Goosed Up Rhymes is a wonderfully silly, modern and creative take on classic Mother Goose nursery rhymes. With versions available for both iPad as well as iPhone, this awesome app includes eight traditional stories as well as a few mini-games and many hidden interactive hot-spots to look for and tap.
Although this is an accurate description, it is hard to fully explain why this app stands out in a crowd of other apps that also tell classic stories. This storybook meshes these classic Mother Goose tales with quirky and modern sensibilities in a way I have not seen before, except in the cartoons that I like to watch, even as an adult. These illustrations are wonderfully stylized, bright, fresh and full of whimsy as well as occasional biting wit.
It is nice that the actual telling of these rhymes is not altered, but the style in which they are told reminds me of classic cartoons such as one of my favorites - The Animaniacs - in its use of utterly modern character personalities and dialogue. The illustrations and animations used are simply genius and I like that although the quality of these stories remains consistently high as the style of each story is slightly different, something I appreciate a great deal, especially the robot motif of “The Crooked Man” and the piles of cats under the care of lazy old Mother Hubbard.
This app, although appropriate for kids of all ages, may be appreciated even more by adults who will understand the edge that this app has - possibly more than their children. This app is an acquired taste and not for everyone, as the characters act utterly human in their language and actions, not always in ways that are flattering. Also, there are many added details such as burping frogs that I adore but may not be everyone’s cup of tea. I love the look of these stories and the different characters, both animals and people. It is highly colorful, and the hidden interactive hot spots are numerous and at the same level of animation as the rest of this app - not just random objects that may bounce around or make noise.
It is also nice that an educational aspect is also included. Not only does the reader became familiar with these classic rhymes, following along as the words are highlighted when read, but the text can later be tapped to hear words read out loud as well.
There is so much to find here, one can easily miss some of these wonderful animations since I seem to find something new each time I read these stories. It would be a wonderful extra if a key to what one is looking for could also be added in the future. Three three mini games are included - repairing a broken Humpty Dumpty, a nicely-done matching game which helps Mother Hubbard’s dog get a bone and a wack-a-mole game where you get to wack the farmer's wife for what she did to those poor blind mice, as well as a missing acorn game where you help a witty squirrel find his acorns hidden through out these pages.
I am really glad that the developers at Brain Freeze Entertainment have created this app. Past work of these animators includes Disney, Veggie Tales, and Warner Bothers, which is probably why I think of my beloved Animaniacs each time I watch these rhymes. This app brings the best nuances of wonderful cartoons to iPhone and iPad with a nice educational component. The narration here, by Mother Goose herself, is simply excellent. I would love to see more from these very talented animators, both more Goosed Up Rhymes as well as anything else they may come up with.
iPad Screenshots
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