Category: For Parents »

Fluke HD is, in my opinion, one of the best Sorry/Ludo clones on the app store today. It is one that has held my daughters' attention for months now, and one that we absolutely love coming back to quite regularly to play as a family.

The game, as you can imagine, is quite simple. You have 4 tokens that you need to get from the star to the finish. You can play by yourself with computer controlled players (easy, medium or hard difficulties) or with up to 6(!) people... that would be one heck of a full iPad to huddle around! Multiplayer through Game Center is also an option, not a bad idea if you've got 2 devices and want to play separately.

There are currently 4 different boards to choose from: Alien World (which was newly added), Carnival, Mediaeval and Race Track. There's also a promise of more boards to come, which I'd love to see. Included is a link to Fluke's Facebook page where you can chime in on what you'd like to see included for the new boards. The developer is very active here, a fact that is quite promising. For parents who are concerned with their children clicking out to external sites, I need to advise that this is an easy link to click on, even mistakenly so.

Anyway, back to the game. If you've played Sorry, you know the basics. Once into the game, you need to roll a 6 to add another token onto the board. This then gives you another chance to roll the dice. As for the play on the board, if you roll and land on another player's token, it captures it and sends it back to the start. There are also 2 different unqieu actions spaces on the board. The first is a "Special" tile that requires the person who lands on it to follow its instructions. The second is the "Teleport" device, which will send your token off to another teleport space of the same color, possibly sending you back some spaces.

Fluke honestly surprised me. I knew from what I'd seen that I would like it, but I thought it would get boring rather quickly. Well, it hasn't, and for an app at this price, that's an impressive feat.

I am a firm believer that the iPad is the answer for board gaming on the go, and Fluke is further proof to that. It provides a simple and easy way to access a very high quality "Sorry" clone no matter where you are. No longer do I have to worry that I've lost a piece to the game (I STILL can't find where a red Trouble token is and haven't touched the game since that happened!), and I never have to worry about cleaning it up afterwards. Also, unlike the board game, you get the variety of having multiple board selections here that don't just change how the game looks, but the strategy in how the game plays. A short board is a short, simple game versus a longer board that allows for more strategy. It's simple, but it's something that seriously adds to the longevity of the game.

My say is that if you want to enjoy a really great and fun family board game, Fluke is without a doubt the way to go. The developer cares about the title, and has succeeded in creating something that's easy for a wide age range (it require no reading skill) but also succeeds for adults. It's neither unattractive nor boring, an unfortunate fate of many clones on the app marketplace. You really can't go wrong, and as of my writing it's $0.99 - I cannot think of a better way to spend a buck.

Fruit Memory HD is, in my opinion, one of the nicest Memory-type games available on the app store, and is one that my daughters and I have a ton of fun with on a regular basis.

The thing that first caught my eye with Fruit Memory was its very clean and attractive art style that really stands out on the app store in comparison to other apps of its type. That, plus, it was all of a dollar. And because of the price, I didn't have huge expectations as all I wanted was a simple, attractive memory game. But once I loaded it up and started playing it with my daughters, I realized very quickly that every now and then a dollar provides a lot more than a dollar's worth of fun and entertainment.

When you start up Fruit Memory you're presented with an selection page that contains quite a few options, but is incredibly easy to navigate. The game can start with as few as 12 cards or as many as 40, scaling the cards in size to accommodate.

The next option allows for the selection of players. You can play on your own and keep a local leader board of how long it took to complete as well as how many moves it takes. There are separate entries for 12, 28 and 40 cards, and there are unique fruits to be found even at the 40 card level.

Once you start everything up, you get to pick your character, avatar, however you want to describe it. There are 16 options and, wouldn't you know it my twins always argue about which character they want to pick. The character designs don't seem like they make much of an impact, but they really do. The faces are made up of various internet emoticons (>.<, o.O, ^_^, T_T) and so on. Very, very cute.

The options make it really easy for even younger children who are not able to read to start up the game. The buttons are large, and very clearly marked, making it very easy for even a 2 year old to set up a game.

After you're done and you jump into the game, the layout is, simply, perfect. Each person has a tab at the bottom of the screen showing their avatar and their score. If you get a match in a turn, you can go again, otherwise it moves to the next player. It's designed nicely for a tabletop mode, and when you have 4 players it becomes 2 on 2, just great for families. One thing that I absolutely love is that each time you guess right, your avatar jumps up and down in happiness. Again, it's a simple touch, but it adds to the attractiveness of the app.

The card backs are, as the title suggests, fruits. The shapes are easy to recognize and differentiate and are very colorful. There will be no issues if your child is color-blind, either, as there is no repetition based on fruit color.

I've had my hands on quite a few other memory apps, some that are much more expensive or much fancier, just out of curiosity to see if they improve upon Fruit Memory and, at this point, I've yet to find one that I would pick in its place. The clean, simple and very visually pleasing aesthetic of the app combined with the attractive sound effects and adorable "characters" is something that is a huge hit with my whole family and, without a doubt, will be for yours too. Heck, it's a buck! You can't go wrong!

Yes, the name of the app I'm reviewing today is the entire alphabet. From this point on, I'll refer to it as abcdefg for the sake of my fingers.

I stumbled across this app thanks to the title, it initially seemed like a unique way to learn the alphabet and practice word sounds, but I soon found it was that plus a lot more and it turned into a favorite of mine and my daughters very quickly.

Upon opening abcdefg and hitting play, you're presented with a simple and easy to access play field. The alphabet is split into 2 halves, one on each side, running lengthwise on your device. At the top 4 different words: "Gravity", "Crickets", "Vehicles" and "Birds". At the bottom are 5 buttons, "Recycle", "Arrow", "Bomb", "Camera" and "Info". Honestly, this is all that you need to know to get started.

Simply take a letter from either side and drag it into the middle of the screen. When you let go, the letter will go off on its merry way. When my daughters first grabbed it, they dragged a few letters and nothing happened. Once the letters hit the edge of the screen, everything changed.

With gravity (the option selected by default), the letters simply move with your device. Each time the letters hit an edge, the "sound" of the letter is played.

Vehicles zip around the screen, making sounds as they move. Crickets skitter and make sounds when they group up together. Birds is the most diverse, with varied sound, tempo and pitch depending on where/how it's placed.

As each letter moves, it leaves a unique trail behind it, making a visual representation of the soundscape you, I mean your kids, are creating and it's easy to stop a single letter, group of letters, erase the whole picture or take a snapshot of the insanity using the buttons below.

People might dismiss abcdefg, but if you look closer at what the app actually provides, I think you'll find that it's an invaluable tool for kids. In the app, you're a conductor of sound, and you learn concepts like pitch and tempo. You also get a quick into to physics, seeing how the different letters move and interact with each other, things you don't often see in "kid" apps these days.

While abcdefg is no replacement for music lessons, it allows children to draw outside the lines of music and just perform these strange experimental mini-concerts with letters. Some of the things I've heard my daughters create simply blow my mind. They have to experiment in combining sounds together, finding ones that match in tone, pitch, whatever to create an appealing and melodic sound. They also end up with these crazy pictures of letters strewn everywhere. They get to interact with art in a way that I've never really seen, at least not in this medium.

I can honestly say that I think any kid would benefit from putting their hands on abcdefg, even if it's just to increase familiarity with the alphabet and word sounds. Beyond that, it's an introduction to physics and a way for kids to create experimental soundscapes, by simply placing letters on a screen, turning that into honest to goodness music.

For the price and for the features offered, abcdefg is much more than a simple novelty. It's an app that I recommend for kids and adults of any age. It's never too early (or too late!) to make crazy music and pictures. I look back in regret, wishing that I'd have had something even close to this as a kid, it might have gotten me that much more interested in creating and experimenting with music and sound.

OK. I have to admit it. Where other people are addicted to physics games, such as Angry Bird, or target or math games, I’m addicted to word games. So, whether I play Word Ball with or without my kids, I will play language games like Word Ball. For kids, it’s a great way to learn new and find old words and expand those cognitive wheels inside their heads. It's also a great way to teach spelling. For adults, it’s a great way to remember old words and keep those cognitive wheels going inside their heads. In addition, you really need to be quick on the draw, since the more words you make the better will be your score.

It’s a simple concept. Just think of balloons that are floating up and around the screen. The balloons, in this case, are balls with an individual letter. As the balls move slowly or more quickly (depending on which option chosen) across the screen, the player needs to tap on the ones that make a word and then enter that word for play. The longer the word found, the more points received. No words can be used twice. In this game, the players do not receive a list of words that they have to find. You have to draw upon the words in your head and find the letters that spell those words. Sometimes, you may start with a word in mind and then find it is necessary to spell a different word when the letter needed is not seen on the screen.

This is not a game that should be played when you or your children are tired, frustrated or angry. It only leads to more of the same. Nor, is it a game for younger children, unless the parents play along and ask questions along the way, “What goes, Meow? That’s right, ‘Cat.’ How do you spell cat? Let’s find the letters ‘C,’ ‘A’ and ‘T’. Can you help me?” Younger children will only be able to think of three- or four-letter words, so will keep on repeating the same ones.

As you go from one level to another, the letters move faster, shrink in size and disappear when not used. Of course, this makes it all the harder to form the words in your head. With fewer and fewer letters available, it becomes quite difficult to think of any new words.

Players can compete against themselves and try to continually improve their own skills or choose Game Center integration that allows comparing scores with the rest of the world’s players and to win trophies. However, beware. There are players, younger and older, who know how to spell longer and winning words such as exaggeration and onomatopoeia! After each game, players see a display of statistics, which includes a comprehensive list of every single word they made.

The Fantastic Flying Books of Mr Morris Lessmore is a very special interactive storybook for iPad that is perfectly realized in every way. Strong words, I know, but this app is simply wonderful, poetic and beautiful experience for all ages. Based on the short film of the same name, this ebook has interwoven interactions and other animated visuals that are simply striking for use of imagery that will stay with the reader for a very long time.

It is hard really to write this review as I would encourage readers to experience this themselves, as I don’t think my words here will do this app justice. The story is said to be inspired by hurricane Katrina, Buster Keaton, and the Wizard of Oz equally, and is about a man who is currently writing a book about his life. One day, his world gets turned upside down but is fortunate to later find a library filled with books with flying abilities that need a caregiver. In reality, this app is really about so much more. My son, at 3.5 years, still takes things on face value, and for him, this story book is about the love of reading and the warm embrace books deserve as the protagonist takes care of these flying books as if they are living, breathing things.

Some critics worry that the use of book apps will make traditional books less important and not as much a part of children’s daily lives as in the past. I make sure that we read as many - if not more - classic picture books as ebooks, and I am so very happy that this app, using the technology of the iPad, engrains a true love of reading and the importance of books within this application.

The look of this app is simply stunning, mixing a use of both black and white as well as color, many times juxtipositioning both on the same page. The black and white images possess many shades of gray, making them as rich and lush as the best black and white films that classic Hollywood has to offer. The color images here are just as grand and lush, full of saturated colors reminding me of the Technicolor at its most vivid. Combined on the same page creates something very special and very beautiful. I am grateful to introduce my son to the effects of these wonderful black and white images, something he has not yet been exposed to.

The interactions work seamlessly within these pages, and I appreciate how hotspots are many times shaded gray as a subtle hint on where to tap, working well to help the reader find interactions without being overly distracting. Possibly my favorite moment is when the main character Lessmore walks into the library for the first time, allowing the reader to tap various books which in turn speak famous lines from the works of such authors as Edgar Alan Poe, Shakespeare, or Mark Twain. This moment’s true impact may be lost on my son, but I found it very moving.

The interactions offered here are varied and quite captivating. I love how Lessmore meets a new best friend from the pages of one of these books, this friend coming alive as well as becoming an important character within these pages and creating a book within a book with great effect, leading the reader through many interactions including a musical one where one is guided through the playing of a simple song as well as others, truly bringing this character to life, and I am impressed how emotionally involved I became with this character from a simple children's rhyme.

I also enjoyed the puzzles included, designed like torn pages that need to be painstakingly taped back together, something my son and I can relate to as I have also mended a few pages of our books as well. It is quite beautiful how one can change day to night and back again, as well as the changes of seasons, illustrating the many years that Lessmore has spent with these books. By the end, the reader becomes aware of the circular nature of this story, something I greatly appreciate.

This app has a nice selection of features that aid in personalizing the experience, hiding the text if one so chooses as he listens to equally well-done narration, which can just as easily be silenced. Music and sound effects are included and are of equal quality; each can be played together or independently from the text or narration if one so chooses. A menu is also included to make finding a special place in this story easier for the reader, an addition I always enjoy.

I highly recommend this app to anyone who owns an iPad, with or without children as simply all ages will enjoy this book. Adults will be moved in ways their children might not understand, and it is possible that I enjoy this book more than my son does.

I truly hope to see more storybook applications from the developers at MoonBot Studios. The images of this interactive story book will stay with me for a very long time. Please note: the short film of the same name is also available in iTunes, something I have become very interested in as well.

Xperica HD is a really unique, educational and interactive iPad app that includes four physics experiments, ideal for the high school student studying physics. It has been twenty years since I took physics in high school and although I have vague memories of enjoying this subject, I remember very little of what I learned. When I first opened this app, I thought I was going to have to pass on reviewing this application as the subject matter is now way over my head, and this app lacks any reference material needed if one does not have a basic understanding of what is going on.

Even though I understood very little of what I was looking at, I could tell how educational this would be for the right student with some base level of understanding of physics, so I asked my dad, a retired engineer and professor, to look at this with me and tell me his thoughts. All throughout school, I turned to my father for help with all my math and science homework, as often times my dad had a better grasp of explaining the subject matter than my teachers did, so I thought he would be the perfect person to give his insights.

The lack of a textbook type reference material within this app did not phase my dad at all, who knows this subject matter well, and he was fascinated with the educational aspect of this application. Impressed that this app was free, I asked him if he would pay the $3.99 to buy an additional pack of six experiments for me if I were in high school and his answer was a enthusiastic "yes."

Typically, I am not a fan of add-ons, but this app delivers a lot of content that my father looked at for quite some time, making this app very worthwhile with or without the additional experiments. I wish this app were available when I was taking physics, I think it would have added a great deal to my experience, especially at home as you can do experiments not possible until now in a home setting.

Here is my father's impressions of this app:

"This a great app. It is suitable for a high school student and even for a student taking (college) freshman physics. The app consists of four experiments: The Law of Moments, The Specific Heat of Water, Resistance of a Series Circuit, and the Oscillation of a Spring. Each experiment consists of varying parameters and seeing what happens. The amount of physics explanation is minimal, however, so reference material may be required. Alternatively, the student can try to derive the correlating equations from the experimental results. I think that this is a very valuable teaching tool, which allows a student to see how the systems described by the experiments operate and, for the more advanced student, may allow him to actually discover the physics behind them."

I recommend this app for anyone studying high school, possibly early college physics. Also note that the website associated with this app mentions that teacher resources and other learning material will be available at some point in the future, an addition that I think would be great, especially for parents who may know less physics than their child but still want to participate in the use of this application. I think that apps such as this are brilliant new tools for learning, I hope I continue to see more educational apps such as Xperica HD in the future. iPhone users be aware that a version for iPhone is coming soon.

Every now and then you'll see an app that really makes you do a double-take. ROBOT 99 is one of those apps, both visually and in its gameplay.

ROBOT 99 is simple. Robots live up in the sky, in clouds (seriously) and every now and then, they lose their footing and fall toward the ground. What's the only thing that can save them? Fingers! Your fingers, your kid's fingers, your friend's fingers! As many fingers as you can fit on the screen!

The controls are spot on simple right from the get go. To save a robot, simply touch it and its parachute will deploy, carrying it safely to the ground below. Once it touches the ground, it will set its jets in motion and fly back up into the sky where it belongs and reward you with points. You have 3 robot "lives" to get as many points as possible.

Sounds simple, right? Well, although it's simple, it gets crazy very quickly. Multiple robots are on the screen very quickly and they continue to appear one after the other. So you've got all these ROBOTS around, now you need to get some points. Tapping rapidly on a ROBOT will build up a point multiplier. You can also drag a ROBOT to the "POWERZONIA" section (a bar that runs across the screen) which will give you lots of extra points, but also give you a massive speed boost, firing your ROBOT at super speeds back up in the sky, but you have to be careful throughout this, as it's easy to make ROBOTS bounce into each other and cause them to fall to their doom.

Now here is what makes ROBOT 99 special and very different. You can go through this whole chaotic experience with the entire family. I spent almost an hour sitting beside my daughters playing on my iPad, fingers flying trying to save these poor ROBOTS. Within minutes, we were all laughing hysterically. It was really a magical, albeit crazy, experience to share.

And it is a beautiful experience, too. The design, hand crafted by the developer, is bright, gorgeous and detailed. There are 99 unique ROBOT designs, so you'll never see the same ROBOT twice. It is also designed for the Retina display on the iPhone 4, but the iPad is no slouch, it's stunning on both.

Now ROBOT 99 isn't perfect, there are a few marks against it. The biggest issue I have is the lack of changes to the game. Other than the background and the landing area, everything else basically stays the same.

Also, although anyone with fingers can play the game, it takes a fair amount of skill to get a high score. It's also a game that's not "winnable", you unlock levels by a cumluative score and for kids who need a standard "Level Complete" screen, this might not be for them. My recommendation on minimum age would be 5 - 6. Kids over 6 will have a better chance at getting into the skill of the game and start to see higher scores.

So, is ROBOT 99 for you?

Are you in the mood for something different? Do you want a casual, hectic and crazy game you can share with 2 or 3 other people? If you are, then this is right up your alley. And at this point, ROBOT 99 is $0.99. It is a no-brainer at this price and is great fun for the whole family, and will likely get everyone in hysterics while they play. The designer, Keng-Fu, said that he aimed to create a fun, multi-touch game for families. I can say for certain that he succeeded.

This iPhone, iPad and iPod app “shows to go you” that science, especially physics, can taught in an interesting way that it is not dry and expressionless as was the case with a few of my junior and high school teachers. Actually, it can be fun, as the information on the app says, for the whole family. Go Car Go also demonstrates that it does not take rocket science to teach science. This is a very simple app that clearly shows how different physical properties and design will alter a car’s performance. If I “get” it, anyone can.

You are given a wide variety of different options for constructing your own automobile. You are given the pieces of your car—simple circles (wheels) and squares (car parts) and just have to drag them over to the main screen to design your car. Let’s say, for example, that you vary the weight of your new creation. What will happen as you put it into gear and it starts driving up and down hills? This brings back memories of those Boy Scouts car derbies I did my sons. I wish I had the app then.

In terms of physics, the concept deals with mass, weight, and inertia—different words, same concept. Mass is the amount of matter in an object; bricks have a lot more mass than sponges. Weight is the gravitational force exerted on an object. Weight depends on the mass of the object. The earth will pull on the brick more, so it is heavier. Mass always remains the same; weight changes. So, if you make two cars, the one with the greater mass will weigh more. OK. Now add in inertia. That’s the tendency of objects to resist motion. A still object remains still unless a force causes it to move. An object in motion stays in motion unless a force makes it stop. Finally, the more the mass, the more the inertia or more difficult something is to stop. When I see a chocolate candy bar, it is difficult for me to stop moving.

So, who cares? Right? I just went through all of this explanation to demonstrate that just by making a couple of cars, you can actually see all these physics concepts in action. You are actually learning and not even realizing it. With Go Car Go, you are given 48 different courses, each with its own set of obstacles. When you make your car, you can guess what is going to happen once it gets going and see if you are right. There is also a Sandbox Mode to let you compete with others for who travels the longest.

I love the very simple stick drawings on this app. It does not clutter up the science with a lot of unnecessary bells and whistles. However, do not just hand this over to your kid and say, “Here. This will help with your physics questions.” The concepts are explained—easily—but having an adult read along and provide some explanation would be helpful for younger kids who are just getting into Isaac Newton. There are no ages listed that I could find. Elementary school children can just have fun building and watching their cars move along or flip over. Junior high school kids will need some assistance. High schoolers and adults—you too—will have fun and even learn a thing or two.

As soon as parents hear their baby’s first loud cry when it comes into this world, they check to make sure their new son or daughter has ten toes and ten fingers and is healthy. The next action is taking pictures--if the video camera is not already running. While the newborn is getting checked up by the doctor, all the phone calls go out to family members, close friends and people at work. The proud parents would notify the world, if they could.

Many parents also start baby books, promising to religiously keep up with all the necessary newborn and toddler information and special milestones. What they don’t realize, unless they already have the joy of another child, is the amount of time it takes to care for a baby and that they will be sleep deprived for a long, long time.

The Baby Book app makes it much easier for parents to record special moments in their infant’s first year and immediately send them out to friends through e-mail or social media options, such as Facebook.
With this app, there is no need for an extra camera. Parents can use their iPhone camera to capture photos for the Baby Book. They also have the option of uploading existing pictures and videos into the app. Since I had my video camera and digital camera with me most of the time during my sons’ first years, this would have made life much easier than pasting pictures into my print baby book. I confess, neither of my son’s baby books was completed...

The Baby Book app gets you started with special milestones—“first birthday,” ”first crawl,” “first laugh,” “first walk,” “first word” and those dreaded “vaccinations” when the baby is crying and so is the parent! With each milestone, parents can add photos and videos. If you want to add other milestones, it’s easy. In fact, I would have immediately added “first picture” to my milestones for that moment of my children's arrival. This allows you to easily add memories as your child gets older.

Another nice addition is being able to type in a comment about each memorable event. This helps the sleep-deprived parents remember exactly what did happen when their infant became a toddler with those first shaky steps.

The best, best thing about this app is that it goes with you wherever you are. Your iPhone is attached to you at all times, right? Instead of opening up your wallet and showing everyone thousands of pictures, you can just show all these photos and videos on your iPhone, iPod, or iPad.

Jeremy Fisher: Buddy Edition is a very good universal app which brings the classic story The Tale of Mr. Jeremy Fisher to devices with especially nice narration. The iPad application also contains coloring pages as well as a connect-the-dots activity. Both versions contain "Buddy Reading" which enables an adult to read the story from a remote place in real time to a listening child who is at another location.

Jeremy Fisher: Buddy Edition is a very good adaption of the beloved story by Beatrix Potter, who also wrote the Tale of Peter Rabbit as well as other stories about other cute animals with human personalities. Here, this story is about a frog named Jeremy Fisher, who goes on an adventure as he tries to catch enough fish to have a dinner party for his friends. The illustrations are those found in the original book and look lovely on the iPhone but are especially grand on the large screen of the iPad.

As this is a book originally published in 1906, parents should be prepared to answer questions kids may have about some words not commonly used today, specifically "larder" (a cold pantry of sorts that pre-dates refrigeration) and "macintosh" (a rubberized waterproof raincoat) adding to the educational value of this app.

New to the story is the interactivity included where one can tap on the screen to see and hear the names of some of the objects being tapped. The reader is shown where to tap, which is good for very young children, but the flash of glowing blue dots may also be distracting to some, and children many want to search these interactions instead of being shown where they are. I like the addition of these words, but I did not like that if tapped, the speaking of these words can sometimes overlap the narration of the story, not an ideal situation. I would prefer to only read the narrated words as text on the screen when the story is being told. There are a few interactions where one can move a dragonfly or a slug around the screen, which I really enjoyed and I do wish more of these moving interactions can be added in the future.

The iPad version of the app also contains both coloring pages as well as a connect-the-dots activity. In the coloring pages, one can choose a color and then fill in sections of the drawing, using a finger like a crayon. There is a "zoom" option that is included to allow an easier time coloring in details, but I wish one could control this function with the movement of fingers, as I have not had a lot of success zooming in to the places that I choose. A novel feature of this coloring book is the "rainbow" crayon. Do use it over a large area of the page and see what happens, something that I think kids will really enjoy, as do I. The saving and emailing of these completed pages are also available, something kids may have fun with.

The connect-the-dots is exactly what it seems, as one uses a finger to drag from number to number, creating a part of the illustration that is missing. At first, the page is black and white, but when the dots are fully connected, the player is rewarded with their picture being transformed into full color, a nice effect.

I like that both the coloring book as well as the connect-the-dots games include a nice selection of pages to choose from.

I have not had a chance to try out the "Buddy Reading" as this would test best with two adults using their devices in separate locations. This function allows an adult to read this story to a child while they travel or if they live apart. I have, however, read the instructions and I am happy to say that they look well-written and easy to follow.

A "record" option for this book would be a nice addition as well, possibly to be used as a backup if the away parent can't connect to "Buddy Reading" for some reason, like if one experiences internet problems. I have enjoyed this application, as the quality of the narration, the use of the original illustrations and an interesting coloring option makes this a lovely storybook and a good choice for any child who may enjoy a nice, classic story.

The Raven By Edgar Allen Poe from vNovel Interactive delivers two well-done versions of this classic gothic poem. Choices include watching this poem, nicely enhanced with music and voice-over, or reading this poem to oneself. Here the experience is heightened by the use of sound effects nicely placed throughout. Be sure to keep an eye out for hidden faces that appear and disappear among the illustrations. A version in HD is also available.

From the time this famous narrative poem was first written in 1845, many versions have been made available to the fans of Edgar Allen Poe. Here, I found both the experiences of "listening" as well as "reading" this application to be nicely stylized and good choices for anyone who is looking to be exposed to this gothic tale, as the illustrations further the experience and are extremely well done, as is the music and narration. Although the narrator speaks a little fast at times for my taste, the sound of his voice works very well to create an eerie, dark quality as do all the elements of this application.

I also very much enjoy the section of this app where one can read to oneself. Here, there are sound effects like doors creaking, wind blowing or noises from the raven itself. Although these sounds are sometimes a little on-the-nose, I find that they do add a lot to the experience and I appreciated being a little startled when the raven squawked for the first time. The words are delivered at the bottom of the screen and are easy to read - one phrase at a time, but it does to some degree take away from the original paragraph structure intended by Poe.

I think this would be a good application for students as well as Poe fans. The illustrations, music and narration make it a very worthwhile version of this classic poem.

Auryn Ink is an interesting app for iPad which simulates watercolor painting, geared to those with an intermediate to high skill level. There are a multitude of options artists can utilize that will bring this experience as close to really painting with watercolors that one can get without paints and paper, my favorites being how the colors blend and overlap like one would find while working with water colors, as well as how gravity affects the paint, having it run if the iPad is tilted. Other options include selecting canvases with different textures which will affect how the paint is applied in terms of paint flow and brush strokes. There is control over bristle patterns and brush strokes as well as the ability to wet and re-wet the canvas at will, and It is always nice to see undo and erase buttons in drawing or painting apps, something not possible to do when painting in real life.

I found that the interface of this app could be easier, but with some practice it became simpler to navigate. I think artists will appreciate this app when it is not convenient to set up paper and watercolors, especially while traveling and it is nice that one can email finished pieces, but I would also like to be able to save a painting as to go back and finish at another time and the resolution could also be better. This app is also not very sensitive, sometimes having to go over an area more than once for the brush stroke to register. I do think this would be enjoyed by artists who understand this apps limitations, enjoying the ability to paint anywhere they would like with no clean-up.

Treasure Island by Cyberia is an amazing adaptation of the classic Robert Louis Stevenson book for iPad, which does a really great job of incorporating many different elements together such as sound, animation, and interactions to make a wonderful interactive story.

I have really enjoyed this interactive storybook. This app showcases how iPads can bring books to life while still maintaining the reading experience. Although I do love a good narration to a story, I respect the choice of the developers to not have an option to listen to this book out loud. Geared to children nine years and up, this book is designed to be read either by themselves or with the help of a adult and would be a great choice in encouraging kids to read.

This book is full of beautiful illustrations combined seamlessly with interesting animated elements on many of the pages. Creative interactions are also included that, along with the animations, are never random or distracting but instead further the story. The use of sound is also wonderful here, which includes the sounds of both the sea as well as the “arg” of pirates as well as well-done music which creates great moments of suspense for the reader.

I can’t imagine a child not becoming completely drawn in after the first page or two. In fact, I wish I were a nine year old discovering this app for the first time. I can, however, imagine the period language seeming foreign to some young readers. If so, parents may want to help in the reading and share in the experience. I think this app can also be appreciated by older students as well, including teens and adults, as a great interactive story which has no age restrictions.

Thoughtfully abridged, parents will be happy to know that the style of language is maintained while making the story accessible to children and I really appreciate that there is a glossary of words included as well as a short biography of the author. I like the ease of the interface as well, swiping to turn pages and double tapping to raise a bar from the bottom of the page containing such options like a table of contents or a glossary as well as the option to turn off the sound and a general help button for instructions. It is also a nice feature that one can scroll through the contents option, looking for a specific page by viewing a small preview of each page - this working nicely as each page is unique looking. It is also nice that the app will open to the page you left off on, a very helpful for longer eBooks.

Cyberia has risen to the short list of developers I will be keeping a watchful eye on, hoping for another wonderful application from these thoughtful storytellers.

Gulliver’s Travels – Part I – Voyage to Lilliput very nicely brings the classic Jonathan Swift tale to the iPad with both abridged as well as unabridged versions, options include that include listening to this story or reading the full, original text by oneself.

I am very impressed with the way this application has brought Gulliver’s Travels to the iPad. I remember enjoying this book when I read it a long time ago in school, but I appreciate it even more now with the addition of beautiful illustrations peppered with moving animations that really bring the story to life, as well as an interesting musical score and sound effects. My favorite moment here is when Gulliver is first brought to the city, bound on a flat and moved by horses. The animation of this moment in the story combined with the use of music here is very captivating.

I like how the text being read appears on what looks like antiqued paper, both taking up the screen as well as appearing in the corner of the illustrated pages. The narration can also be turned off if one chooses to, but the narration is very effective here in telling the story and I enjoy listening to the narrator speak.

One also has the choice of reading the text in its full, unabridged form without narration. Here, all the text is shown as if it is printed on the antique paper like many pages of the abridged version. The illustrated pages remain as well, which I think is a nice touch. It would be nice if the app had a way of bookmarking the page that one may be reading in case called away before completing the story or numbers could be added to pages themselves to make it easier to look for the last page read. Luckily, there is a section which makes finding a specific page easier, allowing the reader to view a small preview of each page with the option of jumping to the page in question, but if you stop reading on a text page the small view of each page is less helpful in finding your spot. Page numbers are added to the preview window for the original version, but without page numbers in the story itself it is still difficult to find the place you left off, an issue because one may not be able to read the full 121 pages in one sitting, especially if one is reading to a child with a short attention span.

All in all, I think this app would be an excellent choice not just for those studying Jonathan Swift in school, but for anyone who enjoys a great story. I hope more beautifully crafted books like this from Inverted Pear are created, especially the other books in this series.

Grow With Me is an interesting app which may be helpful to parents, especially those with a newborn as this app has been designed to log much of the information new parents feel compelled to keep such as data involving feedings and diapers, info given at well-baby visits as well as keeping a working schedule for vaccinations. Birth announcements can be created, and info can also be Facebooked and tweeted as well.

When our son was born, he had a hard time gaining his birth weight back within the first two weeks, so we needed to keep a detailed account of how much he nursed as well as how many diapers he used in a given day. The need to keep such detailed accounts, down to left breast and right breast, written by hand in a tiny flowchart provided by the pediatrician compounded the overwhelmingness we felt as new parents. I wish this app had been available to us; it would have saved us a lot of energy and stress. I really like that all you need to do is select "breast" and press a stopwatch of sorts when one starts and finishes, with the information now ready to be emailed in preparation for a printout to show the doctor. Options include bottle and solid feeding as well. The same goes for the ease in which you can document wet vs. soiled diapers as well as baby's sleep schedule.

I appreciate that this app is not just useful to new parents, but any family can use this app when a family member - child or not - needs to keep detailed information about symptoms of a sickness or medications needed, plus more. I find the calendar to remember appointments helpful, as is the record keeper for vaccines.

The most important thing that stuck me about this app is the ease of use, including sharing this information with one’s doctor. The one thing I find missing is a password option to keep the information safe, some of which may be of a personal nature, be it from a stolen iPhone, a nosy family member who may have access to the device but whom you don’t want sharing in this infomation, to older children, for whom it may be best not knowing the details of their illnesses. All in all, I think this app would be very helpful to parents of both infants as well as older children.