Piece me BIRDS! Review

Piece me BIRDS! is a lovely puzzle app for iPad that introduces young players to birds, the sounds and movements that they make in this simple, beautifully created app that kids will enjoy and adults will appreciate, as there is a vintage appeal to the look of this application in general that I am quite fond of.

This is a special app that will be enjoyed by young puzzle lovers as well as those interested in learning more about animals - here specifically birds.

This application opens up to a home page consisting of seven birds grouped together among branches of a tree. Here, one can tap on a bird to work on a specific puzzle. Once a selection is made, players are taken to a page where the child can faintly see the flying creature's outline within a white oval center screen. A tap here allows these puzzle pieces to enter this page with a random toss and a satisfying sound of wood pieces dropping onto a hard surface.

Now children will be able to place the correct pieces in their places, each with an equally satisfying “click” sound of a wood piece being placed correctly within. When completed, the bird will come to life, becoming animated with an appropriate movement and bird call specific to the type of bird in question. I love the look of these delightful creatures, their movements looking distinct for each bird, as do their calls that sound very realistic and well-recorded. Once complete, players can re-set these puzzles or go back to the home page and choose another puzzle to explore.

There is also a section giving the children a chance to meet the artist, Amy Ruppel, with a short biography of hers and a few pictures of Amy and her art. I really like looking at this section which allows children to get to know the people behind the apps that they love, and I enjoy Amy’s artwork very much here as well, as I especially appreciate how these puzzles become animated while maintaining the handmade quality that I really enjoy from this app. To find this section, tap Amy’s signature found on the title page of this app - a nice touch that made me smile.

I hope parents looking for a puzzle app for their child will consider Piece me Birds!. All the elements used here are well-done, and the level of difficulty among these puzzles is quite nice for toddlers, young preschoolers and possibly for older kids as well. Adults will enjoy this application as I now know the names and sounds of some familiar birds I did not know much about until now. The birds are wonderfully bright and colorful, the puzzles have a tactile feel that I love, making this a simple and sweet app worth looking into.