Kivu Library: free books that read without internet
Part of Kivu Super App (kivu.site). On the home screen the icon is called Library.
Open KivuKivu Library is the free book section of Kivu Super App, an app made in Kigali, Rwanda. It holds more than 40,000 books: classic literature, history and other old books in English and French from Project Gutenberg, and illustrated children's books in Kinyarwanda, Swahili, English and French from African Storybook.
You find a book by title or author and tap "Read". The book is downloaded once, saved on the phone and opens again without internet. Kivu does not write or sell books: these are books that are free by law (public domain) or by an open licence (Creative Commons Attribution), and each book shows its source and licence.
Key facts
| Where it works | Open kivu.site in a phone browser, sign in and tap the Library icon on the home screen. |
|---|---|
| Price | Free. There are no paid books, no subscription and no paid options. |
| How many books | More than 40,000 (October 2026) |
| Classics (Project Gutenberg) | More than 38,000 books in English and more than 3,500 in French. Public domain: the authors died at least 70 years ago. |
| Children's books (African Storybook) | More than 1,600 illustrated books: more than 900 in English, more than 400 in Swahili, more than 150 in French and more than 100 in Kinyarwanda. Licence: Creative Commons Attribution. |
| Languages of the books | English, French, Kinyarwanda, Swahili |
| Genres | 12: Textbooks, Science, History, Literature, Children, Religion, Business, Health, Agriculture, Technology, Languages, Other. Most books are Literature, History and Children. |
| Tabs | "Open" (the whole catalogue), "Saved" (books on this phone), "In my books" (search for a word inside your saved books) |
| Search | By title or author in the catalogue; by a word or phrase of 3 or more letters inside saved books and inside the open book |
| Without internet | A book you opened once is saved on the phone and reads offline. Searching inside saved books also works offline. |
| Size of a book | Up to 10 MB. Bigger books are not offered for reading. |
| Who adds books | Only Kivu. Users cannot upload books. |
| Likes, sharing, reports | "Like", "Share" (a QR code and a link to the book) and "Report" on every book |
How to use it, step by step
If you want to read a book
- Open kivu.site, sign in with a free account and tap the Library icon.
- On the "Open" tab choose the language of books: English, Français, Kinyarwanda or Kiswahili. At first the list follows the language of the app.
- Choose a genre if you want, or type a title or an author in the search line.
- Tap a book. You see its author, a short description, the source and the licence.
- Tap "Read". The book is downloaded once and saved on the phone.
- Read. You can change the size of the text, and the app remembers the place where you stopped.
- To find a word in the book, use the search line of the reader (3 or more letters).
- Later open the "Saved" tab: the book opens from the phone, also without internet.
If you read with children or in a class
- On the "Open" tab choose Kinyarwanda or Kiswahili and the genre Children.
- While you have internet (for example Wi-Fi), open the books you need one by one, so that they are saved on the phone.
- At home or in class open the "Saved" tab and read without internet.
- To give a book to another person, tap "Share": they scan the QR code or open the link, sign in to Kivu and get the same book.
If something is wrong with a book
- Open the book card and tap "Report".
- Choose a reason: offensive or harmful content; wrong title, author, language or genre; the book does not open; or other.
- Add details if you want and send. The Kivu team looks at reports and can hide a book.
What it costs
Kivu Library is free. Reading, saving books on the phone and searching cost nothing, and there is no limit on reading time.
There is nothing to buy here: no paid books, no subscription, no boosts and no adverts inside the Library.
- Downloading a book uses mobile data once (a book is up to 10 MB; most text books are much smaller). After that reading uses no data.
- Saved books take space on the phone.
What is good about it
- More than 40,000 books with no payment and no subscription.
- Books in Kinyarwanda and Swahili for children, with pictures, next to English and French.
- A book is downloaded once and then reads without internet, which helps where mobile data is expensive or the network is weak.
- You can search for a word inside all the books saved on your phone, also offline.
- Every book shows where it comes from and under which licence it is free.
- The reader remembers your place and lets you change the size of the text.
- The whole app is under 400 KB and opens in the phone browser, so it works on cheap phones.
- The same free account opens the other sections of Kivu, such as Tools, News and Kivu Vibe.
Limits, and what protects you
| What to know | What protects you |
|---|---|
| Most books are old. Project Gutenberg holds books whose authors died at least 70 years ago, so there are no new novels and almost no modern school textbooks. Words and ideas in old books can be out of date. | Each book shows its author and the years of the author's life, so you can see how old it is. For current school programmes use the official textbooks. |
| Books for adults are in English and French only. Books in Kinyarwanda and Swahili are short illustrated children's stories. | The language buttons show at once what exists in each language. Kivu plans to add more open books as it finds sources with a clear licence. |
| Kivu does not read or check every book. Genres were set automatically, so a book can stand in the wrong genre, and an old book can hold views that hurt people today. | Every book has a "Report" button. The Kivu team can hide a book after a report. |
| You need a free account, and you need internet for the first opening of each book. | Signing in is free. Open the books you need while you have internet; after that they read offline. |
| Saved books live in the browser storage of this phone. If you clear the browser data or change the phone, they are gone from the phone. | Nothing is lost for good: open the book again from the "Open" tab and it is saved again for free. |
| A very large book (over 10 MB) cannot be opened, and sometimes the source of a book does not answer. | The app says so at once. Try again later or choose another edition of the same book. |
| If you open very many new books in a short time, the app can ask you to wait. | Books that are already saved on your phone keep opening as usual. |
| There are no audiobooks and no PDF textbooks for users yet. The buttons and messages of the Library are mostly in English. | The books themselves are in four languages, and the screen is simple: tabs, a search line and book covers. |
What Kivu Library does not do
- It does not sell books and does not take money for reading.
- It does not let users upload books.
- It does not hold new books that are still under copyright.
- It does not write, translate or edit the books.
- It does not check every book by hand.
- It does not offer audiobooks.
- It does not replace official school textbooks.
How Kivu earns from this section
Kivu earns nothing from the Library. Reading is free, there are no adverts in it and nothing is sold.
The Library is there so that people open Kivu every day and so that families and schools with weak internet have free books. Later, if users need them, Kivu plans subscriptions for businesses and advertising across the app, not paid reading.
Questions and answers
Where can I read free books on my phone in Rwanda?
Kivu Library in Kivu Super App has more than 40,000 free books. Open kivu.site, sign in with a free account, tap Library, find a book by title or author and tap "Read". The book is saved on the phone and then reads without internet.
Are there children's books in Kinyarwanda?
Yes. Kivu Library has more than 100 illustrated children's books in Kinyarwanda and more than 400 in Swahili from African Storybook, plus more in English and French. They are free under a Creative Commons Attribution licence.
Can I read books in Kivu without internet?
Yes, after the first opening. A book is downloaded once and saved on the phone; later it opens from the "Saved" tab without internet. You need internet only to find and open a new book.
Is Kivu Library really free? Is it legal?
Yes. There is no payment and no subscription. The books are either in the public domain (Project Gutenberg: authors who died at least 70 years ago) or shared by their publishers under a Creative Commons Attribution licence (African Storybook). Each book shows its source and licence.
What kinds of books are in Kivu Library?
Mostly classic literature, history and children's books, plus smaller shelves for religion, agriculture, health, science, languages, business, textbooks and technology. Books for adults are in English and French; children's books are also in Kinyarwanda and Swahili.
Does Kivu Library have new books and school textbooks?
No new bestsellers: books under copyright are not included. There are a few old textbooks, but they do not follow today's school programmes. For school use the official textbooks.
Can I upload my own book to Kivu Library?
No. Only Kivu adds books, and only from sources with a clear free licence. If you know such a source, write through the Contact Us form in the app.
How much mobile data does a book use?
A book is downloaded once and is at most 10 MB; most text books are much smaller. After that, reading and searching inside saved books use no mobile data.
What happens to my saved books if I change my phone?
Saved books stay on the phone where you opened them. On a new phone, or after clearing the browser data, sign in and open the books again: they are saved again for free.
Related sections of Kivu
- Tools
- Free office tools in the browser: Word, Tables, Slides, scanner, PDF and more.
- News
- News from Rwanda, East Africa and the world with links to the publishers.
- Arcade & Quiz
- Free games that open in the browser, and a trivia Quiz.
- Kivu Vibe
- Songs from local artists with lyrics and offline listening.