Easy Dutch readers and graded readers: every series compared
A graded reader is a book written inside a level, so you can read it from the first page to the last without a dictionary. For Dutch there are only a handful of series, and they differ a lot in level, price, audio and glossary. Here is every one I know, including the free ones and including our own, with what each is good for.
What makes a reader a graded reader
Three things, and a book needs all three. The vocabulary is controlled: the writer works from a list of the words a learner at that level knows, and anything outside the list is explained. The sentences are short and the grammar stays inside the level, so an A2 book has no simple past tense and a B1 book has no sub-clause inside a sub-clause. And the hard words are glossed where you meet them, in the margin or after the chapter, so you never leave the story to find a dictionary.
A children's book has none of these: it is written for a native five-year-old with five thousand words. A bilingual book (Dutch on the left, English on the right) has only the gloss, and most learners read the English. A graded reader is the only kind of book you can finish at A2, and finishing a book is what turns a learner into a reader.
The series, side by side
| Series | Level | Format and price | Audio | Glossary | Best for |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Leeslicht (Eenvoudig Communiceren) | A2 to B1 | Paperbacks, about 8 euro each; also in most libraries | No | Hard words explained in the text; large print | Adults who want a real story about adult life at A2 or B1, in Dutch only |
| Beeldboek and Woordwinst (Eenvoudig Communiceren) | A1 | Paperbacks with photos, about 8 euro | No | The photos do the work | The first weeks: one short sentence a page, for adults rather than children |
| Short Stories in Dutch for Beginners (Olly Richards, Teach Yourself) | A2 to B1 | One paperback or ebook with eight stories, about 12 euro; audiobook sold separately | Separate purchase | Bold words glossed after each chapter, with a summary and questions | Learners who want English support and genre stories (crime, science fiction) rather than the Netherlands |
| readdutch.nl | A1 to B2 | Free website, about 185 short texts | No | Word-by-word translation on tap | Reading practice when you want a translation for every word; no books, no stories to finish |
| The free texts on this site | A2 (B1 coming) | Free, on the web, with a print and PDF option | Yes, read at learner speed | Tap-to-see glossary in English and Ukrainian, word list, questions | Daily practice with audio, written to the NT2Lex list, each text ten minutes |
| Dutch Readers (this site's books) | A2 and B1 | Paperback and Kindle, about 11 euro paperback | Yes, free, through a QR code | Glossary after every chapter, questions with answers, word list | Reading a whole Dutch classic at your level, with the original one step up the ladder |
Some links on this page earn a small commission at no cost to you. The library row is worth repeating: every public library in the Netherlands has a shelf of Leeslicht and similar titles, and a membership costs less than three of the books.
Each series, honestly
Leeslicht
The standard Dutch series for adult learners and for Dutch adults who read with difficulty, published by Eenvoudig Communiceren in Amsterdam. Dozens of titles: thrillers, love stories, a biography, true stories about work and migration. The level is printed on the cover, the print is large, the chapters are short, and the Dutch is real. Two limits: no audio, and no English anywhere, so at A2 you need the glossary habit already. The best thing you can buy at B1 while our B1 volumes are in preparation.
Beeldboek and Woordwinst
The same publisher's books for the first months: a photo and a sentence, or a very short story in a few hundred words, for adults who are learning to read in Dutch. Not literature, and not meant to be, but the only printed books that are honestly A1 and do not talk to you like a child.
Short Stories in Dutch for Beginners
Olly Richards's series exists for a dozen languages and the Dutch volume follows the formula: eight stories across genres, each in chapters with a vocabulary list, a summary and five questions. The method is good and the English support makes it the easiest book to start on your own. The stories are generic by design (the same plots appear in the Spanish and German volumes), so you learn Dutch without learning anything about the Netherlands, and the audio is a separate purchase.
readdutch.nl
A free website with about 185 short texts at every level and a translation for every word when you hover. It is a good place to practise decoding and it is free. What it does not give you: audio, a story long enough to finish, questions, or a word list to keep. It is reading practice the way flashcards are vocabulary practice: useful, and not the same as reading.
The free texts on this site, and the books
Our texts are written to the NT2Lex word list at A2, with audio read at learner speed, a glossary you tap, questions with answers and a word list on every page; they are free, and there is a new one every week. The books take the same method to a whole classic: Saïdjah en Adinda at A2 first, then Dik Trom and Kees de jongen, then the B1 volumes. Judge for yourself with the free texts and the free first chapter of the first book.
Which one for you
- First weeks, A1: Beeldboek or Woordwinst from the library, and the dialogues in your course book.
- A2, learning alone with English support: Short Stories in Dutch for Beginners, then our texts with audio every day.
- A2, in the Netherlands, wanting Dutch life in the stories: our free texts, then Saïdjah en Adinda, then Leeslicht A2.
- B1: Leeslicht B1 titles from the library, one a month, until the Dutch Readers B1 volumes are out.
- Any level, five spare minutes: readdutch.nl for decoding, this site for reading with audio.
What is the best graded reader for learning Dutch?
For a whole story with Dutch life in it, a Leeslicht title at your level. For learning alone with English support, Short Stories in Dutch for Beginners. For a Dutch classic at A2 with audio and a glossary, Saïdjah en Adinda from this site. None of them is the best for everything, which is why this page compares them.
Are there free Dutch graded readers?
Online, yes: readdutch.nl for short texts with a translation for every word, and the free texts on this site with audio, a glossary and questions. Printed graded readers are not free, but every public library in the Netherlands lends them.
Are Dutch graded readers available with audio?
Few. Short Stories in Dutch for Beginners sells an audiobook separately. Leeslicht has none. The Dutch Readers books come with free audio for every chapter through a QR code, and every free text on this site has audio.
At what level can I read a graded reader?
From the end of A1 with the glossary and the audio, and comfortably at A2. If the first page has more than ten words you do not know, go one level down or read the free texts first. The free level test on this site takes five minutes.