Traslate a book into your desired language using Google gemini app...I might delete this blog on March 1 2026...so please copy content in this blog post and paste it in email and send it to yourself
I bought Bertrand Russell’s The Analysis of Mind back in 2010 or 2011. To be honest, the sentence structures are incredibly difficult, and it’s filled with complex English vocabulary. Even if I were a native English speaker born in the UK, I think the vocabulary and the intricate phrasing would be a challenge. Beyond just the language, the subject matter itself is so dense that the actual meaning remains elusive. Because of this, the book sat in a corner of my house for 15 years.
Recently, I decided to use the Google Gemini app to translate it into Tamil. Even if I don't grasp every deep philosophical nuance, I just want to experience reading it. Through my interactions with Gemini, I’ve discovered three effective ways to translate a book.
Case 1: Using Your Phone Camera (The OCR Method)
Google Gemini has built-in OCR (Optical Character Recognition). This means it can "read" text from an image.
The Workflow: Take a photo of a page using your Android camera. I recommend saving them in a dedicated folder and renaming them (e.g., P1, P2) for easy tracking.
The Command: Attach the photo in Gemini and ask: "Translate this page into Tamil without leaving out a single word." * Pro Tip: Don't give it too many pages at once. Gemini has a character limit for each reply. It's best to go page by page to ensure a complete translation.
Recommended Scanning Apps:
If you want a cleaner scan than a standard camera photo, these apps are excellent:
Microsoft Lens: Great for turning photos into clean documents.
vFlat Scan: Specifically designed for books; it flattens curved pages.
Adobe Scan: A powerful AI-driven PDF scanner.
Case 2: Translating from a PDF
If you already have a PDF of the book, you don’t need to take photos. You can share the content with Gemini in three ways:
Direct Upload: Use the ‘Plus’ (+) or ‘Paperclip’ icon in Gemini to upload the full PDF. Once uploaded, tell Gemini: "Translate page 12 of this PDF into Tamil word-for-word."
Screenshots: Open your PDF, take a screenshot of the page, and upload that image to Gemini. This is often the fastest way for a single page.
Copy-Paste: If your PDF allows text selection, simply copy the English text and paste it directly into the Gemini chat.
Case 3: pdf of books available in net which entered public domain:
Don't ask Google gemini ai to find these kind of pdf available freely in websites by itself. Don't tell google gemini ai to translate its pages one by one by itself after it find that pdf in some website in internet. I tried this. Gemini made mistakes. So, you download such pdf in your phone manually. Then using Whats is said in case 2 ask Google gemini to translate a single page at a time. That is after downloading that pdf from internet upload it in Google gemini app. then from that pdf tell each page one by one to Google gemini ai and ask it to translate into your desired language without leaving anything.
Note:
Public Domain vs. Copyrighted Books
Public Domain: Books like The Analysis of Mind (published in 1921) are in the "Public Domain." This means there are no legal restrictions on translating or sharing them. Gemini can handle these freely.
Copyrighted Books: If a book is new and protected by copyright, Gemini might have legal restrictions preventing a full-book translation.
What if you want to translate a new book you bought?
I asked Gemini about this. While it cannot translate a whole copyrighted book at once due to legal safety filters, you can still use it for personal learning. If you share a specific page you are struggling with, Gemini will translate and—more importantly—explain the difficult concepts to you.
Other Helpful Tools that google gemini told me:
Smart Book (Bilingual Reading): An app that lets you upload a PDF and shows English on one side and Tamil on the other. You can tap any line for an instant translation.
Google translate:
The Google Translate app has a 'Camera' feature. When you scan a page, it appears on the screen exactly like a Tamil document. You can then copy just that Tamil text and save it separately in email draft.
Google Lens: Great for a quick "overlay" translation where the Tamil text appears right on top of the physical book page.
DeepL: Often provides a more natural, higher-quality translation for modern English compared to standard tools.
Final Thought: Tools like Google Translate are great for quick captures, but for a book as deep as Bertrand Russell’s, using Gemini is better because it doesn't just give you words—it helps you understand the meaning behind them.