An independent reading studio

Beautiful reading apps for the world's greatest literature.

We make careful, calm reading apps for the canon — works that deserve more than a study guide and less than a textbook. Every one pairs the original text with a clear modern translation, so the climb is a little less steep without skipping any of the view.

iOS, Android & web

Fluid Shakespeare

All 37 plays. The original Early Modern English on one side, plain modern English on the other — free, every line, no sign-up. In the app, every word lights up in sync as it's read aloud.

ReadStudyHear
Read Shakespeare free on the web →
37 plays · 154 sonnets · 5 narrative poems

Original

Hamlet
To be, or not to be, that is the question:
Whether 'tis nobler in the mind to suffer
The slings and arrows of outrageous fortune,

Modern English

Hamlet
To live, or to die — that's what I'm asking myself.
Is it nobler to put up with
all the bad things life throws at me,
iOS & Android

Homer's Odyssey

All 24 books in clear modern prose. Flip any card to the great public-domain translators, and collect the heroes, monsters, and islands you meet as you sail the wine-dark sea.

ReadCompareCollect
Explore the voyage →
24 books · 5 collectable decks
The ship of Odysseus

More canon, soon

We're building toward a small library of treated, carefully-translated classic works. More of the canon is on the way.

About Knovella

Knovella is an independent studio. We make reading apps that respect the source — works whose language is hard, but worth the climb. We pair the original text with a careful modern translation, so the climb is a little less steep without skipping any of the view.

We don't believe in subscriptions for public-domain literature. We don't pop up modals while you read. We don't gate the text behind a sign-up. The app earns its keep by adding things the web can't — starting with synced read-along narration that highlights every word as it's spoken.