How to Download a Book from eMail or Message

Apple Books from email on your iPhone or iPad

If you’re downloading a book (ePub file) from an email on your iOS device, you first save it to your phone, then open it in the free iBooks app. However, the process depends on which app you use to read email.

    • Tap on the attachment (ePub) file in the email you received.
    • Save the file to your iPhone.
    • Find the “Files” app on your iPhone (it has a blue folder icon)
    • Navigate to the ePub file you downloaded. Its exact location depends on your eMail app. For example, with Gmail you may have saved it to “Downloads”; with Yahoo Mail it might be in Downloads/Yahoo.
    • Tap on the file.  It will open in the iBooks free Apple books app, where the eBook will be added to your library.

The book will now appear in your Apple Books library on all of your devices.

Apple Books from email on your Macintosh

    • Save the ePub file to your computer (for example, to your Downloads directory)
    • Open the Apple Books app
    • Drag the downloaded file from your Downloads directory to the Apple Books app’s window

The book will now appear in your Apple Books library on all of your devices.

Apple Books from a text message (iMessage)

If you received the ePub file in a text message:

    • Long-press on the file in iMessage
    • Select Copy
    • Close iMessage and go to your phone’s home screen
    • Find the Files app (it’s a blue icon that looks like a folder). You can use the Search feature to find it.
    • Go to Browse > On my iphone
    • Long press on the blank space under the search bar
    • Select paste

The book’s file will appear in your Files app. You can now open the epub (tap the file) from this location and it will open in iBooks.

Kindle from email on Microsoft Windows or MacOS

    • Save the attached ePub file from your email.
    • Go to https://www.amazon.com/sendtokindle
    • Drag the ePub file to the send-to-Kindle page

A minute or two later, the file will be available on all of your Kindle apps and/or devices.

Kindle: iPhone or Android Phone