It’s also headed to the Kindle app on iOS, but sadly not the Android version just yet.
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Way back in September, Amazon announced a feature for Kindles designed to help you catch up on a book in case you’ve lost the plot or simply took a prolonged break. But this week, Amazon has finally begun rolling out its “Story So Far” tool to Kindle devices and some versions of the Kindle app.
Created as an extension of the Kindle’s Recap feature, Story So Far is meant to serve as the literary equivalent of the “Previously on…” segment you sometimes get on weekly TV series. It will provide a summary of important characters and story beats so you can more easily pick up where you left off or simply get a bit more context regarding what’s happened in the book up to that point.
Amazon says Story So Far will be available to US customers across “thousands” of English titles for both purchased and borrowed books. That said, you may need to update your device to get access. From there, you can see if a summary is available by looking for the Read Recap button that pops up when you press and hold on a specific book. Alternatively, if you already have a book open, you can view a Story So Far recap simply by tapping on the three-dot menu in the top right corner. Just be careful because some recaps may include spoilers, though thankfully there is a warning when it does.
Unfortunately for those on Android, it seems Story So Far isn’t getting added to that version of the app just yet. Furthermore, not every Kindle is supported, so if you have an older device, there’s a chance it may not be headed to your hardware. And to make things a bit more confusing, just because an ebook supports the broader Recap feature doesn’t necessarily mean it also supports Story So Far.
That said, anyone who has put down a book for a long time knows how hard it can be to get back into the action, especially when you may be a little foggy about what’s been happening in the story. So as a tool to get people to revisit titles they may have abandoned, Story So Far could be a nice way to encourage people not to give up on their reading goals.