How can I import a book in the Books.app

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Level 1

56 points

How can I import a book in the Books.app

I have a lot of books on my (M2 Mac mini) system. And I import them into the Books app via an ebook manager Calibre which works fine with e-readers and the Apple iPad as well. Just select a book from the Calibre window and drag the file into the Books window. It is done in wink and your book is ready in the Books app and all the other devices which are synced via iCloud drive. Until now. I found out that the Apple Books app doesn't import books anymore in this way.. But my question is: why doesn't it work this way anymore. I never ever change the settings of apps, so something must have gone wrong. Any ideas? And if this is the new reality then : The import function in the Books app doesn't work anymore, so how than can I ad new books?

Thanks a lot for your time and suggestions.

Hans

Mac mini, macOS 15.6

Posted on Oct 19, 2025 2:18 PM

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Answer 1

Tom Gewecke

Level 10

121,782 points

Oct 20, 2025 12:12 PM in response to hanyvo

On my 15.7.1 I created an ePub file with Pages and had no problem importing it into Books from the desktop via File > Import.

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Answer 2

Tom Gewecke

Level 10

121,782 points

Oct 20, 2025 6:06 PM in response to hanyvo

If importing works fine from the desktop but not from Calibre, that app may need updating. Contact their support as well. In any case, no fixes are going to be made in MacOS 15, only in MacOS 26 from now on.

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Answer 3

Tom Gewecke

Level 10

121,782 points

Oct 20, 2025 5:16 AM in response to hanyvo

Are you running MacOS 15 or the newest, 26?

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Answer 4

hanyvo Author

Level 1

56 points

Oct 20, 2025 7:55 AM in response to Tom Gewecke

Thanks for your time, Tom.

According to the system settings the Mac mini is running on 15.6.1

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Answer 5

hanyvo Author

Level 1

56 points

Oct 20, 2025 2:56 PM in response to Tom Gewecke

What is bothering me, Tom, is that for some weeks ago importing an EPUB or pdf file was a breeze. Just select the book (in the Calibre window) and drag it to the Books window. The moment you hovers in the Books window, Books “answers” with a + sign next to the dragged book to show it recognizes the file. On releasing the file, Books will import it in your library. That’s all.. And it doesn’t have to be more difficult than this. Perhaps an update of Calibre or MacOs is hindering this functionality.. I think I have to try an older version of Calibre. I’ll let you know what the result is. Thanks for now

Hans

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