Эта книга читается легко и быстро.

the book

Breakdown of Эта книга читается легко и быстро.

• и: and
• быстро: quickly
• эта: this

Questions & Answers about Эта книга читается легко и быстро.

Why is it эта книга and not это книга?

In Russian, demonstratives agree in gender with the noun they modify.

• книга is a feminine noun (ends in -а and is grammatically feminine).
• The feminine form of “this” is эта.
• это is the neuter form (used with neuter nouns like окно, место, etc.).

So you must say эта книга = “this book,” not это книга.

Why is книга in the nominative (эта книга), not accusative (эту книгу)?

Эта книга is the grammatical subject of the sentence.

• Subject = what the sentence is about: книга.
• Verb = читается.
• There is no separate direct object here (no “someone reads something”).
• In Russian, the subject always stands in the nominative case, so we use книга, and the agreeing demonstrative эта.

The form эту книгу (accusative) would appear if the book were a direct object:

• Я читаю эту книгу. – “I’m reading this book.”

What does the verb form читается literally mean?