Aio Epub Research

A translator who doesn't understand the book will translate words. A translator who researches the book will translate meaning.

Skipping research leads to:

• Wrong terminology choices discovered 10 chapters in
• Tone that doesn't match the genre
• Glossary rewrites that cascade across all chapters

Research Workflow

1. METADATA        → jread info, read CLAUDE.md
2. SAMPLE READING  → read 2-3 chapters to understand style
3. FACET DECOMPOSE → break research into 4 parallel facets
4. PARALLEL SEARCH → run all facets concurrently via web search
5. SYNTHESIZE      → merge findings into structured report
6. POPULATE        → update CLAUDE.md with evidence-backed decisions

Phase 1: Book Context

Step 1: Read metadata

jread info workspace/

Note: title, author, language, publisher, genre.

Step 2: Read CLAUDE.md

Read existing CLAUDE.md to see what's already filled in from setup.

Phase 2: Sample Reading

Step 3: Read first 2-3 chapters

# Chapter 1 — first 20 items
jread list workspace/OEBPS/Text/chapter0001.html --limit=20

# Continue
jread list workspace/OEBPS/Text/chapter0001.html --from=20 --limit=20

While reading, note:

• Author's voice: Short sentences? Long flowing prose? Rhetorical questions?
• Sentence structure: Simple or complex? Active or passive?
• Tone: Academic? Conversational? Inspirational? Technical?
• Pronoun usage: First person? Second person? Collective "we"?
• Recurring phrases: Catchphrases, mottos, repeated expressions
• Domain-specific terms: List every technical or specialized term

Step 4: Read a middle chapter for contrast

Pick a chapter from the middle to check if tone/style shifts:

jread list workspace/OEBPS/Text/chapter0010.html --limit=20

Phase 3: Faceted Web Research

Step 5: Decompose into research facets

Based on what you learned from sample reading, define 4 research facets:

Facet 1: Existing Vietnamese translation

• Search Tiki, Fahasa, Goodreads for Vietnamese editions
• Check if any translation exists in any language
• Note translated title, publisher, translator if found

Facet 2: Vietnamese translation style for this genre

• How do major publishers (Alpha Books, NXB Trẻ, First News) handle this genre?
• What translation framework do they follow? (e.g., Alpha Books: Đúng/Hay/Đẹp)
• Common terminology decisions (keep English vs translate)

Facet 3: Benchmark books — similar books already translated to Vietnamese

• Find 2-3 books in the same genre that have Vietnamese translations
• How were they received? What did readers praise/criticize about the translation?
• What can we learn from their translator's approach?

Facet 4: Domain terminology conventions

• How are the book's domain-specific terms handled in Vietnamese?
• Are there established Vietnamese equivalents or do professionals use English?
• Any translator community discussions about this domain?

Step 6: Run all facets via web search

Run web searches for all 4 facets. Search queries per facet:

Facet 1:

• "{book title}" tiếng Việt / "{book title}" bản dịch
• "{book title}" Vietnamese translation
• "{book title}" Tiki / "{book title}" Fahasa

Facet 2:

• dịch sách {genre} tiếng Việt (e.g., "dịch sách self-help tiếng Việt")
• Alpha Books phong cách dịch / NXB Trẻ cách dịch
• quy ước dịch thuật {domain}

Facet 3:

• sách {genre} hay tiếng Việt (e.g., "sách self-help hay tiếng Việt")
• "{similar book title}" bản dịch review
• dịch giả {translator name} phong cách

Facet 4:

• "{english term}" tiếng Việt là gì
• {domain} terminology Vietnamese
• cách dịch {specific challenge} (e.g., "cách dịch đại từ nhân xưng")

Phase 4: Synthesize Findings

Step 7: Structure research into a report

Present findings to the user in this format:

Quick answer: Does a Vietnamese translation exist? Yes/No.

Benchmark books: 2-3 comparable Vietnamese translations with:

• Title (Vietnamese + English)
• Publisher, translator
• Reader reception — what worked, what didn't
• What we can learn for our translation

Terminology table: Key terms with Vietnamese conventions:

Key findings: 3-5 bullet points of the most important discoveries.

Gaps in CLAUDE.md: What's missing or needs updating based on research.

Phase 5: Populate CLAUDE.md

Step 8: Update CLAUDE.md with evidence-backed decisions

Update every section with findings:

Book Summary — informed by reviews and context, not just metadata.

Target Audience — specific Vietnamese reader profile.

Author's Voice — concrete description from actual sample reading.

Translation Style Guide:

• Tone (backed by genre research and benchmark comparisons)
• Sentence structure (when to split long English sentences, when to keep)
• Rhetorical questions handling
• Cultural adaptation rules
• Pronoun choices (backed by genre conventions)
• Quality criteria (e.g., Alpha Books Đúng/Hay/Đẹp framework if applicable)

Technical Vocabulary Decisions — per-domain rules with evidence:

• Which terms keep English? (with evidence: "Alpha Books keeps 'coaching'")
• Which terms get translated? To what?
• Which terms get English + Vietnamese gloss on first use?

Glossary — populate with researched terms:

• People & Organizations
• Domain Terms (with Vietnamese equivalents and CONFIRMED/TENTATIVE status)
• Recurring Phrases (from sample reading)

Do NOT rules — based on what would break the author's voice + benchmark learnings.

Step 9: Verify completeness

Check that CLAUDE.md has:

• Book Summary (evidence-based, not placeholder)
• Target Audience (specific Vietnamese reader profile)
• Author's Voice (concrete, from actual reading)
• Translation Style Guide (all subsections, with benchmark references)
• Technical Vocabulary Decisions (per-domain, with evidence)
• Glossary with 10+ terms (researched Vietnamese equivalents)
• Do NOT rules (3+ specific rules from research)

Done

Tell the user: "Research complete. CLAUDE.md populated with evidence-backed glossary and style guide. Ready to translate — use aio-epub-translate."

Related Skills

• aio-epub-setup — set up project (run before this)
• aio-epub-translate — translate chapters (run after this)
• aio-editor-review — review existing translations
• aio-epub-package — export final EPUB files