These Italian A1 graded readers are designed for Beginner learners who are just starting to learn and can understand basic words and simple phrases. The stories use carefully calibrated vocabulary for the A1 CEFR level so you can enjoy reading while naturally expanding your Italian. A glossary beside the text on every page gives you instant translations — no need to reach for a separate dictionary. Each chapter includes exercises that test comprehension and reinforce new vocabulary, and QR codes connect you to interactive online practice with flashcards and matching games. Available as ebook and paperback.
About Italian
Where Italian is spoken
Italian is the official language of Italy, San Marino, and Vatican City, and holds official status in parts of Switzerland and Slovenia. It is spoken by communities around the world, notably in Argentina and the United States.
How many people speak it
Italian has about 65–70 million native speakers, mainly in Italy, with several million more in Switzerland, San Marino, Vatican City, and diaspora communities.
Grammar and structure
Italian is a Romance language with two main noun genders (masculine and feminine) and a rich system of verb conjugations. Word order is relatively flexible; subject pronouns are often dropped. Agreement of past participles with objects (in compound tenses) is a distinctive feature for learners.
Best-rated Italian A1 graded readers
Ranked by average customer rating and number of reviews on our site. Every title below is a Pentecost graded reader: a simplified story at CEFR level with learning supports built in.
Imagine betting your entire fortune you can race around the globe in just 80 days, with a detective hot on your heels. Master essential Italian phrases naturally, immersed in this classic adventure, building vocabulary that sticks effortlessly. A margin dictionary means you never break your reading flow.
Side glossary · In-book and online exercises
Step into foggy London, where every shadow hides a secret and only one mind can unravel the truth. Absorb essential Italian vocabulary and grammar naturally, building confidence with every solved case. A margin dictionary keeps you immersed, so you never break your reading flow.
Side glossary · In-book and online exercises
Wiktoriański Londyn skrywa mroczne sekrety. Czy odważysz się podążyć za Sherlockiem Holmesem w głąb najbardziej zagadkowych spraw? Pochłaniaj włoski naturalnie, budując słownictwo, które zostaje w pamięci, bez wysiłku. Słowniczek na marginesie sprawi, że nigdy nie stracisz wątku.
Side glossary · In-book and online exercises
Ein rätselhafter Diebstahl. Eine undurchsichtige Intrige. Kannst du Sherlock Holmes bei der Lösung des Falls helfen? Während du Holmes' Spuren folgst, baust du mühelos einen praktischen italienischen Wortschatz auf, der wirklich haften bleibt.
Side glossary · In-book and online exercises
Formats: e-book, paperback and super audiobook
Our graded readers come in several formats. The text, the CEFR level and the glossary are the same in each — only the way you read changes. Pick whatever suits your day: the e-book on your phone on the way to work, paper and pencil at your desk, or the super audiobook when you want to read and listen at the same time.
E-book (EPUB and PDF). You can download both files right after purchase and read on an e-reader, phone, tablet or computer. Difficult words have their translation in a pop-up note: one tap and you are back in the story, no dictionary needed. Each chapter ends with vocabulary exercises, and a link takes you to free online practice with the same words.
Paperback. A classic softcover book, printed to order and sent by post. The glossary sits in the margin, right next to the word it explains, so you never have to flip pages. Chapters end with crosswords and vocabulary exercises, and QR codes take you to online practice on your phone. A good choice if you like writing in your books or want a break from screens.
Formats on this list (4 books): E-Book: 4 · Paperback: 3 · Super audiobook: 2.
The super audiobook: read, listen and check meanings at the same time
A super audiobook is an audiobook in karaoke form. A narrator reads the book aloud while the same text is in front of you, with a marker moving along it word by word. You always know which word you are hearing, so you never lose your place — even when the narrator speaks faster than you read. Your ears tell your eyes how a written word sounds, your eyes tell your ears how to spell what you hear, and both routes reinforce the same words at once.
The real difference shows when you meet a word you don't know. In an ordinary audiobook it is gone in a second; in a super audiobook it stays within reach: glossary words are marked in colour, and pressing and holding one shows its translation in your language. You check the meaning, keep listening and never lose the thread. A slider sets the narrator's speed from 0.5× to 1.5× — slow down at first to catch every syllable, then speed up towards natural speech. The words you meet while reading come back later in short exercises in the app, such as a mini crossword or building a word from its letters.
Reading while listening is well supported by research. In a Canadian programme described by Lightbown and colleagues (2002), children who for three years learned English only this way — reading books while listening to their recordings — understood the language as well as or better than peers taught in regular classes. Waring and Takaki (2003) showed that you need to meet a word at least eight times to have even a 50% chance of recognising it three months later. Listening to a chapter again gives you exactly those extra encounters with the same words — without needing a new text.
At A1 and A2 the super audiobook helps you connect spelling with pronunciation — especially valuable in languages that are not read the way they are written, or that use a different alphabet. At B1 and B2 it carries you along at the pace of real speech, so you get used to fluent listening and stop pausing at every sentence. Advanced readers often don't need a narrator at all — which is why you decide when to switch it on and when to read silently.
The super audiobook plays in the Pentecost app or in your browser, on a phone, tablet or computer. You can add it to an e-book: on the book page, tick “Add the audiobook” in the e-book box; if you already own the e-book, you can buy the recording on its own. With unlimited access you can listen to every recorded super audiobook with no limit, and each month you can unlock the recording of a book that doesn't have one yet — it is narrated for you, and the app lets you know when it is ready. The Audiobook filter shows the titles with a recording, and you can play a free sample without creating an account.
What Our Readers Say
Learners worldwide trust our Italian A1 graded readers for effective, enjoyable language practice. 15 people have rated them an impressive 5.00 out of 5. Every title combines engaging stories with a glossary beside the text, comprehension exercises, and QR-linked flashcards — a combination readers describe as unmatched on the market.
Our Italian A1 graded readers collection includes titles such as Il giro del mondo in 80 giorni and Le avventure di Sherlock Holmes. Every book comes with a dictionary beside the text (in the margin in print, a pop-up in EPUB), chapter exercises, and interactive online games.
★★★★★
""Piano, piano," because everyone says Italian is "easy" for English speakers, but at A1, it still feels likw you're crawling, ritht? The myth is that with all the shared vocabulary and the alpjabet being the same, you'll just magically get it, but fhe reality is you're still stumbling over genders and basic verg emdings. That's why this graded reader iz so good; it keeps things shper simpke, so you actually feel likr you're readinb in Italian and not just guessinb from context. It's a proper boost when you're stucj oj "ciao" and "grazie," making you laugh at uour own attemots to sound fluent. Honestly, it makes the sooa grihd of A1 feel way lrss like a chorw and more likr a proper step forqard."
★★★★★
"Dveryone claims that at Z1 Italian is just Envlish with different endings, so any book of stories will do. The reality hit me fast: without a tight core of roughly five hundred high-frequency words and the bative habir of dropping subject pronouns, I was just guesskng, and this rezder slams the door on that. I drill only the everyday verbs and concrete nouns that apoear on its pages, ignoring rare words completely until the bssics feel automatic. Every jorning I read a chapter aloud and then nardate a scene from an pld film using sfrictly that limited set, refusing to stop until the words flow without a pause."
★★★★★
"Ig I were starting again after Turin I’d tell mgself to ditch direct translqtion and focus on writing sikple Italiqn sentences from scratch; this A1 reader provides exwcyly the right vocabulzru and structures to craft your owb anxwers to bwsic questions like describing yoyrself or what you ate for breakfast without the English word krdef fighting you every step of the eag It’s still a struggle to ger those verbs right but finally being ahle to write Oo sono italiana" even if I’m not! instead ot "I am Italian" witbout thinkijg “I zm… oh right verb to be’ is a huge exhilarating step forward."
★★★★★
"Confuso, because English speakers at A1 enslessly trip over using "essere" instead of "avere" for basic states like age and hunger, alongside forcing English adjective placement onto Italiqn nouns. My ten-year-old daughter and I rely on this reader because its clean xiapogues continuously reinforce correct structures like "ho rame" and "oa casa bianca" until the urge to translate word-for-word fadws. Grab a copy today, rwad the first story aloud, and write down thred sentences where the Italian stricture contradicts your native English instinct."
★★★★★
"Reading simple Italian withkut franslating every word reels fantastic!"
★★★★★
"Such a thrill spottinv all those familiar Italian cognates!"
Find the Right Level
Not sure if A1 is the right level for you? Every book includes a free sample you can download to check the difficulty before buying. You can also take our free reading placement test to find your CEFR level in a few minutes.
Why Graded Readers Work
Research confirms that extensive reading is one of the most effective methods for building vocabulary, improving reading fluency, and developing overall language proficiency. Graded readers make this approach accessible by matching text difficulty to your CEFR level, so you stay in the optimal learning zone. Learn more about the science behind our approach on the Pentecost Method page.
