The Grumble Noise Review

The Grumble Noise is a charming interactive storybook app for iPad about the vivid fantasies of a young boy as he hears grumbling noises coming from the room that he shares with his brother.

There is a lot to enjoy about this app, as the illustrations used are very nicely done, with a few bright colors that really pop on the darkened backdrop of these boys' bedroom at night.

I especially enjoy the monsters this younger brother creates to put a face to the creepy noises he is hearing such as a fire breathing lion or two headed dinosaur, reminiscent to me of creatures found in Greek mythology, yet always successfully walking the fine line of what will bring excitement to this app without any issues of over stimulation or scary elements to this story itself.

I also admire the basic storytelling with a beginning, middle, and ending, as telling a simple story can be difficult. The ending, demystifying some of the concerning ambient sounds one may hear is also a cute and fun ending children will appreciate.

The narration is also quite good here as are the included sound effects. Readers are also given the option of reading this book themselves.

Interactions are included on every page which add a nice level of richness to this story. Only a few main hotspots are added per page, making these elements quite effective as well as never distracting or unnecessary.

Best of all, this app is free, yet worth a whole lot more. Not only does it showcase the talents of developer Erik X. Raj, but consider it a gift from this developer who was himself afraid of the dark as a child, making this a very easy application to recommend to all families with young children.