Learn Hardcore Hebrew: אני רוצה לקרוא ספר אחר בלילה.

Yes, in context you can sometimes drop אני. But in the present tense, Hebrew forms like רוצה show gender and number, not person, so רוצה by itself could mean something like want / wants depending on context. Using אני makes it clearly I.

Does רוצה tell me whether the speaker is male or female?

Not in ordinary unpointed spelling. Both the masculine רוֹצֶה and the feminine רוֹצָה are written רוצה without vowel marks.

So this written sentence could be said by either a man or a woman. You usually know from context or from hearing the pronunciation.

Why is לקרוא used after רוצה?

Because Hebrew normally uses רוצה + infinitive for want to do something.

So:

רוצה = want
לקרוא = to read

Together, רוצה לקרוא means want to read.

What does the ל־ at the beginning of לקרוא mean?

Here, ל־ is part of the infinitive form, like English to in to read.

So לקרוא is the infinitive to read. After verbs like want, can, need, and similar verbs, Hebrew often uses this ל־ infinitive.

How is לקרוא pronounced?

Usually likro.

The א in לקרוא is mostly not strongly pronounced in modern Hebrew. It is there in the spelling because of the verb’s root, but in normal speech the word sounds roughly like lee-KRO.

Can לקרוא mean anything besides to read?

Yes. The verb קרא can also mean to call, to name, or to summon, depending on context.

Here, because the object is ספר (book), the meaning is clearly to read.

Why is it ספר אחר and not אחר ספר?

Because in Hebrew, adjectives usually come after the noun.

So:

ספר = book
אחר = other / another / different

That gives ספר אחר = another book or a different book.

What exactly does אחר mean here? Is it another, other, or different?

It can mean more than one of those things, depending on context.

In this sentence, ספר אחר most naturally means another book or a different book.

A useful contrast is:

ספר אחר = a different/another book
עוד ספר = one more book / an additional book

So if you mean not this book, but a different one, אחר is a good choice.

Why is there no את before ספר אחר?

Because את is usually used before a definite direct object.

Here, ספר אחר is indefinite: another book / a different book, not the other book.

Compare:

לקרוא ספר אחר = to read another book
לקרוא את הספר האחר = to read the other book

Why is there no word for a before ספר?

Because Hebrew has no separate indefinite article like English a/an.

So ספר can mean a book or just book, depending on context.

Hebrew does have a definite article, ה־, for the:

ספר = a book
הספר = the book

What does בלילה mean exactly, and why is it written as one word?

בלילה means at night or during the night.

The ב־ is a preposition meaning in / at, and Hebrew prepositions like this attach directly to the following word, so it is written as one word.

In normal pronunciation, this is usually ba-layla. In unpointed writing, the spelling does not show everything clearly, but this is the standard expression for at night.

Also, בלילה means at night, not tonight.
Tonight is הלילה.

Is the word order fixed, or could בלילה go somewhere else?

The given order is very natural and neutral:

אני רוצה לקרוא ספר אחר בלילה.

Hebrew word order is somewhat flexible, so you can move parts around for emphasis, but this version sounds normal and straightforward. Putting בלילה at the end simply gives the time information in an ordinary way.