Free, open-source, and cross-platform eBook reader based on the Readium Desktop toolkit
What’s new in Thorium Reader 1.7.3:
- This release includes the following (notable) new features, improvements and bug fixes:
- Electron version 14.x (fixes HTTPS LetsEncrypt + OpenSSL/BoringSSL certificate expiry bug)
- Localisation: Georgian localization (‘ka’)
- Accessibility: fixes screen reader ARIA labels on HTML controls
Good eBook readers are not particularly hard to find, especially if you’re willing to pay a premium for them. Thankfully, there are some very good, free eBook readers out there as well, and most of them are usually cross-platform.
Thorium Reader is one such app: a free, cross-platform, and open-source EPUB reader that works on most Linux distros (particularly Debian-based ones), macOS, as well as Windows 10. It’s based on another open-source project called Readium Desktop toolkit and it’s available in a plethora of languages.
It doesn’t stand out in any particular way, even though it ticks all the right boxes. So, why should you use it?
Nicely designed epub reader
At first glance, Thorium Reader works just like most apps of this sort. You can import ebooks from a directory or an OPDS feed, you can read them on any screen size, you can customize the layout and various visualization aspects.
You also get multiple ways of navigating between contents or pages, and you can set bookmarks. In terms of format support, Thorium Reader is capable of handling .lcpl, epub, epub3, audiobook, .webpub, .lcpa, .lcpaudiobook, .lcpdf, .pdf, .lpf, .divina, daisy, .zip and .opf.
Last but not least, the app works with LCP protected files as well.
But here’s the twist
Therefore, it’s safe to say that Thorium Reader offers the same basic features that most epub/ebook readers do.
However, the developers behind this project have gone to great lengths to make this reader as perfectly suitable for visually impaired users as possible.
All of this is possible thanks to technologies such as NVDA, JAWS, VoiceOver, and Narrator bundled within.
Verdict
Thorium Reader is not the most stylish, or the most feature-packed epub/ebook reader out there. Be that as it may, it does so many things right, and by catering to the needs of visually impaired users, it’s one of those products that deserves a lot more praise.
