. On a phone you read one language and tap a paragraph to see the other.
Is chapter 1 really free?
Yes. The beginning of every book, up to the end of chapter 1, is free to read and to hear, with no sign-up.
What does it cost after that?
You start free, with free gifts. After that, your first year is 50% off: USD 0.14 a day, then USD 0.27 a day after that, never raised. It renews every year, and you can cancel anytime. Print and large print are at cost.
Read and hear every book in any of 25 languages
200,000+ classics as eBook, large-print eBook, audiobook and 15-minute summary, in 25 languages, side by side in any two, and any book printed at cost as a paperback, hardcover or large print. Household access for the whole family.