> この本は読む **のに** 簡単だ。This book is easy to read.  
>  この本は読む **のが** 簡単だ。This book is easy to read.

I was wondering if anyone could explain to me how these two readings differ in
nuance?

When there is a sentence like the one below I can see how it would be
different if が was used.

> 彼女は夕食を料理する **のに** 忙しい。 She is busy cooking dinner.

It seems like it is saying "She is busy in the act of cooking dinner"

So would it be that のに focuses on being IN the act whereas のが just connects
the following attribute to the preceding verb?

BONUS QUESTION: can you say 料理するのには忙しい ??
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grammar
のに and のが. How do they differ in the context below?
The subject of ～だ in この本は読むのに～だ is "この本" and the subject of ～だ in この本は読むのが～だ
is implicit "I".

Grammtically

この本は読むのに～だ

= (この本は)(読むのに～だ)

This book is ～ to read.

and

この本は読むのが～だ

= (この本は読むのが)(～だ)

It is ～ to read this book.

(Hmm.. I can't find any differences between these English translations,
though.)

The reason why この本は読むのに簡単だ sounds odd is the fact 本 cannot be 簡単, only reading
book can be 簡単.
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As I understand it "no ni" highlights the noun, and "no ga" is highlighting
the action. So

この本は読むのに簡単だ。

means that the book is simple to read. The book is written in a nice way.

In the case of "no ga" you are highlighting the action. So

この本は読むのが簡単だ。

actually means "the act of reading this book is simple". The book has a large
font perhaps, or the pages are not stuck together.

Similarly:

声を出して読むのがうまい - good at reading aloud

ベッドで読むのによさそうな物 - a thing that is good bedtime reading
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I would translate the first sentence slightly different.

```

    この本は読むのに簡単だ。To read this book is easy.
    この本は読むのが簡単だ。This book is easy to read.
    
```

Although both sentences share the same subject("この本"), the first one directs
your focus to the action "read" and explains how it is while the second one
describes the book itself.

So, put it differently, you can shorten the second one like この本は簡単だ。 while
keeping its meaning exactly the same.

And aside from grammatical perspective, we hardly use the first one. It just
doesn't sound smooth. You would hear この本は、読むことが簡単だ。 or the second one more
often.

料理するのには忙しい ?? You can say this, but the construct is different (you put the
extra 「は」). You probably want to post another question for that.
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answer