Bookshare Reader

I have been a user of bookshare since I was in 7th grade on the old read to go app and now as an adult on an individual membership. It’s the best thing to happen for blind people so that we can access books and information. However, there appears to be a new emerging bug. My library is not syncing across my devices. When I download a book on my ipad to read, it doesn’t download on my phone which is logged into the same account, I have to go manually go download it on my phone too. Reading lists also don’t sync. If I start reading a book on one device, I can’t pick up on another later, it also doesn’t save progress. I don’t know if I’m being unreasonable, but I feel like books should sync across devices and your most recent position in them should sync across devices. I had managed to keep syncing the read to go app to all my new devices until a couple of months ago via the icloud transfer, yes it survived until 2026, but it finally quit and I have to use the new bookshare version now. Book syncing across devices was never an issue on the old read to go app, even when I was on IOS 18 using an app intended for IOS 9. Lol. If you can get this syncing issue fixed on the bookshare reader app I will switch my review to five stars. Thanks.

In 2025 I would have described the Bookshare app as below expectations for an eReader app. In 2026 we’ve seen lots of improvements such as synced reading lists and so many other quality of life improvements that make the app easier to use. Creating accessible tech is hard and the Bookshare team is doing a good job addressing community concerns. As a blind person my mobile devices are my go-to in part because the screen reader and controls are easier to use, so the mobile version of platforms like Bookshare working as expected is expected. Already looking forward to half two of this year and what will come next.

The Bookshare Reader app is a good start but it needs work, especially in navigation. If I stop reading for a few minutes, and then go back, I often get a blank white page. This happens after I have downloaded the book to my iPad Pro. Also, often, when I click on the chapter/content list, only the first 4-5 chapters will be listed. I have to actually close the app and open it back up to get the full Table of Contents. The app is much more convenient than having to read books on the web, but it still needs improvement.