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Switch to 'Read mode' in Book Creator

To switch between edit and read mode, you just need to click the Play button

Dan Amos avatar
Written by Dan Amos
Updated this week

You can access Read mode by clicking the Play button in a few different places within Book Creator.

  1. The Play button is located beneath your book if your library is in the "book view."
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    A book cover with the title "Writing Personal Narratives A How To Guide". There are 3 icons under the book. The one on the right is a play button. This is highlighted by a yellow ring and a yellow arrow.

2. The Play button is located in the three dot menu in the bottom right corner of your book if your library is in the "grid view."

A menu with the title "Personal Narrative Template" and options including "Read", "Move to library", "Copy book", "Translate book", "Combine books", "Share", and "Delete book".

3. The Play button is in the top right of the toolbar when in editing mode of your book.

The cover of a guide titled "Writing Personal Narratives: A How To Guide."

When you're in Read mode, you'll see that the background is darker and the pages of the book turn nicely. All video and audio will play and links will start working too.

A template for a personal narrative. The left side says "Brainstorm a Topic" and has boxes for ideas. The right side says "Prewriting & Planning" and has an illustration of a girl and a pencil with the words "How to write a PERSONAL NARRATIVE for kids!"

Note: If you are reading a book that lives in a published library, your background will be the color theme chosen from the library owner, and will not always be darker.

Turning pages

You can turn the pages by clicking the left or right arrows, dragging the pages with your mouse, or swiping (if you're using a touch screen). You can also use a keyboard and use the left and right arrows to turn the pages.

Note: The swiping (touch screen) option to turn pages will not work if zoom is enabled during Read mode.

Reading options

A series of icons including a magnifying glass, an expand icon, a share icon, a grid icon, a settings icon, a remix icon, and a read to me icon.

The toolbar offers many options for reading.

Zoom

The first icon in the toolbar will allow you to zoom in and out on the page. You can zoom by clicking on the plus (+) and minus (-) buttons, using the keyboard shortcuts by selecting the + and - keys, or pinch method for touch screen. You can always go back to the original fit of the page by selecting the Fit button.

A blue circle with a magnifying glass and plus sign, with the options to zoom in and out. The current zoom is "225%".

Go full screen

The next icon in the toolbar will make the book display full screen. Click it again to return to the normal view.

Share your book

The share icon will show different options depending on whether you are reading a published version of a book, or you are in Read mode in your own book.

Sharing options for published books as viewed online:

A menu with options including "Copy link to book", "Copy link to page", "Download QR code", "Share to Classroom", "Embed on your website", and "Print".

  • Copy a link to your entire book that will start the reader from the cover page

  • Copy a link to a particular page that will start the reader from the page you copied

  • Download a QR code to allow others to easily scan to read the book

  • Share the book to your Google Classroom

  • Embed the book on your website

  • Print it as a PDF file

Sharing options for your own books (viewed in Read mode while editing the book):

Page view

This option allows you to view all the pages in a book with the page numbers shown underneath each page.

A guide to writing personal narratives. The cover says "Writing Personal Narratives A How To Guide". The book contains the following components: Brainstorming & Prewriting, Introduction, Conclusion, Proofreading & Editing/Revision, and Publishing & Presenting. The teacher guide says "Each activity within this template was designed to be an independent student activity. The teacher however is encouraged to edit this template to be used in differentiated ways including adult-led stations, enrichment, or for remediation. Every activity was designed to: Support students with instruction throughout the writing process to save time and deliver better lessons. Encourage the writing process, not just the end result. Don't forget - writing doesn't just mean text!" The stages of writing are: Brainstorming & Prewriting, Drafting, Revise & Edit, Proofread, Publish, and Present. The image also includes "What is a Personal Narrative?" and "Let's Plan".

Settings

Click on the cog icon to access the reading settings:

A settings menu with options for display, read to me, and speed. The text includes "Side by side pages", "Right to left pages", "Read words", "Voice English (United States) - Samantha", "Highlight words", "Play multimedia", "Turn pages automatically", and "Speed".

Side by side pages

Toggle between side by side pages or single page view.

Right to left pages

Toggle on to turn pages from right to left

Read words

Toggle on/off. You might choose to turn this off if your students have recorded themselves narrating the book.

Voice

Choose the language you would like read in. Some languages have more than one reading voice option, but it depends on which browser you're using.

Highlight words

Toggle on/off.

Play multimedia

Toggle on/off whether or not to play and audio hotspots or embedded video whilst reading.

Turn pages automatically

The pages will turn automatically by default and the book will continue reading. You can also turn this setting off to just read the current page, or you can choose Loop which will continue reading the book over and over again. Loop is great when you're presenting a book for display, perhaps in your school building or parent/teacher conference.

Speed

Use the slider to slow down or speed up the speaking.

Remix

Press or click on this button to add an editable copy of this book to a library of your choice. This only will appear if the author of the original book has turned remixing on in the published book settings.

Read to me

Press or click on this button to have the book read aloud to you. Note: you can change the read aloud options in the settings cog.

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