# Go Books — user reviews > 112 indexed App Store user reviews of Go Books by Smart Go, Inc., rated 4.90/5 from 35 ratings. - Source: https://appshunter.io/ios/app/go-books/id428149193/reviews - App overview in markdown: https://appshunter.io/ios/app/go-books/id428149193.md - Rating breakdown: 5★ 31 · 4★ 3 · 3★ 1 · 2★ 0 · 1★ 0 ## Newest reviews (16 of 112) ### 3/5 — Go Books *2022-02-03* I find no way to find the price of a book, or even get the book up to even look into the free chapter. PLEASE HELP ME, or I will have to give this app a worse rating. It probably is a great app if I could find how to use it. ### 4/5 — great source for all things go *2021-09-30* a wonderfully extensive repository to find all the books you need in several languages. my only complaint is that the reader lacks a few tools (such as highlighting) that makes it less useful than it could be. but for the reduced price of the books available here, it’s a small enough quibble to make this a wholly worthwhile investment. ### 5/5 — Spectacular interactive way to read go books *2019-12-23* It’s so helpful to be able to play through examples. 100 books each with free chapters you can try. Then buy and read them here or in your Mac. ### 5/5 — ⚫️😁EXCELLENT books app😁⚪️ *2019-11-05* HIGHLY recommended!! Read previous reviews for more details. They’re very well written and helpful. This app is a spectacular resource for books to improve at Go. Some of my favorite app highlights include... - Interactive diagrams! Being able to rewind and SEE a sequence as it plays out is vastly superior to simple numbered diagrams in paper books. It’s much easier to really UNDERSTAND the moves. - Syncing and reading books between devices (both iOS and macOS). - Huge book selection in store, readily organized by strength/level, making it easy for a kyu player to select a book good for their level. - Suggested reading lists and other resources. - If there’s a better Go ebook library out there, I haven’t found it. ...and of course, it saves weight and space over paper books 🙂 I really don’t have anything to complain about. There is room for minor improvements... - The interface is not as polished/easy as some other ebook apps. I don’t really mind. Not a hindrance; just a note. - Place in book (and sometimes bookmarks) don’t seem to sync. Not a big deal. - DRM! 😠 While I understand the necessity to try to protect authors’ work, I really, really, REALLY dislike DRM and will choose less convenient apps/stores to avoid DRM’d books whenever possible. At the very least, I like to be able to download and store backup copies just in case (darned shame to lose a whole library under unforeseen circumstances). **Developer response:** Glad you like Go Books! As for your concern about DRM, almost all the books can now be downloaded as ePub, complete with interactive diagrams. See https://gobooks.com for more info. ### 5/5 — Geniale App, super Bibliothek *2019-08-05* Endlich mal Go Bücher ohne Brett daneben lesen können. Super Brett, wo man die Züge nachspielen kann, aber auch eigene Varianten ausprobieren. Tolle (englische)Bücher - „Making Good Shape“ find ich besonders empfehlenswert. ### 5/5 — Indispensable *2017-09-27* Clairement la façon la plus efficace de lire des livres de go : pouvoir jouer les diagrammes et essaye de deviner chaque coup sur un "vrai" goban est précieux. ### 5/5 — Awesome way to learn go *2017-09-25* The interactive diagrams make this way better and than using paper books and a physical go board. The ebooks in this app are also much cheaper than their paper counterparts - on the order of a third of the Amz prices. There's also a MacOS app that you can share your purchases to, although it doesn't sync your position (yet?). ### 5/5 — The graded problems. *2017-02-19, version 4.4.3* You can actually play the graded problems from the books in this app! That is a great feature. ### 5/5 — Eine App für alles *2017-01-21* Für jemanden der wirklich ernsthaft Gō lernen will ist diese App alternativlos. Die Bücher kosten sogar deutlich weniger als in Papier und ist es 1000 mal besser die Bücher mit der App zu studieren. Fabelhaft! ### 5/5 — Diagrams Make eBooks Better Than Paper Versions *2016-12-15* The ebook format used in this app was designed with go books in mind. The diagrams, which are key elements of go books, have powerful features. When reviewing a game rather than just studying the numbered stones you have the option of actually stepping through the moves and watching the board evolve. Also, you can play problems out in the app. I had a small library of paper books which I've been replacing with Go Book versions because they're so much better than paper. ### 5/5 — Better than paper *2016-04-17, version 4.4.1* Being able to play out a sequence of moves right on the page is incredible. I would never buy a paper version of a book available in this app. ### 5/5 — Interactive go books are wonderful *2016-02-07* This is a fantastic app. Now has over 100 books covering the range from complete beginner to high dan players. Books from all the major publishers. Also out-of-print books and exclusively digital books. Prices are typically half printed books. Not just pdf scans of printed books like go books on iBooks, Amazon, and the Nihon Kiin's ebook app, but interactive diagrams in which you can play out the moves. New features are constantly being added by this active developer. With a free sample chapter of every book, this free app is something every go player should Get. ### 5/5 — Unbedingt kaufen - gäbe es nur alle Go-Bücher so! *2016-01-09* Diese App ist ein absoluter Traum! Bücher, die man aus der Papier-Version kennt, werden hier zu richtigem Leben erweckt und man kann die Züge sehen, wie sie sich vor den Augen Stein um Stein entfaltet. Was in einer Papier-Version wie ein Klumpen Steine aussieht, kann man hier ruckzuck begreifen… man kann zuschauen, wie sich eine Spielfolge entwickelt. Die technische Umsetzung ist hervorragend… Ach, was schreib ich noch… kauft das Ding, Ihr werdet es definitiv nicht bereuen! Definitvely the best and most important go app to buy. All the great stuff in one app. All the books one tap away! The developers support is helluva great, absolutely astounding. Syncs seamlessly with go books on mac. Love this app! ### 3/5 — Ziemlich cool, aber einige Features fehlen. *2015-12-16* Es ist schon ziemlich cool, dass man viele seiner Lieblingsgobücher überall mitnehmen kann. Und die Interaktivität hilft ungemein bei einem Geschütz wie "Invincible". Was aber noch dringend nachgeliefert werden muss: Synchronisation zwischen verschiedenen Geräten für Notizen, Lesezeichen und die letzte offene Seite. Auch die Bedienung ist noch nicht komplett ausgereift. So ruft man das Navigationsmenü sehr oft unnötig auf, so dass man es häufig wegklicken muss. Aber davon abgesehen ist die Umsetzung schon ziemlich professionell. ### 4/5 — Pleased as punch *2015-12-14, version 4.4* The feature where you can play the examples rather than have to mentally visualize them alone is worth several time the price of admission. ### 5/5 — Excellent study aid! *2015-10-14, version 4.3* I love the longevity of physical books, but for actually making use of them there is no way better than this program. The catalog of books continues to grow, and I love that for about the cost of a latte I can expand my mind a few additional bits ## Most critical reviews (10 lowest-rated) ### 1/5 — Shady! *2026-06-16* Even looking at the previews os only possible with an internet connerion! It does not a contain a single full book & I did not find any prices anywhere. Super shady and not worth the time! ### 1/5 — A library of advertisement *2016-03-26* Oh I get it now this not an app but an ad ### 1/5 — Epic Fail *2015-11-02, version 4.4* I bought this app a few years and now it will not even download much less update. To be fair, it runs fine on my iPad Air 2, but won't even install on my iPad Mini 3. ### 1/5 — Clunky. Not there yet. *2015-10-22, version 4.4* UI is obscure. Unclear how to return to start of book. Purchases forgotten after every new version. Amateur hour. ### 1/5 — Update didn't restore all my purchases *2015-01-06, version 4.0.1* At least 5-10 prior purchases did not restore after the update ### 1/5 — Only a LIST of books for purchase *2013-02-02, version 2.2.1* It is a free LIST but not an actual book ### 1/5 — There is no free book in the app. *2012-06-30, version 2.0* There is no free book. This is a book store! ### 1/5 — What? *2011-12-28, version 1.3* Just don't do it. ### 1/5 — Gratuit ? *2011-08-31* Euh gratuit chez moi ca veut pas dire une appli "portail" qui permets dacheter des eBooks. Donc il y a tromperie. Chers utilisateurs, vous serez floués en téléchargeant cette appli ! ### 1/5 — Nothing for free *2011-07-05* Crap! A free app that let's you buy books. ## Most praised reviews (10 highest-rated) ### 5/5 — Love this app. *2025-03-30* Go Books is a must-have for anyone studying Go. I love having interactive books—being able to tap through variations and problems right in the text is a huge advantage. While nothing beats using real stones and a board when working through problems, this app is the perfect companion when that’s not an option. Pros: • Interactive diagrams make studying smooth and engaging • Easy to carry an entire Go library anywhere • Ideal for quick sessions or deep dives alike Cons: • Only downside? If your device runs out of power. Wishing there was a way to highlight text. ### 5/5 — Love this app. *2025-03-23* Go Books is a must-have for anyone studying Go. I love having interactive books—being able to tap through variations and problems right in the text is a huge advantage. While nothing beats using real stones and a board when working through problems, this app is the perfect companion when that’s not an option. Pros: • Interactive diagrams make studying smooth and engaging • Easy to carry an entire Go library anywhere • Ideal for quick sessions or deep dives alike Cons: • Only downside? If your device runs out of power. ### 5/5 — Replacing my books with this app *2023-10-21* I recently bought a book through Go Books, a book I already owned. I really just needed to finish some reading while traveling and didn’t have my copy with me. I found the format used in Go Books is very handy. Being able to play out the problems right there on the page is wonderful. The free chapters are great for getting a taste of the books. A lot of work has gone into this and I hope to see that continue. ### 5/5 — Super für Go–Spieler *2023-08-25* Es gibt nichts, was ich bemängeln könnte. Absoluter Traum für Go-Begeisterte! ### 5/5 — Essential resource! *2022-07-07* The serious Go player can hardly avoid the teachings available through this app if they expect to advance. All the latest and greatest insights can be found here. The ability to play through positions while reading about them is so important for full understanding. ### 5/5 — A lot of thought went into it *2021-12-07* The app is impressively well designed. It has every feature I can want for reading Go books. I love the interactive Go diagrams and the selection is very good. I’m impressed they managed to get so many titles in. The prices for the books are reasonable too, for the great quality and amount of work they’ve put in. This is a dream app and is obviously made by a Go player. ### 5/5 — Strongly recommend. *2021-10-30* I’m currently a 5k and member of AYD. I’ve been playing for about 3.5 years. I have found this app invaluable in making Go book more accessible. Being able to play through the diagrams/examples is a very effective way to learn. One suggest, I wish they would make the app compatible with the apple keyboards. Being able to click through the diagrams would be much better than touching the screen all the time or having to reposition the mouse. Thanks for a great app. ### 5/5 — Best way to read books on go *2021-07-09* If you play go then this app alone is a reason to buy an iPad. Having interactive diagrams when reading a book on go makes for easier learning and understanding. ### 5/5 — A great portal and experience to learn Go Game. *2021-01-31* Learning Go Game (Weiqi 围棋, in Chinese) needs good books. It can be old fashioned paper ones, along with a board and two buckets of chess, typically a well-lit area, and tons of space. Or this can be anywhere, as long as you have access to your screen. This app not only lets you access a tons of books (many with free chapter or two), but also bring the learning into 21st century. No longer you will have to have the physical board and go pieces, you can interact the puzzles and games right in the game. The app is also very considerate to put the puzzle/quiz and its answer separated by pages. Very nice detail. Just got the app and definitely looking forward to go back and get new books within this app! One thing for family sharing, the in-app purchases are not automatically shared within family devices. But if you click the “gear” button at the top left, and register the original purchase with an email address that family have access to. New devices can be registered with the same email address. After confirming the new device from the link sent to the email address. A simple restore previous purchases (from the same gear button) would show all the books you’ve purchased. Now all family members are on the book. ### 5/5 — 太田正孝博士を思い出す。 *2020-05-23* 素晴らしい勉強家の太田正孝博士 周りでは、太田先生と呼ばれている。 頭脳明晰素晴らしい先生。 オレは、アマ囲碁八段まで頑張った時代もある。 --- *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 2026-08-24.*