Practical overview
When it fits
Use Lue when you want to read and listen to a supported ebook or document in a terminal, especially when synchronized highlighting and saved progress are useful.
Who it is for
- Readers who want spoken narration while following text in a terminal.
- People working with EPUB, PDF, DOCX, HTML, RTF, TXT or Markdown files.
- Readers who want chapter navigation and progress retained between sessions.
Documented uses
- Listen to a document while its spoken words are highlighted on screen.
- Navigate a book by chapter and resume from saved reading progress.
- Adjust narration voice and speed, or configure the optional Kokoro local/offline TTS path.
Requirements & limits
The repository documents installation through PyPI or from source. The default Edge TTS requires internet access; Kokoro is described as an optional local/offline option. Windows use is documented via WSL.
- FFmpeg is required for audio processing.
- Edge TTS is the default and requires internet; Kokoro requires additional setup and packages.
- The Windows installation path uses WSL.
- The interface is terminal-based, with keyboard and mouse support described in the project documentation.
- The repository identifies the software as GPL-3.0 licensed.
Check current requirements in the official documentation. Source-based guidance does not mean OpenViST has run or independently tested this project.
Install Lue and open a book on macOS or Linux
Set up the documented PyPI quick start and launch a book with the default Edge TTS option.
Before you start
- macOS or Linux
- FFmpeg installed for audio processing
- Internet connection for the default Edge TTS
Steps
Install FFmpeg using the package method for your system:
brew install ffmpegon macOS orsudo apt install ffmpegon Ubuntu/Debian.Install Lue with the command below.
pip install lue-readerRun
lue --guideto practice the navigation keys.Open a file with
lue path/to/your/book.epub, substituting the path to your book.
Expected outcome
Lue opens the specified book for terminal reading with the default text-to-speech option.
Guide limitations
- The quick start uses Edge TTS and requires internet access.
- The listed package commands are for macOS and Ubuntu/Debian; the repository documents a separate installation path for Windows via WSL.
Set up Lue for local Kokoro text-to-speech
Configure the optional Kokoro TTS dependencies described for offline narration.
Before you start
- A standard Lue installation
- FFmpeg
- espeak for Kokoro TTS support
- PyTorch
Steps
Edit
requirements.txtand uncomment the listed Kokoro packages:kokoro,soundfileandhuggingface-hub.Install PyTorch using the documented CPU command or the CUDA 12.1 package index command.
Install the updated requirements with the command below.
pip install -r requirements.txtInstall Lue with the command below.
pip install .
Expected outcome
The installation is configured with the optional Kokoro TTS dependencies; the repository documents Kokoro as its local/offline option.
Guide limitations
- This setup requires modifying
requirements.txtand installing additional packages. - The repository lists espeak as an optional dependency for Kokoro support.
Sources & review
Source record details
- Source availability
- Active
- Sources checked
- 6 November 2026
- Original website title
- paulilaaso/lue · Official homepage title · retained in its source language

