Spike and the Orange Ball Review

Spike and the Orange Ball is a simple and cute universal storybook app about a dog who loses and then finds his best friend, an orange ball, based on a real experience. Options include listening to narration by tapping the text of this story or reading this book to oneself.

My son and I enjoy this app. My boy, who at times has lost favorite toys for days at a time, can relate to how upset Spike the dog gets in the story, as this app nicely explains the relationship Spike has had with his “best friend” making Spike in many ways utterly human. His issues are confounded by the fact that his family is moving and may have to leave without his favorite toy. Luckily Spike finds his ball at the end, my son’s favorite part of the story. Possibly the cutest moment in the story is the end when you see photographs of the real Spike and his orange ball, something my son really enjoyes looking at.

The illustrations are super cute and include some subtle movements which add a nice effect to this simple story. I also enjoy listening to the music included as well as the colorful yellow and orange stripes that are the background for all of these pages, including when photography is sometimes used through out this story, adding some extra visual interest. The narration is also quite good here, giving this dog a deep tone to his voice and nicely expressing his sadness over loosing his favorite toy, reminding me what it might sound like if comedian Steven Wright were narrating a children's story, an interesting choice.

Please note that this book uses the term “o crud” twice in this app, something that I am not bothered by, but I could imagine that some parents may not want their children repeating this phrase. The line needs to be tapped independently like the other lines in the story, so one can choose to keep this phrase silent if one wishes. I also think that the font used, although fun to look at, may be hard for kids who are not listening to narration to read for themselves. All in all, a very enjoyable story for young children.