Will & Kate: A Love Story by Ink Robin

Created for iPad and available on iTunes, this interactive story captures the romance and grace of the Royal Wedding for princesses everywhere.

A modern-day fairy tale, it opens in England with a prince named William, who will be king. In the countryside, there is a girl named Catherine who dreams of meeting a prince. Their chance meeting many years later leads to a friendship that becomes a wedding the entire world helps celebrate.

I loved this book! Since I don’t have an iPad, I wasn’t able to take advantage of all the interactive features, but even the PDF is fun to go through. Ink Robin did a superb job of creating a simple, magical story of Will & Kate’s romance that will thrill young girls. Adam Larkum’s quirky and fun illustrations add so much to this book. I loved them all.

According to the information I received from the publicist, here’s what you’ll find in the interactive version:

Every page is full of interactive elements and sound effects triggered by a simple tap or swipe of your finger. Take a trip across the African plains in a hot air balloon, set off a sky full of fireworks, enjoy a chorus of sheep in the countryside and most importantly help Kate select her wedding dress for the big day by picking your favourite and dressing her in it.

The book also features a “read it to me option” with full narration and simple navigation features, allowing younger readers to enjoy the book alone or with the help of a parent.

Will & Kate: A Love Story is easily one of my favorites from this year.

Rating:  🙂 🙂 🙂 🙂 🙂

You can learn more by visiting http://inkrobin.com/

I received an ecopy of this book from the author’s publicist in exchange for my honest opinion. I received no monetary compensation to provide my review.

The Crypto-Capers: The Chest of Mystery by Renee Hand

In the highly-anticipated conclusion of the seach for the Golden Monkey, the Crypto-Capers team is up to their eyeballs in danger and mystery. Book 4 in the series, The Chest of Mystery,  picks up right where Book 3 left off. Having found two of the pieces to open the treasure room in the previous book, they discover they have only solved half the puzzle. With the Panther hot on their trail, time is running out.

The team travels to Pisa, Italy to meet with the one man who holds all the answers. But when he disappears without a trace, they have to depend on each other and believe in what they know. Will that be enough to lead them to the lost treasure of the Mayans and the Golden Monkey?

Wow! I’ll tell you that this book was definitely worth the wait. In Book 3, the danger had been cranked up for the Crypto-Capers. In the conclusion to this mystery, they get more than they bargained for. The Panther is closing in, Morris is in danger, and their new friend Emmanuel might be an important piece of the puzzle.

In addition to Max, Mia and Granny Holmes, the fourth member of the team, Morris, joins them in the field.  This is unusual, and the reader can see this as a bit of growth in this character. Speaking of growth, I’m glad to see the cover artist doesn’t forget that the kids are growing as the series moves along. All the kids seem a bit older on the cover now.

We are also treated to meeting some new characters in The Chest of Mystery. Their relationships add a new element to the story, and keep the series fresh, just like adding pieces to the unfolding mystery does. The reader will also discover why she needs to hold onto the first three books in this series, as she will refer to them for help in solving the puzzles in Book 4.

Author Renee Hand has won awards for her writing. It’s truly no surprise to me. She delivers consistently well-written, engaging stories. I am always eagerly awaiting her next book.  The interactive element of The Crypto-Capers series will have even the most reluctant readers solving crimes with the team.  These are books you don’t want to miss!

Rating:  🙂 🙂 🙂 🙂 🙂

• Publisher:North Star Press of St. Cloud, Inc.
• ISBN-10:0878393943
• ISBN-13: 978-0878393947
• SRP:  $12.95

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This Little Piggy: And Other Favorite Action Rhymes Illustrated by Hannah Wood

 If you and your preschooler are ready for some playtime, pick up a copy of This Little Piggy: And Other Favorite Action Rhymes from tiger tales.

In this lively collection of traditional fingerplays and action verses, youngsters can join in the singing, tickling, wiggling, and clapping with more than fifteen favorite laptime rhymes.  From “Pat-a-Cake” to “The Itsy Bitsy Spider”, and from “Here is the Church” to “Five Little Monkeys”, your child will enjoy playing along and singing along right with you.

I am a huge fan of interactive reading materials. That’s why I have always enjoyed The Crypto-Capers series by Renee Hand. One of the best ways I know how to get kids interested in reading at a young age is by making reading fun. That’s exactly what This Little Piggy does.  

I wasn’t familiar with the artwork of Hannah Wood until this book. Now I’m going to search for more books that she’s illustrated. Her characters are cute, charming, and sometimes funny. The spiders are playful and fuzzy looking, the fingers on the hand for “Where is Thumbkin?” have faces, and there are five adorable little monkeys dressed in pajamas jumping on the bed. I swear the doctor told them not to do that. 😉

Preschools and homes everywhere will want to own a copy of This Little Piggy: And Other Favorite Action Rhymes.

Publisher: Tiger Tales

ISBN-10: 1589258495

ISBN-13: 978-1589258495

SRP:  $8.95

Rating:  🙂 🙂 🙂 🙂 🙂

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