HushBook

HushBook is a mobile audiobook player that creates synchronized text from audio so readers can see each word as they hear it. It is built for people who struggle to stay focused during passive listening, prefer a combined reading and listening experience, or need a more accessible way to follow narration. The app is available on iPhone and Android, and its core read along experience is free with no ads. It doesn't require an account, and its transcription, notes, scores, and other reading data stay on the device.

Getting a book into HushBook starts either with its built in catalogue of public domain classics or with an audio file the user already owns. Imports support MP3, M4A, M4B, AAC, WAV, FLAC, OGG, OPUS, OGA, AIFF, AIF, MKA, and ALAC, with one file accepted per import. M4B chapters are detected automatically, and available covers and metadata come across with the book. The free catalogue draws from LibriVox and the Internet Archive and includes material in six languages, so someone can try the experience without buying or preparing a separate title. Public domain downloads begin transcription automatically, which shortens the path from choosing a classic to following its narration.

After a user taps Transcribe, the HushBook Engine processes a chapter on the phone and turns every spoken word into timed text. During playback, the current word lights up with the narrator, and tapping a word seeks the audio to that position. The first pass through a long book can take a while, but the transcript is ready on later opens. Transcription works across 99 languages. It is generated from the actual audio rather than pulled from a lyrics database, so the user doesn't need a matching ebook or a separate text purchase. The word level timing makes it possible to move within audio by reading the page instead of repeatedly scrubbing a playback bar.

Privacy is unusually concrete here. Speech recognition runs natively on the phone, and the site says there is no server to receive an audiobook. After a one time engine download, transcription, playback, and read along use work offline. The engine processes long books in chunks, limits its worker threads, rests between chunks, and resumes if an interruption occurs. That design is meant to manage heat and failures during the heavier initial pass. It also means users should expect the phone to do the work rather than receiving an instant cloud generated transcript. Saved quotes and reading statistics follow the same local approach, so the privacy claim covers more than the original audio file.

Reading profiles change the interface for different needs. The Comprehension profile emphasizes a clean rhythm and focus tools, the Dyslexia and ADHD profile includes options such as OpenDyslexic, overlays, and generous spacing, and the Vision profile adds Atkinson Hyperlegible, large captions, and high contrast themes. Other controls include several typefaces, text sizing, line spacing, reading overlays, and night mode. These choices make the app relevant to language learners and low vision readers as well as anyone who simply retains more when text and speech move together. White on black and amber on black options are included for readers who want stronger contrast.

HushBook includes tools around the act of reading, not only playback. A quote can be saved by tapping its first and last words, then revisited, edited, or shared as a finished card with the book and author. Character maps let readers place people on a canvas and label their relationships, which can help with a large cast. Local reading analytics track measures such as streaks, words, books, and consistency, while collectible badges mark milestones. The optional Pro upgrade adds deeper views such as habit insights, genre analysis, daily rhythm, words per book, and reading goals. Shareable cards can turn selected quotes and progress measures into images without changing where the underlying reading data is computed.

The product is best understood as a private player and read along engine, not an audiobook store for commercial releases. Users either choose free public domain material or import audio they have the right to play. That distinction also separates it from services that require both an audiobook and a matching ebook for synchronized reading. HushBook creates the text directly on the device from a user's audio. The free core and library make the app a freemium product, while Pro funds advanced analytics. The site doesn't publish the Pro price, so buyers need to check the in app offer for current upgrade terms.