# Four Books — An Intro to Confucian Thought > Scholarly reader for Confucian Four Books with dual-language and parsing tools. (iPhone/iPad app by Daoxue Academy.) - Source: https://appshunter.io/ios/app/four-books/id6747745289 (this page in markdown: same URL + `.md`) - Developer: [Daoxue Academy](https://appshunter.io/developer/1822727493) - Category: Books, Reference - Price: Free with in-app purchases - Rating: 5.00/5 from 5 App Store ratings · 2 written reviews indexed - Age rating: 4+ - Requires: iOS 18.0 · 80 MB - Languages: American English - Released: 2025-12-12 - Data updated: 2026-08-12 - Monetization: free with in-app purchases - User reviews in markdown: https://appshunter.io/ios/app/four-books/id6747745289/reviews.md ## What is Four Books? The Four Books App is a book reader and scholarly utility which presents the traditional Confucian curriculum: the Great Learning, the Discourses (or Analects), the Book of Mengzi, and the Doctrine of the Mean. A six-year translation project in progress. New verses arrive in the app around the first of each month. -- Ancient Teachings, Correct Transmission, Modern Tech -- Traditional Interpretation • A public benefit project to translate Zhu Xi’s “Four Books with Collected Commentaries” 四書章句集注, the most influential East Asian classic of the last millennium. Established Lexicon • Builds upon the translation lexicon perfected by Wing-tsit Chan, with roots going back to James Legge. Honoring lineage—with conservative refinements. Uses modern pinyin, of course. Learn Classical Chinese • Study Classical and Middle Chinese with literal glosses for grammar and per-character meaning. Highly configurable dual-language presentation parsable by sentence. Reading Experience • Meticulous attention to readability: translation, typography, and a full-screen reader for iPad. This Classic deserves to be both scholarly and good reading, just as the native text is. Optimized Multi-platform • iPhone features intuitive tab bar design for one-handed navigation, while iPad leverages a powerful sidebar for efficient browsing through verses. Designed for iOS 26. Also runs on Apple Silicon Macs. Apple Native UI • Pure Apple native tech throughout: SwiftUI, FTS5 search, and an embedded SQLite Confucian database for lightning-fast location of verses, key terms, named persons and named texts. -- Basic App & Scholar Pack In-app Purchase -- Basic App: • Core Ancient Verses: 284 most influential • Language: English translation only • Search: Basic, English-only • Encyclopedia: Ancient figures only Scholar Pack: • All Ancient Verses: 804 complete • Traditional Commentary • Language: English & Classical Chinese • Tap Character for Literal Gloss • Full-Verse Literal Gloss Sheets • Sentence-Level Parsing Tool • Search: English & Chinese • Encyclopedia: Ancient and medieval figures • Book 5: Explanation of Terms • No ads, no account creation, no data collection • Small offline app, low battery usage Scholar Pack is a single in-app purchase that includes everything above. It has a final target price, but is currently priced lower based on the percentage completion of the translation. One-time purchase, with all future content delivered free. -- Reach Out -- Please contact us at support@daoxue.academy, or using the in-app contact tools in settings, with questions or requests. We are committed to continual refinement and making this the optimal Confucian Classics app for both scholars and readers. ## Key features - Dual-language presentation (Chinese/English) - Sentence-level parsing for learning - Full-screen reader mode - Fast search functionality - Native Apple UI/UX - Offline functionality ## Pricing and in-app purchases Base price: Free. **One-time purchases** | Purchase | Price | Type | | --- | --- | --- | | Scholar Pack | $3.99 | one-time | ## Recent user reviews (2 of 2) All indexed reviews: https://appshunter.io/ios/app/four-books/id6747745289/reviews.md ### 5/5 — A great resource for study *2026-02-28* The app is well-designed, has no intrusive distractions, is relatively comfortable to use, and includes a well-done translation as far as it has yet been completed. I am excited to see how the project develops over time. ### 5/5 — Very clear and to the point. No fluff. *2026-01-04* This is a very well designed app with clear straightforward intentions. No BS. What a relief! Highly recommended if you’re studying these texts. ## Frequently asked questions about Four Books ### What are the Four Books? The Four Books are the Great Learning, the Discourses (or Analects), the Book of Mengzi, and the Doctrine of the Mean, presented in this app. Book One is complete, with new verses arriving monthly. ### Does Four Books have ads? No, Four Books is ad-free. The app also does not require account creation or collect user data, ensuring a private and uninterrupted reading experience. ### What content is free in Four Books? The free content includes 284 influential ancient verses, English translation, and basic encyclopedia access. English search functionality is also available for free. ### What is the Scholar Pack in Four Books? The Scholar Pack is a one-time in-app purchase that unlocks all premium content, including the complete 804 verses, Classical Chinese text, traditional commentary, sentence-level parsing, and complete encyclopedia. Future content updates are included free. ### How often is Four Books updated? New verses arrive in the app around the first of each month. The latest version is 1.3, last updated on March 4, 2026, indicating a commitment to regular content delivery and refinement. ### What devices support Four Books? Four Books is optimized for Apple devices, including iPhone and iPad. It is designed for iOS 26 with a fallback for iOS 18. ### Can Four Books help me learn Classical Chinese? Yes, Four Books offers a dual-language presentation with original Chinese verses alongside English translations. A "sentence mode" toggle parses the language pairs line by line, aiding in learning Classical Chinese. ### What is the user sentiment for Four Books? The app has a perfect rating of 5.0 stars from 3 ratings, suggesting very positive user sentiment among its current users. ## Version history (last 5 releases) ### 1.8 — 2026-07-31 No new verses this month. Instead we have a host of improvements and new features: • “Chinese First” Language Display: Redesigned as a large-character edition for learners. • Refined Glosses: Glosses app-wide are polished and updated with [helper words] in brackets for better readability. • Swipe to Verse: Open a chapter, then swipe left or right to move through verses! • Indexes and Search: Previews now show the whole target sentence for better context. • Encyclopedia Daoxue: Browse all 185 entries as books. Go to Settings: Display. • Bug Fixes and Stability: A code audit of all 22,000 lines produced over 100 small improvements throughout the app. Most of these require the Scholar Pack. However, “Swipe to Verse” is a big navigation improvement for all. ### 1.7 — 2026-06-30 Book 2, Chapter 4 Six more verses added, including the famous "One Thread," which Zhu Xi calls "the foremost verse in the book," urging readers to "immerse yourself and work through it carefully." Book 2, Chapter 5 Our selections include four of the most influential verses. ### 1.6 — 2026-06-01 • Book 2, Chapter 4: Our selections include nine of the most influential verses, with new encyclopedia entries for the persons named. • New Supplement: Read "On the Structure of the Text" to learn about the original Chinese text and how it is represented in this English replica. (More: Supplements) • Darker Mode: Try our experimental "darker" mode and tell us what you think. (Settings: Dark Mode) ### 1.5 — 2026-05-07 • Book 2, Chapter 3: Our selections include the seven most influential verses, plus new encyclopedia entries for named persons. • Literal Glosses: Study Classical and Middle Chinese with literal glosses for grammar and per-character meaning. Tap any character for an inline gloss! Tap 'More' in the toolbar for the full-verse sheet. • Shake for a Quote: Shake to bring up the new random quote generator. Tap the share button to export. ### 1.4 — 2026-03-30 • New Verse Content: Lunyu chapter two selections are complete: 15 verses with their extensive traditional commentaries. Includes the famous verse, “He who learns but does not think is lost,” and many others. • Imperial Bronze: New skin with practical benefits of no glare when reading, no saturation problem in dark mode, and an all-around more dignified look for the classics. • Dinkus: The “scene changes” in the classic text are now represented in the English translation with a dinkus (“***”). ## Apps similar to Four Books | App | Rating | Price | Category | | --- | --- | --- | --- | | [RidoBooks](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/ridobooks/id6744822677) | — | Free | Books | | [Corpus Hermeticum App](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/corpus-hermeticum-app/id6777652762) | — | Free | Books | | [Wen Reader](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/wen-reader/id6755988730) | — | Free | Books | | [Alisher Navoiy g'azallari](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/alisher-navoiy-gazallari/id6752381648) | — | Free | Books | | [Buddha Library](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/buddha-library/id6756738601) | — | Free | Books | | [Daily Dao](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/daily-dao/id6465685578) | 5.0 (7) | Free | Books | --- *Data collected daily from the US App Store and indexed by [AppsHunter](https://appshunter.io/). User reviews are verbatim App Store reviews. Ratings, prices and chart positions refresh continuously; this snapshot is from 2026-08-12.*