Vietnamese to English
Translate a Vietnamese book into English, and keep the Vietnamese
Upload a Vietnamese book, from Nguyễn Du and the novels of the 1930s to a contemporary book with no English edition, and read it with English beside every paragraph: the Vietnamese as it was written, the English to lean on.
Trăm năm trong cõi người ta, chữ tài chữ mệnh khéo là ghét nhau.
In the hundred years of a human life, talent and destiny are cunningly at odds.
Trải qua một cuộc bể dâu, những điều trông thấy mà đau đớn lòng.
Living through a world where seas turn into mulberry fields, what one sees is enough to break the heart.
How it works
Upload the book, choose English, and look at the free preview of the opening pages, side by side. If it reads well, translate the whole book and read it in the browser, or download it as a PDF, an EPUB, or a Kindle file. More about translating a book.
Where to find Vietnamese books
Vietnamese Wikisource has Truyện Kiều, Lục Vân Tiên and many other classics for free. Your own DRM-free EPUB, a text-based PDF or a Word file all work.
Reading Vietnamese with English beside it
Poetry in six and eight
Truyện Kiều and many older tales are written in lục bát, lines of six and eight syllables that rhyme into each other. The English gives the meaning line by line; the Vietnamese beside it keeps the rhythm.
Images that carry a story
Classical Vietnamese leans on set images: bể dâu, the sea turned into mulberry fields, means a world changed beyond recognition. The English spells out what such a phrase means, so you can see how much it holds.
Questions
Can I read a Vietnamese book with English side by side?
Yes. Upload the book, choose English, and read each Vietnamese paragraph with its English beside it, in the browser or on your e-reader.
Can I learn Vietnamese with it?
Yes: read the Vietnamese first and look across only when you need to, or hide the English until you tap it. The free library also has Vietnamese stories by level.